MANILA – Ilonggo Ferdinand “Thirdy” Ravena III and the San-En NeoPhoenix have ended the year on a sour note after suffering their third consecutive defeat in the 2020-21 Japan B.League.
The NeoPhoenix were listless against the Akita Northern Happinets on Sunday afternoon after being held to just six points in the second period en route to a lopsided 85-53 defeat at the CNA Arena Akita in Akita, Japan.
The NeoPhoenix were hanging around in the opening quarter before struggling heavily in the second period against the blazing offense of Northern Happinets to build a 42-25 halftime lead.
It was all Northern Happinets since then as the NeoPhoenix failed to respond to Akita’s potent offense as it shot a measly 33-percent from the field, against Akita’s 52-percent field goal shooting.
Stevan Jelovac finished the match with 17 points, seven boards and two assists as the NeoPhoenix slid to a 5-20 record to remain at ninth place in the Western Conference standings.
Ravena struggled on offense as he finished the game with five points, five assists and three rebounds while Kyle Hunt contributed seven points and seven rebounds.
Noboru Hasegawa spearheaded the scoring for the Northern Happinets with 16 points, including four-of-six shooting from three-point arc, to climb to a 16-9 win-loss card.
The NeoPhoenix will be hoping to ring next year with better performances as they tangle in a two-game series against Sun Rockers Shibuya (17-8) at Aoyama Gakuin Memorial Hall next weekend./PN
