2023–24 B1 League season

Events in Japanese basketball

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Basketball league season

2023–24 B1 League season

League| B.League
Season| 2023–24
Duration| 5 October 2023 – 28 May 2024
TV partner(s)| Basket LIVE, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, NHK, SKY PerfecTV!, others
B1 Regular season
Relegated| Shinshu Brave Warriors
Toyama Grouses
B1 Finals
Champions| Hiroshima Dragonflies
Runners-up| Ryukyu Golden Kings
Statistical leaders
| Points|  Perrin Buford (Shimane)|  22.6

|
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Rebounds|  Thomas Welsh (Hokkaido)|  12.2
Assists|  Yuki Kawamura (Yokohama)|  8.1

← 2022-23

2024-25 →

The 2023–24 B1 League season was the eighth season of the B1 League, the top Japanese professional basketball league, since its establishment in 2015.[1] The regular season began on 5 October 2023.[2]

The Ryukyu Golden Kings are the defending champions, having won their first B1 League title after defeating the Chiba Jets in the 2023 Finals.[3]

## Teams

[edit]

### Team changes

[edit]

Promoted from
2022–23 B2 League | Relegated from
2022–23 B1 League

|

Saga Ballooners
Nagasaki Velca | Niigata Albirex BB
Shiga Lakes

### Coaching changes

[edit]

Team | Outgoing | Incoming

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|

Off-season
Ibaraki Robots | Richard Glesmann | James Andrisevic
SeaHorses Mikawa | Kimikazu Suzuki | Ryan Richman
Sunrockers Shibuya | Ken Hamanaka | Luka Pavićević
In season
Ibaraki Robots | James Andrisevic | Richard Glesmann
Toyama Grouses | Daisuke Takaoka | J. R. Sakuragi

## Regular season

[edit]

### Standings

[edit]

Central
Pos | Team  | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | Qualification or relegation

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1  | San-en NeoPhoenix (Q) | 60  | 46  | 14  | 5371  | 4749  | +622  | Qualification to playoffs
2  | SeaHorses Mikawa (Q) | 60  | 36  | 24  | 4821  | 4545  | +276
3  | Sun Rockers Shibuya | 60  | 35  | 25  | 4520  | 4443  | +77  |
4  | Kawasaki Brave Thunders | 60  | 33  | 27  | 4825  | 4703  | +122
5  | Fighting Eagles Nagoya | 60  | 33  | 27  | 4553  | 4496  | +57
6  | Yokohama B-Corsairs | 60  | 24  | 36  | 4629  | 4945  | −316
7  | Shinshu Brave Warriors (R) | 60  | 10  | 50  | 4332  | 4955  | −623  | Relegated to B2 League
8  | Toyama Grouses (R) | 60  | 4  | 56  | 4318  | 5150  | −832

Source: B.League
(Q) Qualified for the phase indicated; (R) Relegated

Eastern
Pos | Team  | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | Qualification or relegation

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1  | Utsunomiya Brex (Q) | 60  | 51  | 9  | 4896  | 4154  | +742  | Qualification to playoffs
2  | Alvark Tokyo (Q) | 60  | 48  | 12  | 4875  | 4197  | +678
3  | Chiba Jets (Q) | 60  | 35  | 25  | 5054  | 4900  | +154  | Wildcard
4  | Gunma Crane Thunders | 60  | 31  | 29  | 4801  | 4913  | −112  |
5  | Akita Northern Happinets | 60  | 30  | 30  | 4450  | 4514  | −64
6  | Sendai 89ers | 60  | 27  | 33  | 4759  | 4846  | −87
7  | Levanga Hokkaido | 60  | 17  | 43  | 4519  | 4914  | −395
8  | Ibaraki Robots | 60  | 12  | 48  | 4580  | 5193  | −613

Source: B.League
(Q) Qualified for the phase indicated

Western
Pos | Team  | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | Qualification or relegation

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1  | Nagoya Diamond Dolphins (Q) | 60  | 41  | 19  | 5041  | 4761  | +280  | Qualification to playoffs
2  | Ryukyu Golden Kings (Q) | 60  | 41  | 19  | 4956  | 4667  | +289
3  | Hiroshima Dragonflies (Q) | 60  | 36  | 24  | 4751  | 4402  | +349  | Wildcard
4  | Shimane Susanoo Magic | 60  | 32  | 28  | 4899  | 4724  | +175  |
5  | Saga Ballooners | 60  | 29  | 31  | 4523  | 4504  | +19
6  | Nagasaki Velca | 60  | 27  | 33  | 4869  | 5012  | −143
7  | Osaka Evessa | 60  | 25  | 35  | 4748  | 4970  | −222
8  | Kyoto Hannaryz | 60  | 17  | 43  | 4640  | 5073  | −433

