Matthew C. Perry's Hayden Miller snags a rebound against Zama American during Thursday's first-round game in the 5th DODDS-Japan Basketball Tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Zama beat Perry, 61-52. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Matthew C. Perry's Hayden Miller snags a rebound against Zama American during Thursday's first-round game in the 5th DODDS-Japan Basketball Tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Zama beat Perry, 61-52. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
E.J. King's Xavier Jones shoots over Nile C. Kinnick's Josh Adair during Thursday's first-round game in the 5th DODDS-Japan Basketball Tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Kinnick beat King, 58-38. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Nile C. Kinnick's Emily Stith has her path to the basket blocked by Briana Myrick of Zama American during Thursday's first-round game in the 5th DODDS-Japan Basketball Tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Kinnick beat Zama, 41-21. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Nile C. Kinnick's K.K. Smith shoots over Zama American's Cierra Baldwin during Thursday's first-round game in the 5th DODDS-Japan Basketball Tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Kinnick beat Zama, 41-21. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan – The third time was the charm for Zama American on Thursday as the Trojan boys opened the 5th DODDS-Japan Basketball Tournament on a winning note.
Jonathan Neyland had 19 points, James Liker 17 and Andre Encarnacion 11 as Zama survived a third-quarter rally and held off Matthew C. Perry, 61-52, in the first round of the double-elimination playoffs. The Samurai beat Zama, 55-52 and 50-48, a month ago at Matthew C. Perry.
Thursday’s win was Zama’s first in 10 tries against a DODDS-Japan team and came two days after its first win in eight tries against Kanto Plain Association of Secondary Schools opposition.
Coach Tom Allensworth credited his team giving opponents different looks defensively and being patient on offense. “We were able to work the ball better and get better looks,” he said. “My players can shoot the three-pointer when they get the time” and openings.
Liker, who had been seeing limited time off the bench, saw more playing time replacing players who couldn’t make last weekend’s trip to E.J. King, and Liker played well enough to start Tuesday in a 47-46 win over Christian Academy Japan.
“He just sort of blossomed down in Sasebo and against CAJ, he started and just had a heckuva game,” Allensworth said. “He kept us in the game in the first half; it was rebounding and making good defensive plays.”
Allensworth spoke after Day 1 of the three-day DODDS-Japan tournament, revived after an eight-year hiatus due to budget cuts.
Organizers suggested at a DODDS-Japan athletics directors meeting in November at Zama that a scheduled weekend of Robert D. Edgren’s, Perry’s and E.J. King’s teams shuttling around the Kanto Plain be reorganized into a tournament at one site to save transportation funds.
DODDS-Japan district superintendent officials agreed, organizer Tim Pujol said – and as a bonus added DODDS-Japan tournaments in boys and girls soccer, baseball and girls softball to the spring sports calendar. They should take place in late March, Pujol said.
“It’s a great thing for Yokota High School to be hosting this,” Pujol said. “It inserts a little energy into our campus and it’s a chance for all these players, boys and girls alike, to be together at one location and have that tournament atmosphere in preparing for Far East.”
Zama advanced to Friday’s championship bracket semifinal against Edgren, while Yokota took on Kinnick, which beat E.J. King, 58-38, in the other first-round game.
On the girls’ side, Edgren beat Perry, 46-36, to advance to a championship bracket semifinal against E.J. King. Kinnick topped Zama, 41-21, and advanced to face Yokota.
Win or lose, players and coaches see the tournament as a good opportunity to prepare for next month’s Far East tournaments: Division I on Guam and Division II at Daegu, South Korea.
“It’s a great get-together before Far East to see where we stand and help see what we have to do in the next few weeks of practice before the big tournament,” Kinnick senior Josh Adair said.
It also gives coaches a chance to evaluate second-line players, “a good way to condition your team and put them in stressful situations to see how they perform in a tournament environment,” Edgren boys coach Mark Williams said.
And for the hosts, it’s a chance to get reacquainted with teams they faced earlier in the season.
“It’s exciting,” Yokota sophomore Sydney Glover said. “We’re excited to see and play everyone again.”
