By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Ilonggo Kiefer Ravena and the Shiga Lakes scored an 81-74 repeat victory over the Ehime Orange Vikings in Japan B.League Division 2 at the Shiga Daihatsu Arena.
The former NLEX Road Warriors guard finished with 10 points, to go with four assists, two rebounds and a steal, as the Lakes remained in second place in the standings with a 33-12 win-loss slate.
Justin Burrell led the way for Shiga with a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds, Ryan Kriener added 17 markers, while Koya Kawamata and Hayato Wakugawa ended with 15 apiece.
“It was a bit of a bitter victory. I’m happy that we were able to win despite some injuries, but on the other hand, I’m also sad that so many people were injured,” Lakes head coach Danny Gomez said.
“There were many dangerous situations on the court, so I would like to see them controlled and prevented from getting injured. Basketball is a physical sport, but if players are allowed to play too aggressively, it can lead to injuries,” he added.
Eugene Phelps finished with a double-double of 25 points and 18 rebounds. Yamato Harada added 14 markers while Takumi Furuno and Yoshihiko Toshino ended with 12 and 11, respectively, as the Vikings dropped to 14-31.
Meanwhile, Roosevelt Adams and the Yamagata Wyverns (21-24) hacked out a stunning 76-69 victory against the Koshigaya Alphas (26-19) at the Koshigaya City Gymnasium.
The former PBA top-overall pick finished with eight points, eight rebounds, three assists, and one block in almost 24 minutes of action for the Wyverns.
James Bell led the way for the Wyverns with 17 points, including four three-point conversions, while Michael Finke added two three-point connections to end up with 14 points.
Justin Harper and Makoto Kamata each ended with 14 markers to lead the Alphas, while Kenshin Hoshikawa added 13 markers in the defeat./ASC, WDJ