What Happened 

Alvark Tokyo secured its first EASL win of the debut season on the road, beating New Taipei 107–89 at Xinzhuang Gymnasium.

Now 1–1 after dropping their opener, Alvark arrived in New Taipei with a much different lineup. Kai Toews and Ryan Rossiter returned from injury, and Sebastian Saiz — who missed the opener — suited up and delivered a team-high 25 points.

New Taipei, the league’s most successful club over the previous two seasons and the only team to reach back-to-back postseasons, fell behind early. A Saiz dunk made it 10–2, and Alvark led 30–23 after one. The visitors won the second quarter 25–17 and kept control the rest of the way.

The Kings had two 20-plus scorers in newcomer Jayden Gardner (29) and 2024–25 All-EASL honoree Sani Sakakini (24), but beyond that import duo, it was all Alvark.

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What It Means

For Alvark, the win lifts them from 0–1 to 1–1 and moves them into second in Group C. 

New Taipei drops to the bottom and now carries a damaging head-to-head loss to Alvark by 18 points. The Changwon LG Sakers are the lone Group C team yet to play, currently third in the group, and make their EASL debut on Oct. 30.

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EASL Player of the Game 

Shuto Ando posted 19 points, five rebounds, and three assists for Alvark, shooting better than 50 percent from the field. He went 5-for-8 from three, the most makes from distance in the game. High-level international play is nothing new for Ando. In the preseason against the U.S.A.’s G League United, he hit seven threes and a team-high 28 points.

Against New Taipei on Wednesday — with teammates consistently creating opportunities and finding him on kickouts — Ando received the exact looks that suited his game. And he capitalized. 

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Super Statistic: 59, 53.3 

We’re offering a 2-in-1 special on stats after the Alvark game.

The visitors did a lot right in New Taipei. The headline stat needs a double take: Alvark posted the highest field goal percentage (59.0%) and the highest three-point percentage (53.3%) of any team in EASL Week 2. 

A big part of that was Saiz. His 25 points on 83.3% shooting made him Week 2’s top field-goal marksman among players with 10+ attempts. He finished 10-for-13.

From the perimeter, Ando led the way, and he had help. Marcus Foster and Kohei Fukazawa also shot better than 50% from three.

Compare those team percentages to Alvark Tokyo’s opening-day loss and you see a completely different team.

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Up Next 

A quick turnaround awaits the New Taipei Kings, who play their second straight EASL week on Oct. 30, traveling to South Korea to face the Changwon LG Sakers.

Alvark has a longer layoff from EASL, next appearing on Dec. 17 when they host the LG Sakers at Arena Tachikawa Tachihi.