The run of Toyama in the 97th Emperor’s Cup has come to an end Wednesday evening, falling to Kawasaki, 58-70, at the Todoroki Arena in Kawasaki.
And it was a lethargic second quarter that doomed the Grouses.
Leading by three points entering the second stanza, Toyama could only muster six points in the frame. Meanwhile, Nick Fazekas and co. dropped 21 points to gain a 40-28 lead.
Dwight Ramos was able to get the lead down to six, 55-49, after back-to-back buckets to start the final frame. But crippling treys by Yuma Fujii and Pablo Aguilar late punched the Brave Thunders’ ticket to the fifth round.
Kawasaki, who will face Tokyo in the next round on January 5, was led by Fazekas, who had 16 points and 14 rebounds.
Matt Janning and Fujii got 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Bryce Johnson paced the Grouses with 25 points on 12-of-19 shooting from the field with 23 rebounds while Julian Mavunga added 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Ramos had an off-shooting game, going just 2-of-14 from the field for eight points. He also had five rebounds and an assist against three turnovers.
Toyama returns to the B.League this weekend to face Ryukyu at Okinawa Arena.