Source: B.League
(Q) Qualified for the phase indicated

## Playoffs

[edit]

### Bracket

[edit]

All matches in the playoffs were in a best-of-three series. Teams in bold advanced to the next round.

| Quarterfinals | | | Semifinals | | | Finals |

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|  |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  |  |  |
| 1 | Utsunomiya Brex | 1 | | |
| 8 | Chiba Jets | 2 |
| | 8 | Chiba Jets | 1 |
|  |
| | | 5 | Ryukyu Golden Kings | 2 |
| 4 | Alvark Tokyo | 1 |

| 5 | Ryukyu Golden Kings | 2 |
| | 5 | Ryukyu Golden Kings | 1 |
|  |
| | | 7 | Hiroshima Dragonflies | 2 |
| 3 | Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 2 | |

| 6 | SeaHorses Mikawa | 0 |
| | 3 | Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 1 |
|  |
| | | 7 | Hiroshima Dragonflies | 2 |
| 2 | San-en NeoPhoenix | 0 |

| 7 | Hiroshima Dragonflies | 2 |

### Quarterfinals

[edit]

#### (1) Utsunomiya Brex vs. (8) Chiba Jets

[edit]

10 May 2024
19:25

boxscore

Utsunomiya Brex | 70-82 | Chiba Jets

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Scoring by quarter: 18–26, 21–28, 16–13, 15–15
Pts: Newbill 15
Rebs: Edwards 9
Asts: Newbill 4 |  | Pts: Togashi 24
Rebs: Mooney 9
Asts: Togashi 4
Chiba leads series, 1–0

Nikkan Arena Tochigi, Tochigi
Attendance: 5,774
Referees: Hijiri Abe, Kohei Kano, Toshihiro Aoki

11 May 2024
19:30

boxscore

Utsunomiya Brex | 67-58 | Chiba Jets

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Scoring by quarter: 13–19, 23–10, 18–19, 13–10
Pts: Edwards 21
Rebs: Edwards 13
Asts: Newbill 8 |  | Pts: Mooney, Togashi 16
Rebs: Mooney 12
Asts: Brown, Togashi 3
Series tied, 1–1

Nikkan Arena Tochigi, Tochigi
Attendance: 5,780
Referees: Hijiri Abe, Kohei Kano, Toshihiro Aoki

13 May 2024
19:25

boxscore

Utsunomiya Brex | 93-103 (2OT) | Chiba Jets

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Scoring by quarter: 20–25, 15–14, 22–17, 17–18, Overtime: 9–9, 10–20
Pts: Newbill 30
Rebs: Jerrett 7
Asts: Hiejima 5 |  | Pts: Smith 36
Rebs: Cooks, Smith 11
Asts: Togashi 12
Chiba wins series, 2–1

Nikkan Arena Tochigi, Tochigi
Attendance: 5,681
Referees: Hijiri Abe, Kohei Kano, Toshihiro Aoki

#### (2) San-en NeoPhoenix vs. (7) Hiroshima Dragonflies

[edit]

11 May 2024
13:05

boxscore

San-en NeoPhoenix | 70-77 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 23–21, 18–17, 18–16, 11–23
Pts: Maten 17
Rebs: Dudzinski 8
Asts: Oura 7 |  | Pts: Evans 22
Rebs: Blackshear, Kawata 7
Asts: Evans, Mayo, Nakamura 3
Hiroshima leads series, 1–0

Toyohashi City Gymnasium, Aichi
Attendance: 3,006
Referees: Takaki Kato, Yuki Kubo, Tsutomu Ozawa

12 May 2024
13:05

boxscore

San-en NeoPhoenix | 66-69 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 21–23, 20–20, 14–7, 11–19
Pts: Dudzinski 25
Rebs: Maten 14
Asts: Oura 7 |  | Pts: Evans 18
Rebs: Evans 6
Asts: Evans 5
Hiroshima wins series, 2–0

Toyohashi City Gymnasium, Aichi
Attendance: 4,022
Referees: Takaki Kato, Yuki Kubo, Tsutomu Ozawa

#### (3) Nagoya Diamond Dolphins vs. (6) SeaHorses Mikawa

[edit]

11 May 2024
15:05

boxscore

Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 78-69 | SeaHorses Mikawa

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Scoring by quarter: 16–20, 23–19, 20–15, 19–15
Pts: Saito 21
Rebs: Soares 13
Asts: Saito 7 |  | Pts: Auguste 16
Rebs: Auguste, Gardner 8
Asts: Gardner, Nagano 4
Nagoya leads series, 1–0

