Newcomer Casey Crawford scored 30 points, including 5-for-7 from 3-point range, and guard Michael Gardener added 23 points and four 3s in the Akita Northern Happinets' 98-78 preseason victory over the expansion Chiba Jets on Saturday at Funabashi Arena.
A crowd of more than 2,000 fans witnessed the first game in Jets history, as well as bench boss Kazuo Nakamura's first game leading Akita. He had guided the Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix to back-to-back championships.
It was the first exhibition game of the 2011-12 bj-league season.