Determined Ryukyu find important win over New Taipei

January 24, 2024 – Okinawa Arena, Okinawa, Japan

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Ryukyu Golden Kings' offense exploded in the second half to defeat the New Taipei Kings 90-67 in Okinawa this evening. Ryukyu handed the P. LEAGUE+ side their first loss of the EASL season. The B.LEAGUE champions finish the Group Stage with a 3-3 record.

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Post-Game Triple

1. Golden Kings dominate second half

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Ryukyu Golden Kings looked unconvincing going into halftime. The team combined to shoot 40 percent from the field in the first half and trailed the New Taipei Kings by five.

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The second half was a completely different story.

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The Golden Kings outscored the Kings 55-25. The team shot 21 for 33 from the field for an impressive 63 percent, earning a significant victory.

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2. Jeremy Lin gets injured

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New Taipei Kings star Jeremy Lin collided with Golden Kings import Vic Law in the second quarter, and left the court concerned about his ankle.

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Lin came back sparingly in the second half but, with the game virtually gone, the Kings sat their star guard early in the fourth quarter.

Lin finished the game playing a season-low 19 minutes, finishing with eight points, three rebounds and two assists.

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3. Golden Kings rain threes in second half

The Golden Kings shot a miserable five for 18, for a dismal 27 percent from beyond the arc in the first half. That is well below their season average of 38 percent. Second-leading scorer Keita Imamura was scoreless going into halftime.

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Ryukyu found their shooting stroke in the second half, going 8 for 14, for 57 percent from three. Yoshiyuki Matsuwaki led the way, hitting five of seven from beyond the arc.

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EASL Player of the Game: Yoshiyuki Matsuwaki, Ryukyu Golden Kings

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Yoshiyuki Matsuwaki found his shooting touch tonight against the New Taipei Kings.

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The 6-foot-1 guard scored a season-high 17 points, going five for seven from beyond the arc in just over 20 minutes of play.

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Matsuwaki had averaged only 5.4 points in his previous five EASL games.

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Stat of the Day

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The New Taipei Kings committed 21 turnovers against the Ryukyu Golden Kings.

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This was uncharacteristic of the team, as they came into the game averaging just 11 turnovers in four EASL games.

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Ryukyu was able to capitalize, scoring 11 points from turnovers.

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Quote of the Day

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Ryukyu Golden Kings Guard Yoshiyuki Matsuwaki:

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On the Golden Kings' victory:

"I think it was kind of an assignment on how we started the game. We came out kind of strong today. And that was the reason why we came out with a victory."

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On the team's mindset going into the game:

"I believe the mindset of the team is defense more than offense. And like I said before, we started the game with high intensity. I think that was the strategy we wanted to focus on and work on."

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Next Games

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Ryukyu Golden Kings: No more games in the Group Stage.

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New Taipei Kings: Away vs. Seoul SK Knights (KBL) - January 31, 2024