Yokohama B-Corsairs

Yokohama B-Corsairs
Leagues bj League
Founded 2010
Arena Yokohama International Swimming Pool
Location Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan
Team colors      navy blue
President Tetsuya Ueda
Head coach Taketo Aoki
Ownership Yokohama Sports Entertainment Co., Ltd.
Championships 1 (2012-13)
Website b-corsairs.com
Uniforms
Home
Away

The Yokohama B-Corsairs (横浜ビー・コルセアーズ Yokohama Bii Koruse'a-zu) are a Japanese professional basketball team that participates in the Eastern Conference of the bj league. In 2013 they became the first team based in the Kanto region of Japan to win the league title.[1] From October 2016 the team will compete in the first division of the new professional basketball league.[2]

History

The B-Corsairs entered the league in the 2011-2012 season as one of four expansion teams, seeing the league grow from 16 to 20 teams. In their first season they finished in second place in the Eastern Conference,[3] led by league MVP Justin Burrell. Former NBA player Reggie Geary won the coach of the year award.[3] In the playoff series they finished third overall,[1] losing the Eastern Conference Final to the Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix but defeating the Kyoto Hannaryz in the playoff for third.

The following season the B-Corsairs won the 2012-13 bj-league title, defeating Rizing Fukuoka in the championship game.[1] After again finishing second in the Eastern Conference, they overcame conference leader Niigata Albirex BB in the Eastern Conference Final, with Draelon Burns scoring in the final second of the game.[4] With the victory, Geary became the first foreign-born coach to win a title in the bj-league.[1] Team captain Masayuki Kabaya was named playoff MVP.

The club's initial success came at a financial cost. In the off-season following their championship success, it was reported that the club was in financial difficulty and the ownership changed.[5] Geary left the club to join the Chiba Jets and the B-Corsairs' import players also signed with other clubs within Japan.[5] Geary's assistant Michael Katsuhisa became head coach[5] and Taketo Aoki retired as a player to become an assistant coach.[6] Import players Wayne Marshall, Marquise Gray and Omar Reed joined the club.[5] The 2013-14 season started reasonably well for the club, which was in playoff contention with a 16-17 record,[7] but it slumped at the end of the year and finished with a 24-28 record, missing out on the playoffs for the first time.[8]

Katsuhisa remained as head coach for the 2014-15 season and the team was again led by Kabaya and Marshall. Dzaflo Larkai, Carl Hall and Warren Niles were added as import players. Kenji Yamada was named captain although Kabaya remained with the team. The club struggled throughout the season however, with Marshall missing a quarter of the season due to injury.[8] They finished to 10th place in the Eastern Conference with an 18-34 win-loss record.[6]

At the end of the 2014-15 season Katsuhia left the club and Aoki became the head coach.[6] Marshall left the club and was replaced by Jordan Henriquez. Cory Johnson and Emanuel Willis were also added to the roster, although Willis was released six games into the 2015-16 season.[9] Yamada continued in the role of team captain for the second season.[10] Satoshi Hisayama, who had been at the club since its beginning in 2011 but was released at the end of the 2014-15 season, returned to the club at the end of October to replace Willis.[11] Small forward Ryoichi Ishitani, who had been with the B-Corsairs training squad since the 2014-15 season, including a previous stint on the main squad between November 2014 and February 2015, was signed to a full contract and added to the main squad in February 2016.[12] After recording a 16-14 win-loss record in the first four months of the season,[13] the team slumped to manage just two wins in its next twenty games.[14] The team finished the season in 10th place in the Eastern Conference for the second consecutive year.[15]

Record by season

LeagueSeasonRegular SeasonPlayoffsHead Coach
GPWL%GBFinish
bj-league2011-12523121.5966.02nd East Conf.ThirdReggie Geary
2012-13523517.6731.02nd East Conf.Champions
2013-14522428.46218.07th East Conf.Did not qualifyMichael Katsuhisa
2014-15521834.34623.010th East Conf.Did not qualify
2015-16Taketo Aoki

