The Akita Northern Happinets turned their 2023-24 B.League season around in December.
And it happened in the same month in which new roster additions Tanner Leissner and Javier Carter, University of New Hampshire and University of South Alabama alum, respectively, made their season debuts.
Heading into a two-game series against the Fighting Eagles Nagoya on Friday and Saturday, December 29 and 30, Akita (12-12 overall) has gone 9-1 in its 10 games this month.
"The next games are the last games of the year, so we will prepare to win at home," Northern Happinets head coach Kenzo Maeda said.
Akita started December with a six-game winning streak before dropping the series finale 65-63 against the Osaka Evessa on December 17.
Since then, the Northern Happinets have won three in a row. Their current win streak began with an 84-56 rout of the visiting Gunma Crane Thunders on December 20. What followed? Back-to-back victories (79-63 and 88-72) over the Ibaraki Robots (1-23) on December 23 and 24.
Most notably this month, Akita topped the Utsunomiya Brex 67-63 on December 6. The Brex (18-6 through December 24) are two-time league champions and one of the best overall teams in the B.League.
Based on all of the above, December has been an extended Christmas present ― a joyful celebration of winning ― for Akita's rabid fans.
A Poor Start in the Season's First Two Months
At the same time, the Northern Happinets have transformed their hopes of qualifying for the playoffs into a distinct possibility.
Entering December, that appeared impossible. After all, Akita owned a 3-11 record following its 76-67 defeat to the Alvark Tokyo on November 12.
Then the B.League's autumn break began, giving the Northern Happinets time to retool their roster.
Insights from Northern Happinets Coach Maeda
Appointed Akita head coach in 2019, Maeda has a perspective that comes from several years of observing his team's ups and downs on the basketball court.
Reacting to his team's recent victory over the Brex, Maeda noted that it was an important achievement.
"I think this victory was won by the players in a great environment at the Brex's home court in Utsunomiya, where they all worked together with high intensity and execution for 40 minutes," Maeda told reporters after the December 6 game.
"It was a game that gave us a lot of confidence as a team, and I think it was a great game because the players understood the game plan well in a short period of time. And we were able to win the game patiently while putting out our own concepts in the midst of it."
Akita held Utsunomiya to 12 points in the third quarter and 14 in the fourth. The Northern Happinets scored 33 second-half points to secure the win.
Leissner, Noboru Hasegawa and Carter paced the visitors with 10 points apiece. Veteran center Steve Zack grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds in the win.
'Positive Momentum' with Win Over the Brex
"We are very happy to be able to return home with this positive momentum going into the next game against the Yokohama B-Corsairs, as we have only won once at home," Maeda said on December 6.
"As a team, we need to improve in some areas, so we will continue to grow and prepare to deliver a victory."
How did the Northern Happinets fare against the B-Corsairs on December 9 and 10?
They earned 93-85 and 74-73 victories, moving closer to a .500 winning percentage.
Joy on Christmas Eve for the Northern Happinets
In their most recent game, veteran shooting guard Shigehiro Taguchi, who has played all but three seasons for Akita since making his pro debut in 2012, had a dynamic performance.
On Christmas Eve, the 33-year-old Taguchi sank 5 of 10 3-pointers en route to a season-best 20 points in 16-plus impactful minutes off the bench.
"I realized in yesterday's game that my shooting is my strength, so I had to think about shooting first in order to improve my shooting percentage," Taguchi told reporters. He was 1-for-6 shooting and had three points on December 23.
In the series finale, Leissner had 16 points, Takatoshi Furukawa and Takuya Nakayama poured in 11 and Zack contributed 10 in the team's well-balanced offensive attack. Point guard Ko Kumagai finished with nine points and eight assists.
After the 16-point win, Maeda commented on the team's gritty performance, noting adjustments that were made along the way.
"In the first half, the game became very offensive, and it was difficult to play defense," Maeda said.
Then, he added, "In the second half, we switched it up, and although we made some mistakes, the players were focused when we were able to pull away in the fourth quarter. I am glad that we were able to overcome the mistakes we made yesterday."
Akita outscored Ibaraki 40-29 in the second half.
Key Players for Akita
Among the team's key contributors, the 201-cm Leissner is averaging 15.5 points and 8.3 rebounds in his 10 games.
Carter, also with 10 appearances to date, is contributing 9.9 points and 6.3 rebounds. In a good omen for the Northern Happinets, Carter had 18 points in his season debut on December 2. He previously played for the club from 2019-21, then moved on to play for the Nagasaki Velca and Yamagata Wyverns in 2021-22 and 2022-23 in the B.League third and second divisions, respectively.
Furukawa (9.5 points per game, including seven games with 10 or more points in December), Taguchi (8.3 points per game) and Zack (8.9 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists) are among the veteran leaders of the club. Raita Akaho (6.2 points), Kumagai (7.7 points, 4.3 assists), Nakayama (4.9 points, 2.8 assists) and Hasegawa (6.6 points) are also making an impact.
And one of the recent individual highlights came from Akitoshi Oguri with eight points in just over 2 minutes of playing time against Gunma on December 20. The 22-year-old knocked down both of his 3-point attempts and was 2-for-2 at the foul line.
During the course of a long 60-game season, hot streaks and cold streaks occur for all teams.
Clearly, the Northern Happinets aim to extend their hot streak and continue to make steady improvement as the calendar flips to 2024.
The Last Word ... from Javier Carter
When the Northern Happinets announced on December 1 that Carter was returning to the team after a two-year absence, the veteran big man outlined his goals for the rest of the season.
"I am glad to be back and to be able to help the team compete and better our record," Carter said, according to a news release. "We will fight as always and I will join the team in competing at the highest level to be one of the best teams in the B.League."
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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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