Sports

Yokohama B-Corsairs are Focused on Building a Strong Foundation

With a new head coach and several key newcomers, the Yokohama B-Corsairs have made solid strides in the first few weeks of the 2024-25 B.League season.

Published

2 days ago

October 16, 2024

Ed Odeven

Yokohama B-Corsairs forward Damien Inglis shoots a jumper against the Alvark Tokyo on October 13 at Yokohama International Swimming Pool. (©B.LEAGUE)

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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.

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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.