Dolphins Arena, Aichi
Attendance: 5,414
Referees: Shigeyuki Arisawa, Ryosuke Ito, Norito Okawara

12 May 2024
15:05

boxscore

Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 84-75 | SeaHorses Mikawa

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Scoring by quarter: 18–19, 23–28, 11–11, 32–17
Pts: Saito 23
Rebs: Soares 11
Asts: Saito 8 |  | Pts: Gardner, Layman 14
Rebs: Auguste 9
Asts: Nagano 6
Nagoya wins series, 2–0

Dolphins Arena, Aichi
Attendance: 5,744
Referees: Shigeyuki Arisawa, Ryosuke Ito, Norito Okawara

#### (4) Alvark Tokyo vs. (5) Ryukyu Golden Kings

[edit]

10 May 2024
19:05

boxscore

Alvark Tokyo | 80-81 (2OT) | Ryukyu Golden Kings

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Scoring by quarter: 18–18, 25–11, 10–20, 14–18, Overtime: 6–6, 7–8
Pts: Rossiter 24
Rebs: Rossiter 18
Asts: Saiz, Toews 4 |  | Pts: Durham 18
Rebs: Cooley 8
Asts: Imamura 6
Ryukyu leads series, 1–0

Ariake Coliseum, Tokyo
Attendance: 6,301
Referees: Daigo Urushima, Yuji Hirahara, Haruka Iwai

11 May 2024
19:05

boxscore

Alvark Tokyo | 73-69 | Ryukyu Golden Kings

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Scoring by quarter: 19–9, 27–26, 13–17, 14–17
Pts: Rossiter 24
Rebs: Rossiter 13
Asts: Toews 5 |  | Pts: Kishimoto 14
Rebs: Kirk 8
Asts: Imamura 3
Series tied, 1–1

Ariake Coliseum, Tokyo
Attendance: 9,011
Referees: Daigo Urushima, Yuji Hirahara, Haruka Iwai

13 May 2024
19:05

boxscore

Alvark Tokyo | 57-58 | Ryukyu Golden Kings

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Scoring by quarter: 9–12, 20–20, 16–16, 12–10
Pts: Rossiter 20
Rebs: Gudaitis 9
Asts: Toews 4 |  | Pts: Durham 16
Rebs: Law 11
Asts: Durham, Imamura 3
Ryukyu wins series, 2–1

Ariake Coliseum, Tokyo
Attendance: 5,604
Referees: Daigo Urushima, Yuji Hirahara, Haruka Iwai

### Semifinals

[edit]

#### (3) Nagoya Diamond Dolphins vs. (7) Hiroshima Dragonflies

[edit]

18 May 2024
14:05

boxscore

Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 75-79 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 23–13, 22–18, 3–24, 27–24
Pts: Eatherton 14
Rebs: Eatherton, Soares 9
Asts: Eatherton, Nakahigashi, Saito 5 |  | Pts: Blackshear 21
Rebs: Enomoto, Mayo 6
Asts: Mayo 5
Hiroshima leads series, 1–0

Dolphins Arena, Aichi
Attendance: 5,272
Referees: Daigo Urushima, Kohei Kano, Taiyu Ohno

19 May 2024
13:10

boxscore

Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 84-77 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 27–17, 24–20, 18–20, 15–20
Pts: Eatherton 18
Rebs: Eatherton 7
Asts: Saito 6 |  | Pts: Evans 25
Rebs: Evans 9
Asts: Evans 6
Series tied, 1–1

Dolphins Arena, Aichi
Attendance: 5,446
Referees: Daigo Urushima, Kohei Kano, Taiyu Ohno

20 May 2024
19:05

boxscore

Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 73-79 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 13–23, 22–15, 25–21, 13–20
Pts: Parks 20
Rebs: Eatherton 9
Asts: Nakahigashi 4 |  | Pts: Evans 28
Rebs: Evans 7
Asts: Evans 6
Hiroshima wins series, 2–1

Dolphins Arena, Aichi
Attendance: 5,290
Referees: Daigo Urushima, Kohei Kano, Taiyu Ohno

#### (5) Ryukyu Golden Kings vs. (8) Chiba Jets

[edit]

18 May 2024
16:05

boxscore

Ryukyu Golden Kings | 62-95 | Chiba Jets

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Scoring by quarter: 24–29, 14–30, 12–11, 12–25
Pts: Law 16
Rebs: Cooley 8
Asts: Law 4 |  | Pts: Smith 19
Rebs: Brown 6
Asts: Togashi 7
Chiba leads series, 1–0

Okinawa Arena, Okinawa
Attendance: 8,582
Referees: Norito Okawara, Takeo Kitazawa, Shigeyuki Arisawa

