YOKOHAMA ― It's been said for centuries that Rome wasn't built in a day. The same principle is true in professional sports for rebuilding teams, including the B.League's Yokohama B-Corsairs.
Coming off a disappointing 24-36 season under former head coach Taketo Aoki, the B-Corsairs are in the early stages of overhauling their team. Finnish bench boss Lassi Tuovi is the team's new leader.
Four games isn't a large enough sample size to make definitive proclamations about a rebuilding team at the outset of a new season.
The B-Corsairs are 2-2 heading into Week 3 of the 2024-25 season. And they are one of 13 clubs in the 24-team league with one or two defeats, indicative of parity in the early portion of the 60-game campaign.
Yokohama opened its season with back-to-back away wins against the Sendai 89ers, 72-68 and 77-75, on October 5 and 6.
Alvark Tokyo coach Dainius Adomaitis recognizes that the B-Corsairs are starting to establish their identity under Tuovi, who also coaches the Finland national team.
After Tokyo defeated Yokohama 79-68 on Sunday, October 13, Adomaitis told reporters that contending with the B-Corsairs' physicality and aggressive play posed challenges. (Adomaitis, who hails from Lithuania, is one of the league's best coaches. The Alvark went 48-12 in 2023-24 with Adomaitis calling the shots.)
Alvark forward Ryan Rossiter, who finished with game-high totals in points (27) and rebounds (17), expressed a similar view about the B-Corsairs' toughness.
"We didn't play well, but we got the win," Rossiter told reporters at Yokohama International Swimming Pool.
Back-to-Back Losses to the Alvark
Yokohama played a scrappy, intense game in the series finale, a day after losing 89-80 in its home opener.
The Alvark (4-0) secured back-to-back victories by outscoring the B-Corsairs 13-2 over the final 2:15 in the fourth quarter.
Before the game-ending run, Yokohama swingman Hiroki Matsuzaki converted a layup to make it 66-66.
"It was a very physical and competitive game," Tuovi said in the postgame press conference. "I felt again that the Alvark Tokyo are a great team."
The difference, he said, was that Tokyo made plays over the final two minutes.
"It was another frustrating result," Tuovi said.
Yokohama B-Corsairs Showcase Firm Determination
On Sunday, the hosts trailed 5-0 in the early going and by five-point margins on two other occasions in the opening quarter. But they maintained their intensity and whittled away at the lead.
Yusei Sugiura knocked down a 3-pointer from the left baseline as the B-Corsairs pulled to within 17-15 at the 2:50 mark.
Moments after Tokyo playmaker Kai Toews extended the lead to 22-19 on a short-range jumper, a quick sequence of plays highlighted the emerging fusion of the team's returning players and newcomers.
After Zack Baranski missed a 3-pointer, Estonian-born big man Maik Kotsar grabbed a defensive rebound. Next, the ball went to Damien Inglis, another B-Corsairs newcomer, who passed the ball to guard Kai King.
Then, in the blink of an eye, the score was tied (22-22) as King nailed a 3-pointer with 2 seconds left in the first quarter.
Yokohama took a 30-27 lead on a Koya Sudo jumper with 6:11 remaining in the second quarter.
Emblematic of their title aspirations, the Alvark embarked on a dazzling 11-0 scoring spurt jump-started by a Rossiter, who converted a layup. And Tokyo's lead quickly ballooned to 38-30 on a Shuto Ando 3-pointer with 1:02 to play before halftime.
But the B-Corsairs closed out the half on a positive note. Sugiura sank a 3-pointer. Filipino guard Kiefer Ravena, who joined the team in the offseason after spending the past three seasons with the Shiga Lakes, registered his first assist of the game on the scoring play. That cut the lead to 38-33.
Spirited Competition in the 3rd Quarter
In the third quarter, the B-Corsairs received a boost on offense from power forward Gary Clark, a veteran of four NBA seasons (2018-22). The University of Cincinnati alum had seven of his 11 points in the period, including a 3-pointer that knotted the score at 47-47 at the 3:28 mark.
Yokohama made just 6 of 20 shots from the floor in the third, so each basket was big. But Tuovi's squad played tough defense to keep it close.
Ando buried a 3-pointer to give the Alvark a 56-54 advantage late in the quarter and the score remained the same heading into the final stanza.
Both teams engaged in a spirited competition for the majority of the fourth quarter before the tide turned late in the closing minutes.
"I think we played a good game for 37 minutes today," King told reporters. "But the Alvark Tokyo are a really great team, and they didn't let us do what we wanted to do at the end, and the other side scored [points] in an important situation [at the end]."
The B-Corsairs are now preparing to face the Kawasaki Brave Thunders (1-3), Central Conference rivals, on Friday and Saturday, October 18 and 19 at Todoroki Arena.
Insights from Coach Tuovi
After Sunday's game, Tuovi said his team displayed toughness and exerted maximum energy throughout the game to stay competitive.
"It was a lot of wrestling and battling and competition and high-level [basketball]," he told reporters.
Noting the score was tied with just over 2 minutes remaining, Tuovi credited Tokyo for its superior performance to end the game.
Citing some turnovers and missed shots down the stretch, Tuovi characterized his team's late offensive struggles as "a little unlucky." Moving forward, he stressed the need for "a little more disciplined" approach on offense.
In an interview with SportsLook after the postgame press conference, Tuovi, 37, gave specific examples of the team's top objectives early in the season.
