The Tribune

IT was contrasting results for Bahamian professional basketball players Mark St Fort and Kadeem Coleby yesterday as they continued their journey in the regular season of the Japanese B League.

St Fort and his eighth-ranked Niigata A pulled off an upset as they turned back the fourth-place Alvark Tokyo 84-76, while Coleby and his fifth-place Akita Northern Happinets went down 72-69 to the front-running Tochigi B.

St Fort, who turned 32 on November 5, came off the bench and played 11 minutes, contributing 14 points as he connected on 6-for-8 shooting from the field and was 2-for-2 from the free throw line. The 6-foot, 7-inch, 209-pound small forward also pulled down eight rebounds with a steal and a blocked shot.

With the win, St Fort and Niigata A, coached by Shogo Fukuda, snapped a three-game winning streak as they improved to 5-9. The loss dropped Alvark Tokyo to 8-5. St Fort and Niigata will play a double header this weekend when they face Hokkaido L on Saturday and Sunday.

After coming off a celebrated birthday with a double dose of victory, Coleby continued his impressive showing in his starting role as he logged a total of 34 minutes in yesterday’s game.

Coleby, who turned 31 on Sunday, finished with another double-double with 10 points and 17 rebounds.

The 6-9, 250-pound power forward/centre shot 3-for-6 from the field for a 50 percent shooting and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe for 100 percent.

A total of 14 of his rebounds came on the defensive end and he added two steals with an assist and a block.

The game ended with only a three-point home defeat of the fifth-ranked Akita NH, who dropped to 8-5, while their rivals improved to 12-1. It also ended a two-game winning streak for Coleby and his Akita NH, coached by Kenzo Maeda.

Coleby and his Akita NH will now head on the road where they will play a double header on Saturday and Sunday against Chiba.

On December 2, all eyes will be on the league when Coleby and Akita NH are scheduled to face St Fort and his Niigata Albirex.