What Happened 

The Ryukyu Golden Kings pulled away in the second half to defeat the Macau Black Bears 87–81 at Okinawa Suntory Arena on Wednesday night.

Macau had the early edge, leading 24–21 after the first quarter and taking a 43–41 advantage into halftime. Ryukyu turned the game after the break, outscoring the Black Bears 22–16 in the third quarter to take a 63–59 lead, then closed it out by winning the fourth 24–22.

While the teams were even in points in the paint at 44–44, Ryukyu’s depth made the difference. The Golden Kings held a 48–4 advantage in bench points and also controlled the glass 52–36.

Damian Chongqui paced Macau with a game-high 27 points and seven assists, while Omari Peek Green added 21. Ryukyu had five players score in double figures, with Ryuichi Kishimoto scoring 18 and Alex Kirk finishing with 16 points and nine rebounds. Kirk’s rebound total also pushed him to 100 career EASL rebounds.

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What It Means 

Ryukyu’s win moves the Golden Kings to 2-1 on the season and into second place in Group B. After opening the campaign with a loss to the Taoyuan Pauian Pilots, Ryukyu has responded with two straight home victories, first over Meralco on October 22, and now Macau, building momentum with three regular season games still remaining.

For the Black Bears, this result drops them to 0-4 and mathematically eliminates them from postseason contention with two regular-season games left. 

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Player of The Game: Ryo Sadohara 

Ryo Sadohara delivered his best scoring night of the season to lift Ryukyu, finishing with 19 points in 21 minutes on 8-for-11 shooting, including three 3-pointers. It was another step forward after he opened the EASL season scoreless, then bounced back with 16 points in Ryukyu’s win over Meralco. 

Sadohara also filled the box score with five rebounds, three assists, and one steal, and his efficient shot-making helped Ryukyu stay steady during Macau’s pushes.

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Super Statistic: 48-4

That bench gap was the story of the game.

Ryukyu came in with a full 12-man group available, while Macau had only nine players listed.  The Golden Kings got production up and down the rotation and finished with a massive 48-4 edge in bench points, which kept their energy and pressure high even when the starters sat.

Macau, on the other hand, had to ride its main guys heavily. Two players went the full 40 minutes in Lao Chon Pong and Omari Peek Green, and in total, four Black Bears played over 30 minutes, including Damian Chongqui (38:47) and Samuel Deguara (34:50). With that kind of workload and limited bench scoring behind it, Macau did not have the same margin late.

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Next Up 

Ryukyu will have a bit of time before returning to EASL action, with the Golden Kings set to play again on January 21 at 7:30 PM. That game will be another meeting with Macau.

For Macau, the schedule moves sooner. The Black Bears return on January 4 for a home game at Huaqiao University in Fujian, China, where they will face the Taoyuan Pauian Pilots. It will also be a rematch, as Taoyuan previously handed Macau a 104-86 loss last week.