Ed Odeven 
Ryukyu Golden Kings center Jack Cooley looks to score against the Alvark Tokyo in a B.League game on February 2 at Yoyogi National Stadium. (©B.LEAGUE)
Read the full story on SportsLook - Ryukyu Golden Kings Playing with Pride and Showing Toughness
The Ryukyu Golden Kings are an interesting case study in resilience. In the game after a loss, they are often at their best.
Ryukyu leads the B.League's eight-team Western Conference with a 25-10 record through Sunday, February 2. And one of the big reasons for the team's overall success is its general trend of playing better in the final game of a two-game series.
Coach Dai Oketani's club, which advanced to the B.League Finals in each of the past three seasons, has lost the opening contest of a two-game set on seven occasions during the 2024-25 campaign. The Golden Kings have also earned a series split six times. In other words, they are 6-1 to close out a series following a loss.
After a season-opening 96-92 home defeat to the San-en NeoPhoenix on October 5, Ryukyu rebounded with an 82-74 win the next day.
This started a season-defining trend for the Okinawa team. The host Shiga Lakes topped the Golden Kings 89-81 on October 19. What happened in the rematch? Ryukyu rolled to a 108-72 triumph the next day.
Here's another example: The Akita Northern Happinets collected a 67-63 road win over the Golden Kings on December 14. A day later, Ryukyu flipped the script, winning 70-59 at Okinawa Arena.
Ryukyu Golden Kings Exhibit Moxie
In their first series after January 19's B.League All-Star Game, the Golden Kings faced the Utsunomiya Brex, another legitimate title contender. The Brex dominated the opener, earning a 105-86 victory on January 25 in Okinawa City. Oketani's squad followed the trend described above with a 97-88 conquest of the Brex the next day.
"All the players kept their spirits up after the loss in Game 1 and overcame the adversity," Oketani told reporters at Okinawa Arena on January 26. "We are a team that pulls out victories through rebounding, and I feel that the fact that everyone focused on getting rebounds even in a game that was continuously tense led to our victory."
In the series opener, Utsunomiya outrebounded Ryukyu 41-29. The hosts dominated on the boards in the second game, holding a 38-30 rebounding edge.
Veteran forward Keve Aluma, who scored a game-high 31 points on January 26, was pleased with the Golden Kings' defensive effort in the bounce-back win.
"We were able to play defense with high intensity and aggressiveness," Aluma commented after the series finale. "And the team was able to refocus after yesterday's loss, so I feel that it was a good game."
In winning 25 of their first 35 games this season, the Golden Kings have relied on dominant rebounding (averaging a league-high 43.9 per game) and strong scoring (84.1 points per game, No 3 overall).
Continue reading the full story on SportsLook.
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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.
