Tochigi Brex claim 1st Japanese B League title

The Link Tochigi Brex downed the Toshiba Brave Thunders Kanagawa 79-85 in the final game to be crowned the inaugural Japanese B League champions this 2017. The Brex were the reigning Japanese NBL champions from 2016. Japanese basketball reorganized their structure this season into three main divisions; the B League, B League D2, and B League D3. The win by the Brex, helps usher in and celebrate a fresh start and new era for Japanese hoops.

The Tochigi Brex maximized their advantage in the low post. The team shot an impressive 31-of-52 shots from two-point range. They dictated the action in the paint, mainly spearheaded by the efforts of Ryan Rossiter, who finished the game with 12 points and 16 boards. The scoring was taken cared of by Jefferey Gibbs and Takatoshi Furukawa who chipped in 25 points and 21 points, respectively.

Nick Fazekas led the way for Toshiba with 23 points and 11 rebounds, but the Tochigi Brex defense was on him like glue for most of the night, forcing him to get most of his point from the free throw line. He was effective on that end, making a perfect 13-of-13 shots from the charity stripe.

The Tochigi Brex had the more fluid flowing offense in this game. They nearly had double the assists of Toshiba with a 19-10 advantage in that statistical category.

Will we see a repeat from the Tochigi Brex in 2017-18 or will another team rise up and claim the gold at the end of the season?