KIEFER Ravena made sure that he will end the Japan B.League season strong, returning in action for the Yokohama B-Corsairs for the final weekend of action.
Playing in his first game since being sidelined on April 13 by a leg injury, the veteran guard put up big numbers, albeit in a pair of losses, to wrap up his season in the Land of the Rising Sun.
READ Filipino imports risk missing out on Japan B.League playoffs
Ravena erupted for 18 points, five assists, two boards, and one steal in Yokohama’s 86-73 defeat to Fighting Eagles Nagoya at Yokohama Buntai on Saturday. He lit up for 23 points, five rebounds, five assists, and three steals a day later, but that, too, ended in a 75-72 heartbreaker as Yokohama finished the season at 24-36.
No team with an Asian Quota Import from the Philippines made it to the playoffs.
Dwight Ramos and AJ Edu, meanwhile, ended their Japan B.League seasons on a winning note.
Though Levanga Hokkaido and Nagasaki Velca both failed to progress in the playoffs, that didn’t stop them from fighting for pride and ending their respective skids to gain a bit of a consolation as their seasons came to a close.
Ramos helped Hokkaido take a 83-70 win over Ibaraki Robots at Hokkai Kitayell on Sunday with his nine points, four rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
That was a good bounce back from the Levanga’s 82-73 defeat to the same team on Saturday where Ramos had eight points, five boards, and four assists.
AJ Edu stands out
Hokkaido finished with a 21-39 slate for this campaign.
Edu, on the other hand, was vital in Nagasaki Velca’s skid-busting weekend sweep of Osaka Evessa at Ookini Arena Maishima.
The Gilas Pilipinas center nabbed 14 points, four rebounds, and one block in Nagasaki’s 89-72 rout on Saturday, before collecting two points, five boards, three steals, two blocks, and one dime in the Velca’s 85-76 win on Sunday.
Nagasaki was 26-34 for the season.
Ray Parks was on the wrong side of that duel as Osaka dropped four straight to end the campaign. He had 12 points and six rebounds on Saturday, while his 13-point effort on Sunday was for naught as the Evessa ended up at 29-31.
Matthew Wright also got a win in the final weekend of the eliminations as the Kawasaki Brave Thunders slipped past San-En NeoPhoenix, 84-82, on Saturday at Kawasaki Todoroki Arena where he had seven points and two steals.
However, the Brave Thunders could not make it two in a row, losing on Sunday, 100-65, with Wright only getting eight points and three rebounds to close the season at 18-42.
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