Thirdy Ravena held to 11 as San-En crashes to 5th straight loss

MANILA, Philippines – Thirdy Ravena and the San-En NeoPhoenix failed to put an end to their losing streak as they fell once again to the Kyoto Hannaryz, 79-62, in the Japan B. League on Sunday, January 30.

Ravena, who tied his season-high 26 points on Saturday, January 29, was a marked man all throughout the ball game and was limited to just 11 points on 4-of-11 shooting.

The Filipino import Ravena also had 4 rebounds and 4 assists in the losing effort as San-En absorbed its fifth straight loss and moved down to 4-24 in the standings.

On the one hand, Kyoto’s Justin Harper, who erupted for 36 markers on Saturday, continued to be a thorn on the side of San-En as he finished with a monster double-double of 30 points and 12 rebounds.

After being down 22-34 at halftime, the NeoPhoenix slowly clawed their way back and trimmed the double-digit advantage to just 7, 55-48, heading into the fourth quarter.

San-En continued to show signs of life early in the final frame, trailing by just 9, 58-67, with 4 minutes remaining.

However, a three-pointer by Kyoto’s Jerome Tillman and two free throws by Harper in the following possessions pushed the Hannaryz’s lead back to 14, 72-58, which proved too big for the NeoPhoenix to overcome with only 3 minutes left on the clock.

Tillman also posted a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds for Kyoto, while Tatsuya Suzuki tallied 13 points and 7 assists.

Robert Carter led the way for San-En with his own double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Yoshiyuki Matsuwaki added 16 markers.

Ravena and the rest of the NeoPhoenix will look to bounce back when they face the Gunma Crane Thunders on Wednesday, February 2, at 6:05 pm, Manila time.

Also in Division 1, Matt Aquino and the Shinshu Brave Warriors picked up their second straight win after taking down the Osaka Evessa, 87-83.

Aquino, however, rode the bench once again for the third straight outing as Shinshu managed to improve its record to 13-18.

The Brave Warriors are scheduled to face Ray Parks’ Nagoya Diamond Dolphins on Wednesday, also at 6:05 pm, Manila time, but the game will most likely be canceled as Nagoya’s Yutaro Suda tested positive for COVID-19, the team announced on Sunday.

Parks and the Dolphins fell to the Utsunomiya Brex, 93-79, on Saturday, before their rematch earlier Sunday got postponed due to the positive coronavirus result. – Rappler.com