Matthew Aquino was not fielded by Shinshu, Saturday afternoon.
Still, the Brave Warriors were able to Osaka Evessa, 85-82, to snap their four-game skid in the 2021-22 B.League season at the Ookini Arena Maishima.
Aquino, who had only been with Shinshu for less than two weeks, was in uniform for the first time this season.
Coach Michael Katsuhisa opted to let his project get acclimated with his teammates and the environment first.
And it was a good game for the 6-foot-8 second generation cager to learn from.
Seeing their once 12 point lead evaporate and Osaka leading by one, Anthony McHenry took matters into his own hands, nailing the go-ahead bucket with 28 seconds left. Forcing a stop of the other end, Yuta Okada was fouled and converted on two clutch free throws to give his side an 85-82 lead.
Osaka designed a play for DJ Newbill but was quickly denied by the Brave Warriors. It led to Makoto Kinoshita attempting an ill-advised triple that missed.
Shinshu raised its record to 3-4 while dropping Osaka to the same record.
Josh Hawkinson led Shinshu in the points department with 17 points while McHenry tallied 14 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists.
Newbill had 29 points to lead Osaka while Ira Brown had 11 points.
The two teams face off again tomorrow at 3:05PM.
