The Oita HeatDevils earned their first win under coach L.J. Hepp on Tuesday, beating the visiting Kyoto Hannaryz 66-63.
Matt Lottich, who won three bj-league titles with the Osaka Evessa, scored a game-high 30 points for the HeatDevils, who earn a split in their season-opening series. Lottich added 10 rebounds to pace Oita. Newcomers Damian Johnson and Rolando Howell added 10 and nine points, respectively. Longtime HeatDevil Yukinori Suzuki scored eight points.
Wendell White, the 2009-10 MVP while playing for the Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix, led Kyoto with 17 points and nine boards. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf scored 11 and Sunao Murakami added 10. Reggie Warren had a nine-point, eight-rebound effort and Naoto Nakamura chipped in with eight points for Kyoto (1-1).
The HeatDevils outscored the Hannaryz in each of the final three quarters.