Basketball

SeaHorses Mikawa Making a Push to Clinch a Playoff Spot

The SeaHorses Mikawa, led by former NBA assistant coach Ryan Richman, have relied on strong shooting to pick up 26 wins in 37 B.League games this season.

by
Ed Odeven
February 11, 2025

With four consecutive victories, the SeaHorses Mikawa have strengthened their playoff hopes.

The B.League club is also on track to surpass its win total from the 2023-24 season when it had a 36-24 record and squeezed into the playoffs by the thinnest of margins ― one game.

Mikawa holds a two-game lead over the Chiba Jets (24-13) in the wild-card standings. (The top two teams in each of the three conferences plus two wild-card teams qualify for the playoffs in May.)

Led by second-year bench boss Ryan Richman, a former NBA assistant coach with the Washington Wizards, the SeaHorses are one of the B.League's top teams on offense. They are third in the 24-team league in field-goal shooting accuracy (46.8%) and No 6 in scoring (81.7 points per game).

The SeaHorses (26-11) completed a two-game sweep of the struggling Shiga Lakes on Sunday, February 9, cruising to a 110-73 victory.

In Otsu, Shiga Prefecture, all 12 Mikawa players who entered the game put points on the board, including forward Jake Layman (21 points, 5-for-8 from 3-point range). Frontcourt mate Zach Auguste, a University of Notre Dame alum, chipped in with 19 points on 9-for-12 shooting.

The Lakes (3-33) trailed 61-42 at halftime.

SeaHorses Mikawa Shine on Defense in the 3rd Quarter

Entering the fourth quarter, Shiga faced an 86-53 deficit.

"We were able to hold Shiga to 11 points in the third quarter, and I think the aggressive defense of the starting five led to the result," Richman told reporters after the game.

In addition to their effective defense, the SeaHorses did a commendable job running their offense, as evidenced by their 29 assists and six turnovers.

Although the Lakes have the worst record among the B.League's first-division squads, Richman pointed out that nobody's guaranteed a victory in pro basketball.

"Shiga is a young team that plays aggressively," Richman said on Sunday. "They are a team that can get a win on the road against the Sunrockers Shibuya (21-16 overall record), a team that is competing with us for the top spot [in the Central Conference], so we made it a point to play with a high level of concentration and not to take this game lightly. The players and staff embodied this.

"[For us], I think this game was played with mental focus."

The SeaHorses beat the Lakes 99-80 in the series opener on Saturday, February 8. Auguste scored a season-high 31 points, making 14 of 15 shots from the floor, to lead his team to victory.

Insights from SeaHorses Mikawa Players

On Sunday, after finishing with team-high totals in points and rebounds (seven), Layman expressed with excitement his thoughts on the game.

"I think today's game was a great victory," said Layman, who is averaging 14.7 points per game. "A lot of players contributed to today's win. I think we did the job we were supposed to do in this game, to keep fighting both offensively and defensively."

A former NBA forward (2016-22) for the Portland Trail Blazers and Minnesota Timberwolves, Layman spoke about fulfilling his duties in the series finale against Shiga.

"I think I did what I was supposed to do as usual," Layman told reporters. "[On offense], my teammates found my open moments and I was able to keep playing aggressively, which was good for me."

Veteran teammate Satoshi Nagano also maximized his minutes on the court, dishing out 10 assists in nearly 24 minutes.

Despite his role as a backup, Nagano is averaging 4.4 assists per game, 14th-highest total in the B.League. And he's logging about 17 minutes per contest.

Interviewed recently, Nagano said Mikawa's backups, aka the second unit, have a clear sense of what their responsibilities are. In the larger picture, this has enabled the team to be successful.

"What the second team members are conscious of is working hard on defense and using our legs," Nagano was quoted as saying on Tokai Television's website on January 30. "Either myself or Jake is the [ball] handler, and Ryogo [Sumino] or [Kosuke] Ishii is the shooter, so we know exactly what we have to do. We defend first and then run, and switch quickly."

Continuing to Improve

Heading into February's international break for 2025 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers, the SeaHorses have an overall winning record, but mixed results against B.League teams with winning records.

So far this season they've faced eight teams with more wins than defeats. Richman's squad is 8-10 overall against the following: San-en NeoPhoenix (0-2), Alvark Tokyo (1-2), Shimane Susanoo Magic (1-1), Gunma Crane Thunders (1-1), Kyoto Hannaryz (1-1), Sunrockers Shibuya (1-2), Nagoya Diamond Dolphins (1-1) and Osaka Evessa (2-0).

After the break, the upcoming home series against the Jets (March 1-2) and the Ryukyu Golden Kings (March 22-23), two perennial title contenders, will be important tests for Mikawa. The SeaHorses are seeking to clinch a playoff berth for the second straight year.

"I think it is important for us to prepare ourselves well," Layman said after Sunday's game.

He then said, "I think we all understand that we are not playing our best basketball yet. However, we also feel that we are getting close to that, so we want to [maintain] our focus. We want to focus on what we were not able to do in the first half of the game and practice hard."

Veteran big man Davante Gardner, a dynamic scorer and rebounder since the B.League's inception in 2016, is one of the team's tone-setting players. Now 34, Gardner leads the squad in scoring (15.6 ppg).

Swingman Yudai Nishida, who matched his season-high of 21 points against the Saga Ballooners on February 1 to help ignite Mikawa's current win streak, is contributing 8.9 ppg.

Guard/forward Yutaro Suda, another key starter, is averaging 6.8 ppg.

Around the B.League

Alvark Tokyo forward Sebastian Saiz produced a behind-the-scenes video from Day 1 of All-Star weekend in January at LaLa arena TOKYO-BAY in Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture. It's a fun look at players' perspectives on the B.League.

For Japan, whose national team is a global extension of the B.League, its next two FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers are on the road: against China (February 20) in Shenzhen and Mongolia (February 23) in Ulaanbaatar.

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.