By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Kai Sotto had another dominant game as the Yokohama B-Corsairs hacked out an 81-76 victory over Ferdinand “Thirdy” Ravena III and the San-en NeoPhoenix in Japan B.League Division 1 in the Yokohama International Pool.
The Gilas Pilipinas center finished with a game-high 23 points, on 11-of-14 field goal shooting, to go with 10 rebounds and one assist as the B-Corsairs improved to a 19-23 win-loss record.
Yuki Kawamura backed up Sotto with a double-double of 20 points and 11 assists. Devin Oliver chipped in 12 points, including two three-pointers, while Jarrod Uthoff hauled 11 rebounds to go with six points for Yokohama.
“The most important thing we did in this game was that we were able to execute the corrections we made on defense as a team, and then continue attacking in a well-balanced manner on offense,” Yokohama head coach Hayato Aoki said.
Ravena tallied 10 points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Coty Clarke had a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds, while David Dudzinski and Sota Oura had 16 and 10 points, respectively, as the NeoPhoenix dropped to 34-8.
Meanwhile, Dwight Ramos struggled with his shots as the Levanga Hokkaido (12-30) suffered a lopsided 101-79 defeat to the Utsunomiya Brex (35-7) at the Hokkai Kitayale.
The Filipino-American forward finished with one point after splitting his two free throws and missing his two field goal attempts, to go with four rebounds and one turnover, in almost 16 minutes of action for Hokkaido.
Matthew Wright’s nine markers were also not enough as the Kyoto Hannaryz (13-29) bowed to the defending champion Ryukyu Golden Kings (30-12), 106-80, at the Okinawa Arena.
For his part, Rhon Jay Abarrientos tallied 11 points, five assists and two rebounds as the Shinshu Brave Warriors (6-35) faltered to the Kawasaki Brave Thunders (22-19), 92-88, at the White Ring.
Bobby Ray Parks, Jr. delivered nine points and four rebounds, but the Nagoya Diamond Dolphins (28-13) lost to the Nagasaki Velca (16-25) at the Nagasaki Prefectural Gymnasium./ASC, WDJ