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–Two games left, all at Arena Tachikawa Tachihi
Yamanashi Queen Beads 54-64 Hitachi High-Tech
(January 31, 2026/Hitachinaka City General Gymnasium)
Game 2 was a toss-up at 15:30, with last night’s loss eliminating the goal of winning.
Yesterday was a match in which the goal conceded due to a stumble at the start of the game resonated until the end.
The entrance to today’s game drew attention as more Hitachi High-Tech Boosters filled the stands than yesterday.
The Queenbees started the game and took the lead with Natsuki Dehara’s 3 points. However, for Hitachi High-Tech, Higuchi sparked fire from the beginning and took control with 8 consecutive points, including 2 3-pointers and 2 points. With 4 minutes and 50 seconds remaining and the score tied at 5-14, the Queenbees called a timeout.
From there, the second unit including Dafe Hadi, Yukina Sakata, and Mina Kaminaga were brought in to regain the momentum, and at one point narrowed the gap to 11-14, 11-16. However, they faced Hitachi High-Tech’s intense defensive pressure and caused a number of turnovers (four in the first quarter alone), taking advantage of the gap and allowing a quick break. 11-20. The first quarter ended with a 9-point lead.
The second quarter restarted with Higuchi scoring. However, they quickly fought back with 3 points from Kaminaga, and consecutive points from Kaminaga and Hadi brought them up to 18-22 with just over 8 minutes remaining. However, a foul at a key point resulted in free throws being awarded to Tateyama and Takada. The score was once again tied at 20-26.
The midfield was a period of patience with both teams scoring stagnantly. Still, with 26 seconds remaining, Saki Ikeda sank two points and Hitachi High-Tech took a timeout when the lead was close to three points, 27-30. They put together their last offense of the first half, but the score remained unchanged and the first half ended.
The number of rebounds in the first half was more than equal to Queen Bees’ 21 and Hitachi High Tech’s 20. However, while Hitachi High-Tech sank all eight free throws, the Queen Bees scored zero. The score was 27-30.
In the second half, the third quarter opened with Ikeda’s score, and Koenaga’s three points finally tied the score at 32-32. From there, it was a back-and-forth battle, and Ikeda scored, but Awaya and others gave it back, making it 34-36 with 5 minutes left.
With three minutes remaining, the Queenbees switched to zone defense and Ikeda’s 3-pointer tied the score again at 40-40. However, right after that, they allowed Awayani’s 3 points and Nakano’s point from an offensive rebound, giving up 5 points at once. With 2 minutes and 21 seconds left, a timeout was called at 40-45, but Higuchi hit another three points, making it 42-48. They entered the final quarter with a 6-point lead.
In the 4th quarter, Darameh Malem Doi scored from an assist from his superior, making the score 46-50. Hitachi High-Tech took a timeout just as the lead was down to 4 points. After that, the difference continued to be around 6 points for a while. However, with 4 minutes and 19 seconds remaining, Awayani scored consecutive points to make the score 48-59. At this point, the Queen Bees called a timeout.
If you score 2 points, you get 3 points back. The situation continues to fail to attract waves. Perhaps because of their impatience, they were unable to get the ball and Aika Watanabe and Sakata continued to cause turnovers. Takada’s 3 points completely turned the tide towards Hitachi High-Tech.
Still, Ikeda and Dehara made their way to the ring until the very end, racking up points. However, the gap could not be closed and the game ended at 54-64.
Hitachi High-Tech was the only team to lose all four games in the league this season.
Comparing the scores for this game, the free throws were Queen Bees 0/2 and Hitachi High Tech 10/11. The rebounds were 37 for Queen Bees and 40 for Hitachi High Tech. The turnover was 10 Queen Beads and 13 Hitachi High Tech. Furthermore, the number of successful 2-pointers for both teams is 18, and the number of successful 3-pointers for both teams is 6, so the stats other than free throws are almost even.
Head coach Ishikawa talked about a “lack of attack” and “scenes where we couldn’t hold back.” The resulting difference in free throw scores determined the outcome of the match.
Post-game huddle organized on the court. Today it took longer than usual to solve the problem.
During the huddle, captain Momoko Inoue encouraged her teammates by saying, “We missed out on the championship, and we haven’t even decided to advance to the replacement game.If things continue like this, we won’t even be able to make it to the replacement game.Today, if we don’t show the strength of Hitachi High-Tech’s defense from yesterday in our own practice, we won’t be able to play as well as we want.”She encouraged her teammates.
There are only two league games left this season. As of today, the Queen Bees have fallen to third place in the standings, but if they win their remaining two games in a row, they will advance to the relegation tournament in second place regardless of the results at other venues.
How will we prepare for the remaining five days and how will we express this in the match?
The last dance of the league match will begin on February 6th and 7th at Arena Tachikawa Tachihi.
head coach/playerconversation
Sachiko Ishikawa Head Coach
First, the free throws. I think we had probably the same number of 2-point shots and 3-point shots as Hitachi High-Tech, but we didn’t get fouled and we couldn’t hold back. I think the accumulation of fouls I made when I shouldn’t have made the difference.
However, my scores haven’t increased either way, so I have no choice but to practice so I can hit with confidence.
