John "Helicopter" Humphrey had carried his team for most of the game.
He had made 14 field goals to put his team in a position to win on a day when that seemed improbable, and had a chance to make a game-winning shot at the buzzer. But his final long-range shot was off the mark in the Saitama Broncos' 85-83 loss to the visiting Ryukyu Golden Kings on Sunday at Tokorozawa Municipal Gymnasium.
Humphrey, a two-time bj-league scoring champion (2005-06 and 2006-07) with the Tokyo Apache, finished with a jaw-dropping 40 points, including 7-for-12 from 3-point range, on an afternoon when his teammates needed him to shoulder the offensive load.