The Rizing Fukuoka and Shiga Lakestars staged a playoff-like encounter in Sunday's series finale. The margin was four points or less throughout a tense fourth quarter, and it was decided in the final minute.
Fukuoka earned an 85-84 victory and improved to 24-16, including 12-8 on the road, under first-year coach Tadaharu Ogawa.
The visiting Rizing earned a series split by making more plays down the stretch, including Thiago Cordeiro's game-winning hoop with 29 seconds remaining. That broke an 83-83 tie. Shiga veteran Mikey Marshall's free throw accounted for the game's final point.