San En and Niigata will be looking to build on their victories last Sunday when the two franchises face each other twice this coming weekend.
They square off on Saturday at 5:05 PM and on Sunday at 1:05 PM.
Both squads finished 9th among 10 teams in their respective brackets last season. They are now looking to keep in step with the traditional B. League powerhouses.
Of course, the marquee match-up in these back-to-back encounters will be the clash featuring good friends Thirdy Ravena and Kobe Paras.
(C) B.League
Ravena was key in NeoPhoenix’s 101-96 overtime win over the Shiga Lakestars as he dropped 21 points while also giving his team seven rebounds and five assists. After two games, the former King Eagle has averaged 16 points, next only to NeoPhoenix’s German import Elias Harris who is scoring 18.5 per outing.
Photo from Niigata Albirex
Paras, who erupted for 25 points in a losing effort in their first game against the Kyoto Hannaryz, converted two crucial basket attempts in the endgame en route to finishing with 10 points as his team eked out a 76-75 thriller in the rematch. He and Hungarian import Rosco Allen lead the Niigata Albirex in scoring with 17.5 points apiece.
Between the two teams, NeoPhoenix has shown at least in the first two games that they have the deeper roster as coach Branislav Vicentic has been utilizing practically his entire lineup.
Aside from Ravena and Harris, two others are averaging in double figures for NeoPhoenix. These are Ravena’s backcourt partner Syota Tsuyama with 14.5 points and B.League returnee Robert Carter with 13.5 points. Import Justin Knox and backup shooting guard Yoshiyuki Matsuwaki are the only other players scoring more than five points per outing for the team.
Albirex has seen more balanced contributions from Coach Fujitaka Hiraoko’s usual nine-men rotation.
Point guard Yuto Nohmi, who made the game-winning basket last Sunday, upped his average to 11.0 points this season. Four other players are chipping in at least six points for Niigata. These are NBA journeyman Jeff Ayres and South African Tshilidzi Nephawe and their two offseason pickups, shooting guard Endo Zen and point guard Shun Watanuki.
The imports of NeoPhoenix have had the bigger impact thus far for their squad. Aside from leading the team in offense, the 6-foot-8 Harris is also helping with his 9.5 boards and 2 steals. Carter, who reinforced the Hiroshima B-Corsairs last season, is shooting 36.5-percent from the three-point area while back-up slot man Knox is providing 8.5 points and 9.0 rebounds in just 21 minutes on the floor per outing.
The 6-foot-9 Allen, who is on his second season with Albirex, has been doing the heavy lifting for his ballclub. His stat-line reads 9 boards and 5 assists per showing. He will need a lot more from his co-imports if Niigata wants to go far this season.
Ayres, a 6-foot-10 center who played in the NBA for the Portland Trailblazers, Indiana Pacers, San Antonio Spurs, and LA Clippers, is contributing just 9.5 points and 6.0 boards while Nephawe, another 6-foot-10 center, is posting pedestrian numbers of 7.0 points and 7.0 rebounds.
It would be interesting to see the chess match between the two coaches as they decide who they will task to cover the opposing team’s Filipino import.
Niigata’s options to shadow Ravena are limited. Either Coach Hiraoko calls on his youngsters, 23-year-old 6-foot-5 Tomoki Hoshino and 22-year-old, 6-foot-4 Kotaro Oya, or his veterans, 6-foot-3 Yuichi Ikeda, 38; and 6-foot-1 Kimitake Sato, 37. All four have rarely seen action this season.
Similarly, NeoPhoenix will realize it is not easy finding someone at the three spot to stand eyeball-to-eyeball with the 6-foot-6 Paras. Yusei Suguira, recruited from the Shimane Susanoo Magic, is a 6-foot-5 forward who does not have the quickness to keep pace with Paras. Coach Vicentic could probably try 6-foot-3 starting small forward Kazuma Tsuya or even 38-year-old defensive specialist Shingo Okada, but neither has the length that matches the former UP Maroon.
It is not unlikely that Ravena and Paras could end up defending each other.
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The battle of the guards will be another tantalizing sidelight to the NeoPhoenix-Niigata duel. The 5-foot-11 Tsuyama played mostly as a back-up last season for the Toyota Alvark. His transfer to NeoPhoenix brought along with it a starting role. Nohmi is a 6-foot scoring point guard who came off the bench for Niigata last season before becoming the team’s lead at the backcourt this year. Both are shifty playmakers who take good care of the ball and shoot well from beyond the arc.
The 5-foot-10 Watanuki, who came from Division II squad Tokyo Z, has been providing Niigata with good relief minutes with his 6.0 points per 14 minutes of play. NeoPhoenix, on the other hand, has two excellent back-ups at the one spot. 5-foot-11 Ryo Tawatari, who played US NCAA Division II college basketball, and 5-foot-9 Morihisa Yamauchi, who last saw action for the Shibuya Sun Rockers, are producing a combined 5 assists per game and some pesky backcourt pressure defense.
NeoPhoenix is the better rebounding team with an average of 35 a game compared to Niigata’s 29 per contest. They also move and share the ball more with 20.5 assists against Niigata’s 16.5 dimes.
Niigata turns the ball over only eight times per game whereas NeoPhoenix registers 16 turnovers per outing. Niigata also is more accurate from long range as it shoots 47-percent from three compared to NeoPhoenix’s 39-percent clip.
The home team San-En appears to have the slight edge in this blockbuster weekend joust and will seek to go up to 3-1 in the standings. But Niigata will be a live slight underdog with the ability of stealing one or perhaps even two games.
