Basketball
Kai Sotto Giving the Koshigaya Alphas a Formidable Presence at Center
Rising star Kai Sotto, who made his B.League debut in March 2023 for the Hiroshima Dragonflies, has raised his game at both ends of the court for his new team.
Filipino big man Kai Sotto is maximizing his minutes in the 2024-25 B.League season. And with increased playing time this season, his overall productivity has increased, too.
A newcomer to the Koshigaya Alphas this season, the 220-cm center scored 25 points and pulled down 18 rebounds in a 100-74 home victory over the Kawasaki Brave Thunders on Sunday, December 8. The Alphas (6-13 overall through games of December 11) completed a two-game sweep and recorded their season-best third win in a row. Sotto was in an upbeat mood in the postgame news conference.
"I think I did OK, I think I did a good job rebounding, protecting the boards," said Sotto, who suited up for the Yokohama B-Corsairs in the 2023-24 campaign.
He added, "We won by 26 points, so I think everybody did a good job 'cause there's a lot of room for improvement, but still we all did a good job, so I'm happy."
Sotto, an aspiring NBA player, is averaging 13.8 points in 18 games this season, including a season-best total of 26 on October 23 in a loss to the Akita Northern Happinets. He averaged 12.8 points and 6.4 rebounds in 34 games in 2023-24.
Moreover, Sotto has become an integral player for the Alphas, who earned promotion to the B.League first division, aka B1, for this season. He's averaging 28-plus minutes, 9.7 rebounds (No 5 in the league), 8.3 defensive rebounds (No 1 among all players in the 24-team circuit) and 1.1 blocks (tied for sixth).
Kai Sotto Continues to Develop
At age 22, Sotto is far from being a chiseled veteran. He runs the floor with youthful energy and makes highlights and mistakes during the course of a game.
For instance, he fouled out on Saturday, December 7 against the Brave Thunders. He finished with six points and six rebounds in nearly 16 minutes in the Alphas' 101-77 triumph.
It was a lesson for Sotto and his teammates, with different tactics put in place for the Sunday rematch against Kawasaki (4-15 through December 11).
"There were some adjustments for this game, one of those is just to be aggressive from the start," Sotto told reporters after the series finale. "I think I started pretty soft last game [on defense]."
In the rematch, he bounced back with one of his best games of the season.
"Instead of the refs calling fouls on me, they started calling fouls on my opponent," Sotto commented. "So I just have to be more aggressive ... when I'm on the court."
A Coach's Perspective on Kai Sotto
Alphas coach Ryuzo Anzai recognizes that Sotto has talent and potential to keep growing as a player.
"Kai is an exceptional athlete who moves incredibly well for his height and transitions seamlessly from fakes to dunks," Anzai said.
Assessing Sotto's career at this stage, Anzai noted, "He is still young, and his experience level is probably not that high. And Kai himself is in the process of growing up after getting a certain amount of playing time with this team."
On coaching someone who is a key member of the Philippines national team, Anzai spoke about the sense of duty he has to help Sotto further develop his game.
"He's a player who represents his country, so it's our job as coaches to think about how we can help him grow," Anzai told reporters.
Added Anzai, "I want to see him progress to the next level."
Playing in 2025 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers, Sotto has helped the Philippines open with four wins in as many games while contributing 15.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per contest.
A Veteran Mentor for Kai Sotto
Alphas frontcourt stalwart Jeff Gibbs is 44 and nearing the end of his career. That said, he remains a productive player years after most pro athletes have retired, contributing 13.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists for Koshigaya.
Gibbs' college career began before Sotto was born, and in the years that followed he's acquired a wealth of basketball wisdom. And Sotto is eager to learn from his older teammate.
"As a young person, I think he is a great player from whom I can learn a lot," Sotto declared.
"Jeff is a real veteran and I've learned so much from him, and it's just getting better," Sotto said of the team leader and the Alphas' improvement. He called it "an honor and a blessing" to learn from Gibbs.
Sotto also said he feels Anzai is an ideal sideline supervisor for him at this point in his basketball career.
"I really love our coaching staff, especially Coach Anzai," Sotto told reporters.
"He's strict and he's straightforward, and as a player, I appreciate that because every time in the game if I'm not aggressive or if I'm not doing my job, he's not afraid to sub me out," Sotto added. "And as a player, you appreciate that honesty and you want your coach to be hard on you."
A Career Milestone for Togashi
In the Chiba Jets' 87-74 road loss to the San-en NeoPhoenix on December 7, franchise cornerstone Yuki Togashi had a season-best 37 points. He was 7-for-11 from 3-point range, making a season-high mark for most 3s and matching his highest total for attempts.
In addition, Togashi became the first player with 1,100 career 3-pointers in B.League regular-season games.
As a reminder of Togashi's poise in pressure-packed moments, he made the winning basket in the Jets' two-point away triumph over the Alphas on December 11, converting a driving layup with 2 seconds remaining.
Chiba (15-4) triumphed 84-82.
Sotto scored 17 points on 5-for-16 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds. Alphas teammate Shun Matsuyama led the club in scoring (24 points).
Up next: The Alphas return to action against the San-en Neo Phoenix (15-4) on Saturday and Sunday, December 14 and 15 in Hamamatsu. And the title-chasing Jets play host to the Gunma Crane Thunders (13-6, winners of six straight) on the same days.
Rosters for the B.League All-Star Game
The 2025 B.League All-Star Game will be held on Sunday, January 19. It caps a weekend of fun activities, including the ever-popular Slam Dunk Contest, at LaLa arena TOKYO-BAY.
Player lineups for the All-Star Game were recently announced.
For B.Black, the following starters have been chosen by fan voting: Makoto Hiejima (Utsunomiya Brex), Naoto Tsuji (Gunma Crane Thunders), Josh Hawkinson (Sunrockers Shibuya), Koya Kawamata (Nagasaki Velca) and Yudai Baba (Velca). Other All-Stars: DJ Newbill (Brex), Sota Okura (Alvark Tokyo), Sebastian Saiz (Alvark), Daiki Tanaka (Sunrockers), Takumi Saito (Nagoya Diamond Dolphins), Dwayne Evans (Hiroshima Dragonflies), Yusuke Endo (Brex) and Yuma Fujii (Kawasaki Brave Thunders). Hawkinson is the team captain.
For B.White, the selected All-Star starters are: Yuki Togashi (Chiba Jets), Ryusei Shinoyama (Brave Thunders), Yuta Watanabe (Jets), Hirotaka Yoshii (San-en NeoPhoenix) and Jeff Gibbs (Koshigaya Alphas). Other All-Stars: Jae Min Yang (Sendai 89ers), Yutaro Suda (SeaHorses Mikawa), Matt Bonds (Osaka Evessa), Seiya Ando (Shimane Susanoo Magic), Ryuichi Kishimoto (Ryukyu Golden Kings), Jack Cooley (Golden Kings), Shuta Hara (Jets) and Hiroki Tashiro (Jets). Togashi is the captain.
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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.