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San-En NeoPhoenix saw a three-game win streak in the 2020-21 B League season come to an end on Sunday after losing to Niigata Albirex BB, 86-79, to close out a two-game home stay at the Toyohashi City Gymnasium in Japan.
Thirdy Ravena was productive once again from the bench and contributed 10 points, four rebounds and one assist in nearly 18 minutes of play, but that wasn’t enough for a NeoPhoenix team that couldn’t replicate their 85-81 win. the same Niigata team they beat on Saturday.
Stevan Jelovac led San-En’s charge with 24 points and nine rebounds, but the Serbian import was only limited to five points in a crucial second half. Hayato Kawashima and Nenad Miljenovic added 10 each.
San-En, who lost the services of imported Kyle Hunt on Sunday, fell to 5-18 in the Western District.
In fact, the hosts got off to a good start again before losing steam in the second half, where a Niigata team trailing 54-49 midway through the third quarter used a 10-0 lead to clinch a 59-foot wing. -54 that I would fill in for the rest of the way.
Although the NeoPhoenix showed signs of life and tied the game at 71 apiece with less than six minutes to go, Niigata outscored San-En 15-8 the rest of the way to claim victory on the road.
Allen Durham, Meralco’s resident reinforcement and three-time PBA Best Import, even handed the dagger to the visitors with an easy finish on the inside to give Niigata an 85-75 lead, the largest in the game, with more than a minute to play.
Durham finished with a double-double of 17 points and 11 rebounds for Niigata, who snapped a six-game losing streak to improve to 7-16. Once he led the team in scoring was Jason Washburn, who had 22 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
Rosco Allen shot 21 and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Kimitake Sato added 11.
San-En can get back on track on December 26, when he takes on Akita Happinets on the road in the first of two games at 5:05 p.m.
THE SCORES
Niigata Albirex BB 86 –Washburn 22, Allen 21, Durham 17, Sato 11, Kashiwagura 6, Igarashi 3, Nomi 3, Ikeda 3, Hayashi 0.
San-En NeoPhoenix 79 –Jelovac 24, Ravena 10, Kawashima 10, Miljenovic 10, Shuto 9, Nishikawa 6, Ichikyu 6, Ota 4.
Trimesters: 25-17, 46-39, 60-66, 79-86.