Players

Current roster

As of 15 April 2016:[16]
No. Name Pos. Date of Birth Height/Weight Birthplace Previous Team
2 Cory Johnson F April 5, 1988 200cm/105kg United StatesWisconsin, USA SwitzerlandBBC Monthey
3 Masayuki Kabaya SG July 2, 1982 183cm/80kg JapanKanagawa Prefecture JapanMitsubishi Diamond Dolphins Nagoya
7 Ryuichi Horikawa F June 9, 1979 191cm/88kg JapanToyama Prefecture JapanToyama Grouses
12 Atsushi Inagaki PG April 16, 1984 158cm/56kg JapanTokyo JapanToyama Grouses
13 Kenji Yamada G July 28, 1983 180cm/82kg JapanKanagawa Prefecture JapanLink Tochigi Brex
15 Kento Hyodo G January 1, 1993 180cm/75kg JapanTokyo B-Corsairs Development Squad
21 Jordan Henriquez C August 29, 1989 214cm/113kg United StatesNew York GermanyScience City Jena
22 Carl Hall F/C March 29, 1989 201cm/101kg United StatesGeorgia FranceBoulazac Basket Dordogne
24 Ryoichi Nishitani SG, SF May 19, 1988 187cm/85kg JapanOkayama Prefecture JapanYokohama Giga Spirits
32 Yosuke Maeda F July 18, 1989 188cm/82kg JapanMiyazaki Prefecture JapanKanto Gakuin University
33 Kiichi Kikuyama G April 26, 1992 178cm/75kg JapanOkinawa Prefecture JapanJuntendo University
37 Seiji Kouno G August 14, 1989 172cm/72kg JapanMiyazaki Prefecture B-Corsairs Development Squad
73 Satoshi Hisayama SG July 14, 1986 183cm/79kg JapanKumamoto Prefecture Hiroshima Lightning

Individual awards

All-Star selections

Former players

Head Coaches

Years active Name Record
(W–L)		 Win % Playoff Record
(W–L)		 Playoff
Win %		 Playoff
Appearances		 Conference Titles League Titles Notes
2015-16 Taketo Aoki Played for B-Corsairs in 2011-12 and 2012-13
Assistant Coach in 2013-14 and 2014-15
2013-14
-
2014-15		 Michael Katsuhisa 42–62 .404 0–0 .000 0 0 0 Assistant Coach in 2011-12 and 2012-13
2011-12
-
2012-13		 Reggie Geary 66-38 .635 5–1 .833 2 0 1 Named Coach of the year in 2011-12[3]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Odeven, Ed (20 May 2013). "Yokohama captures first-ever bj-league title". Japan Times. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  2. ↑ Nagatsuka, Kaz (28 October 2015). "JPBL finalizes division placements for 2016-17". The Japan Times. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "American Justin Burrell wins MVP in Japan pro league". ESPN. 3 May 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  4. 1 2 Odeven, Ed (19 May 2013). "Burns heroics give B-Corsairs shot at championship". Japan Times. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Odeven, Ed (5 October 2013). "Kabaya looks past glory of title team, forward to new season". Japan Times. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 Odeven, Ed (5 June 2015). "Aoki named Yokohama B-Corsairs coach". Japan Times. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  7. ↑ Odeven, Ed (29 March 2014). "Struggling Yokohama falling out of playoff race". Japan Times. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  8. 1 2 Odeven, Ed (2 April 2015). "Playoff race gathering momentum". Japan Times. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  9. ↑ "エマニュエル・ウィリス選手契約解除のお知らせ" [Notification of termination of contract with Emanuel Willis] (in Japanese). 20 October 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  10. ↑ "プロバスケ「横浜ビー・コルセアーズ」が文体で開幕戦　1勝1敗でシーズンスタート" [Pro basketball "Yokohama B-Corsairs" open season at Cultural Gym, start season 1-1]. Yokohama Keizai Shimbun. 5 October 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  11. ↑ "久山智志選手 契約締結のお知らせ" [Notification of contract signed with Satoshi Hisayama]. 29 October 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  12. ↑ "西谷亮一選手 契約締結のお知らせ" [Notice of contract with Ryoichi Nishitani] (in Japanese). 8 February 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  13. ↑ "試合日程・結果" [Schedule and Results] (in Japanese). Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  14. ↑ Odeven, Ed (17 April 2016). "Phoenix end Golden Kings’ franchise-record winning streak". Japan Times. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  15. ↑ "順意表" [Standings] (in Japanese). Retrieved 18 April 2016.
  16. ↑ "チーム情報" [Team information] (in Japanese). Retrieved 15 April 2016.

External links

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