Brian Rowsom deserves to be on the short list of candidates for the bj-league's coach of the year honors.
After all, he took over an Oita HeatDevils team that went 8-44 last year under Tadaharu Ogawa and has guided them to a 23-23 record entering its final bye week of the season.
Fighting for a playoff spot, the HeatDevils close out the season by playing a two-game series against the Osaka Evessa next weekend, followed by back-to-back home series against the Shiga Lakestars (May 1-2) and the Ryukyu Golden Kings (May 8-9).