Two wins in Osaka

Posted on October 27, 2008 6:04 PM

After a very exhausting and at the same time a very enjoyable weekend in Osaka and Kings Basketball it is great to be back home with two wins over the three time defending BJ League Champs Osaka Evessa.

They were two very exciting games which saw us blow a substantial lead in the first game but we showed patience and resilience in pulling out the one point victory, 90 - 89 in double overtime, that's right DOUBLE OVERTIME! It was great team defense down the stretch in the second overtime in which we were able to hold on and secure the victory.

The second game was a complete opposite of the first which saw us trail by double digits until late in the second period where we went on a 9 - 0 run to close out the first half down 52 - 48 on Jeff Newton's three at the half-time buzzer.

We trailed pretty much for all of the game and by as much as 15 points but closed in to 71 - 70 at the end of the third period but Osaka took a 7 point lead with just a little over 6 minutes in the game. At this time we told our guys to step on the defensive side of the ball and they did, getting big rebounds and blocks on Osaka's missed shots. We were able to transition and had some big shots by Bryan Simpson (A dunk and Offensive putback) and Shige Kinjo (Big threes down the stretch). Naoto Takushi did a superb job of taking care of the ball and ensuring we got off a good shot each possesion down to the end. We had a little trouble at the Free Throw line but hit some crucial free throws at the end to ensure we got the win 93 - 88.

Just a few of the Stats from Sunday:

Jeff Newton 31 Pts. 9 Reb.
Shige Kinjo 17 Pts.
Anthony "Mac" McHenry 15 Pts. 5 Reb.
Naoto Takushi 11 Ast. 5 Reb.
Chris Ayer 13 Pts. 6 Reb.
Bryan Simpson 8 Pts. 7 Reb.

I cannot say enough about our team, they played through alot of adversity of playing in a hostile enviroment and when things were not going our way we all stuck together and pulled out both wins. That took alot of HEART!

Through my many years involved with basketball I have always told the players I have played with and whom have played for me that heart is not something you teach, it is something you have instilled in your body to help to push you over the top and our guys had it all weekend.
Great job to Coach Dai and Coach Mu for keeping everyone focused including me through both games!

Again if anyone has any questions about Kings Basketball please feel free to e-mail me at:

richardson@okinawa-basketball.jp

Thanks for your continued support.

Coach

Go Kings!