There are times when I am able to make a no-mark, but I can’t make a decision there. At times like that, we need rebounding ability that can be used as second and third chances, and that is something that the team has to work on. We didn’t get off to a great start, but we started to find a rhythm after changing the members. However, there were a lot of cases where the ball stopped or people stopped, so with Hadi in, the screens became clearer and our superiors made more moves, and that’s where the team has changed, and that’s the good thing about it now.
Today, we were able to make some adjustments to our defense, but there were many situations in which we hit and missed shots and got rebounds, so it was difficult for us to get back to our pace. Since it’s unmarked, I have to make a decision after all.
Next up is SMBC, a team with a lot of 3-pointers.They had 15 in Game 1 last time, so I want to be prepared to adjust to that. At the same time, we want to rebuild our offense and be able to take shots with confidence.
Captain Momoko Inoue
Honestly, I was just one step away. But today, there were many cases where the opponent made three-pointers at key points, and I couldn’t catch up with them. Even though we were able to score points and create a flow, we were forced to run on the break and took easy shots, so I felt like it was a waste.
Even in a situation where we seemed to be catching up, we made a small mistake and the opponent made a series of threes, and we were immediately behind by about 10 points. Basketball is a game of defending one ball and scoring one over and over again, so I think I had to be more patient and take care of each play.
Yesterday and today, I really felt the strength of Hitachi High-Tech’s defense. If we don’t play with that intensity in practice, we won’t be able to perform as well as we can in games, and we won’t be able to receive the ball in good positions. I think he was one or two better than anyone else in the Future League in terms of how he applied pressure, his strength before receiving the ball, and his height. It’s not that we couldn’t attack at all, but we were forced to create situations that were extremely difficult to attack many times, and our usual shots didn’t go in, so we struggled quite a bit.
Also, the issue is how to finish the offense. He took a shot, got the rebound, and then went on to break. Both the center and wingers run a lot, so mismatches inevitably occur. So instead of ending up with turnovers and tough shots, we talked about trying to make it as a team and use our time to attack in the end, but things didn’t go as planned, so that’s an issue.
For the next five days, I think we need to act with a real sense of crisis. We are still on the precipice, so the first thing we need to do is make proper adjustments in preparation for SMBC. We really narrowly won on the first lap, and there is a possibility that our opponent will score another three-pointer. First of all, don’t let the opponent get on board with threes, and get the rebound. I think that will be the key.
If we can do that, we can definitely make it into a form that suits us. It’s the last day of the league, so the five players who are playing now and the next five players have to embody this. There was so much support today as well, and that’s why I want to play a game where I can give back to those people.
Nothing has been decided about the replacement match yet. That’s why we want to continue fighting as challengers. I want to turn that sense of crisis into good energy.
Saki Ikeda
Today, I really reflected on how weak my defense was. I think our defensive strength wasn’t strong enough, as was the case when we got a point from the opponent’s guard when we started out on defense.
Through these two games, I think we were still lacking in our daily practice, the quality of each play, and the amount of preparation to improve that quality. I think there were still things we could have worked on as a team before the match, and I honestly felt that we couldn’t match Hitachi High-Tech in terms of perfection.
However, personally, I had been practicing for a long time, and yesterday I wasn’t able to perform well, but today I switched things up and continued to do it, and I think I was able to make some progress in some areas. I would like to connect that to the next step.
There will be five days from now, and these will be the last two games in the league, so it’s going to be two really big games, deciding whether we can take second place or make it to the replacement match, so I think there’s no point in it unless we show what we’ve done as a team and what we’ve done as individuals. The time is short, but I want to use all the time I can to prepare.
When it comes to a match, there are times when things go well and times when they don’t, but I think it’s important to do each one carefully and with intention. Since I’m a guard, I’m also responsible for assembling the offense, and especially on defense, SMBC won’t be an easy opponent unless we work hard as a team, so I want to take the lead on defense first.
The guards have to control the team’s offense, and when times are tough, they have to go out and score points. We are preparing for that every day. I’m gaining confidence, so I just need to show it in the match.
Ayumu Kaminaga player
I was let go at the end. At the very end, when I was running and had to catch up and pass, I honestly think my opponent was better in terms of basketball skills and knowledge. The game controls were also good.
There were many situations where we had to rely on our guards and center players at the end, so I felt like we had to find a way out of that. However, this loss wasn’t in vain, and I think it was a good experience because it showed us that we can compete like this against a team going to the premiership.
What I felt through these two games was the difference between one and two points at the peak. One or two of those hits ended up being a 10-point difference.
We need to play with more thought, like our opponents, about who will attack in what situations and where to break things down. There are still parts of me that are doing things while looking at my surroundings, so that’s an issue. However, I think this match showed us what we need to do to move up to the next level.
I think it was a great experience for the young players, and there is still a lot to improve on, such as game control and common understanding among all players. I think my rebounding and attachment to the ball have gotten better than yesterday, but I need to see if I can finish in tense situations. In the second half, as time progressed, there were some moments where we had to play harder. If we have four minutes left or the score is too far apart, we have to push harder. I think we still lack the experience and how to win.
I think there will be more matches like this once we move up to the premiership, so we need to develop the ability to catch up until the end even if we are left behind. That is a big challenge going forward.
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