19 May 2024
16:05

boxscore

Ryukyu Golden Kings | 81-63 | Chiba Jets

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Scoring by quarter: 23–13, 20–20, 19–15, 19–15
Pts: Cooley 25
Rebs: Durham 16
Asts: Durham 7 |  | Pts: Smith 19
Rebs: Cooks 7
Asts: Cooks 6
Series tied, 1–1

Okinawa Arena, Okinawa
Attendance: 8,643
Referees: Norito Okawara, Takeo Kitazawa, Shigeyuki Arisawa

21 May 2024
19:05

boxscore

Ryukyu Golden Kings | 83-67 | Chiba Jets

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Scoring by quarter: 22–14, 24–17, 19–24, 18–12
Pts: Cooley, Durham 15
Rebs: Cooley 10
Asts: Durham 8 |  | Pts: Togashi 18
Rebs: Mooney 11
Asts: Togashi 6
Ryukyu wins series, 2–1

Okinawa Arena, Okinawa
Attendance: 8,712
Referees: Norito Okawara, Takeo Kitazawa, Shigeyuki Arisawa

### Finals

[edit]

#### (5) Ryukyu Golden Kings vs. (7) Hiroshima Dragonflies

[edit]

25 May 2024
12:00

boxscore

Ryukyu Golden Kings | 74-62 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 24–16, 19–9, 19–18, 12–19
Pts: Imamura 15
Rebs: Cooley, Law 7
Asts: Durham 8 |  | Pts: Blackshear 15
Rebs: Blackshear 8
Asts: Blackshear, Mayo 4
Ryukyu leads series, 1–0

Yokohama Arena, Kanagawa
Attendance: 12,969
Referees: Takaki Kato, Hijiri Abe, Takeshi Hiraide

26 May 2024
13:10

boxscore

Ryukyu Golden Kings | 63-72 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 14–21, 20–9, 13–18, 16–24
Pts: Law 16
Rebs: Imamura 7
Asts: Durham 7 |  | Pts: Evans 16
Rebs: Evans, Enomoto 6
Asts: Evans 5
Series tied, 1–1

Yokohama Arena, Kanagawa
Attendance: 13,203
Referees: Takaki Kato, Hijiri Abe, Takeshi Hiraide

28 May 2024
19:05

boxscore

Ryukyu Golden Kings | 50-65 | Hiroshima Dragonflies

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Scoring by quarter: 12–17, 17–18, 11–11, 10–19
Pts: Law 16
Rebs: Cooley, Imamura 7
Asts: Durham 4 |  | Pts: Evans 13
Rebs: Evans 9
Asts: Blackshear, Mayo 4
Hiroshima wins series, 2–1

Yokohama Arena, Kanagawa
Attendance: 12,209
Referees: Takaki Kato, Hijiri Abe, Takeshi Hiraide

## Statistics

[edit]

### Individual statistic leaders

[edit]

Category | Player | Team | Statistic

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|
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Points per game |  Perrin Buford | Shimane Susanoo Magic | 22.6
Rebounds per game |  Thomas Welsh | Levanga Hokkaido | 12.2
Assists per game |  Yuki Kawamura | Yokohama B-Corsairs | 7.9
Steals per game |  Koh Flippin | Gunma Crane Thunders | 1.9
Blocks per game |  Jordan Heath | Kawasaki Brave Thunders | 1.7
FG% |  Scott Eatherton | Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 61.0%
3FG% |  Scott Eatherton | Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 47.1%
FT% |  Atsunobu Hirao | Ibaraki Robots | 91.1%

### Team statistic leaders

[edit]

Category | Team | Statistic

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Points per game | San-en NeoPhoenix | 89.5
Rebounds per game | Nagoya Diamond Dolphins | 34.0
Assists per game | San-en NeoPhoenix | 22.3
Steals per game | Nagasaki Velca | 8.0
Blocks per game | Chiba Jets | 3.6
FG% | SeaHorses Mikawa | 46.5%
3FG% | Sun Rockers Shibuya | 38.2%
FT% | Sun Rockers Shibuya | 78.7%

## B1 League clubs in Asian competitions

[edit]

Team | Competition | Progress

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Chiba Jets | East Asia Super League | Championship game
Ryukyu Golden Kings | Group stage Group B

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "B.League Season Tips Off with Few Coaching Changes". japan-forward.com. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
2. ^ "Golden Kings Soar Past Ballooners in B.League Opener". japan-forward.com. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
3. ^ "Golden Kings Complete Title Quest with Sweep of Jets in B.League Finals". japan-forward.com. Retrieved 17 November 2023.

*[Pos]: Position
*[Pld]: Played
*[W]: Won
*[L]: Lost
*[GF]: Goals for
*[GA]: Goals against
*[GD]: Goal difference