"I think you need to know what is your rhythm and what is the basketball that will give you the control of the game," Tuovi said.
During the first 15 games of the season, he added, "we need to learn our identity ― when the game is going our way and when the game is not at our tempo and rhythm and our control. So that's the main thing."
What else does Tuovi, who has held coaching posts in Turkey, France and Italy, consider a key goal for the B-Corsairs?
"I would like also to be the team that is kind of electric, active," he said, adding, "especially on defense."
Tuovi acknowledged that he's pleased with the effort that his players have given on the court in the first couple weeks of the season. But there's room for improvement.
"We need also to learn when the other team is electric, maybe we have the power to change the rhythm [of the game]," Tuovi said. He called it one of the necessary steps of team building, referring to it as "learning who we are."
Statistical Leaders for the B-Corsairs
With four games in the books, Inglis is the team's leading scorer (12.8 points per game) and No 1 in assists (4.0). He suited up for the Spanish League's Valencia Basket in 2023-24.
Kotsar, who also played in Spain last season (Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz) is averaging a double-double with 10.5 ppg and a team-leading 11.0 rebounds along with 3.5 assists.
Clark is also scoring in double digits (10.3 ppg).
Sudo and King are contributing 9.8 and 9.3 ppg, respectively. Ravena is having a solid season with his new team, chipping in with 7.5 points and 2.3 assists.
With fellow point guard Kenta Morii, a quality ball handler and passer, sidelined with a right hamstring strain, Ravena will carry a bigger workload in his absence as the offensive conductor. Morii sustained the injury on October 6, and he's expected to be sidelined for up to six weeks.
Tuovi said Ravena's role is vital for the team.
"He needs to be aggressive, not only to score but to create for the others," the coach commented.
As the season progresses, the B-Corsairs and Ravena will grow more familiar with each other game after game, according to Tuovi.
"Every day he's very humble to learn," Tuovi said of Ravena.
Clark Says B-Corsairs are Heading in the Right Direction
After Sunday's game, Clark spoke about the team's growth and the adjustments the players are making under Tuovi.
"I think we are doing pretty good," Clark, 29, told SportsLook. "It's a complete 360 of, like, the way the team was last year."
The arrival of a new coach and the infusion of new players brought about "a drastic change" for the Yokohama B-Corsairs, he added.
With back-to-back road wins against the 89ers to open the season and by performing at a high level versus the Alvark, Clark believes the B-Corsairs are changing the narrative about the team.
"From the outside looking in, you've got to say that this Yokohama team, if they continue to build the way they are building, we'll be a team to beat," said Clark, whose NBA career included stints with the Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic, Denver Nuggets, Philadelphia 76ers and New Orleans Pelicans. "Obviously, we've got a lot more games to be played."
Clark suited up for the Australian NBL's Illawarra Hawks in 2023-24.
As B.League fans start to get acclimated to Clark's personality on the court, what will they see?
In his own words, "I'm even-keeled. I have no emotions. If I hit a big shot, if I get a big dunk, I'm even keel. If anybody's watched me from college to Australia to the NBA, I have the exact same emotion. … I'm doing my job, I'm never never too high, I'm never too low, I'm right in the middle."
Looking back on the start of preseason training camp, as Tuovi began to put his stamp on the team, Clark remembers the bench boss telling the players, "Motivation is a feeling that comes and goes, but discipline is infinitely more important."
Scoring Milestone
For Tokyo star Rossiter, Week 2 of the new season included a major career milestone. He became the fourth player in B.League history to score 6,000 points, reaching that total on Saturday. The Siena (New York) College alum now has 6,032 points.
SeaHorses Mikawa big man Davante Gardner is the league's all-time leading scorer (9,885 points). He is followed by retired Kawasaki Brave Thunders great Nick Fazekas (9,552) and Chiba Jets franchise cornerstone Yuki Togashi (6,453).
Did You Know?
Only three B.League teams remain unbeaten after four games: the Alvark, the Osaka Evessa and the Shimane Susanoo Magic.
Top Scorer
Nagasaki Velca forward Jarrell Brantley, a College of Charleston product, leads the B.League in scoring (23.8 ppg). A former NBA player for the Utah Jazz, Brantley also suited up for the New Zealand Breakers in the 2022-23 campaign before joining the Velca the next season.
A Look Ahead
In addition to Kawasaki vs Yokohama, the following two-game series are penciled in for Week 3: Akita Northern Happinets vs Saga Ballooners, Chiba Jets vs Kyoto Hannaryz, Shiga Lakes vs Ryukyu Golden Kings, Sendai 89ers vs Utsunomiya Brex, Gunma Crane Thunders vs Nagasaki Velca, Koshigaya Alphas vs Shimane Susanoo Magic, San-en NeoPhoenix vs Alvark Tokyo, SeaHorses Mikawa vs Osaka Evessa, Fighting Eagles Nagoya vs Levanga Hokkaido, Ibaraki Robots vs Nagoya Diamond Dolphins and Sunrockers Shibuya vs Hiroshima Dragonflies.
All of the weekend series begin on Saturday except for the Kawasaki-Yokohama pairing.
Check out the updated standings on the B.League website.
RELATED:
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- Gunma Overpowers Defending B.League Champion Hiroshima in the Season Opener
- B.League Coaching Carousel: New Bench Bosses in Hiroshima, Gunma, Yokohama and Nagasaki
Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
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