BANGKOK (Thailand) - Alvark Tokyo are returning the championship game of the FIBA Asia Champions Cup for a second straight year and will be facing Al Riyadi after their wins in the Semi-finals. Riyadi will be playing a chance at their 3^rd FIBA Asia Champions Cup title.

The B.League champions were the first team to secure a ticket to the title game, taking down Naft Abadan, 80-73, in what have been their best basketball played yet at the FIBA Asia Champions Cup 2019.

“The game itself was difficult,” said Coach Luka Pavicevic. “[Abadan] have size and a lot of experience, technically and tactically. We needed [to play] our best game throughout 40 minutes in order to win and I think that we did.”

Alvark shot the lights out in their win going 13-28 (46.4 percent) from beyond the arc. Coming into the game, they were averaging only 7.3 threes per game on 32.7 percent.

“It was a big day for [Alvark] Tokyo,” Abadan coach Hemad Sameri said. “They shot almost 50 percent from beyond the arc and you don’t see that happen often in the game.”

Among one of the Alvark sharpshooters was Genki Kojima who scored 19 points on 4-6 shooting from downtown. It was also Kojima that knocked down two crucial three-pointers late in the game whenever Abadan seemed to be making a comeback run. The 25-year-old guard had also made a clutch three earlier in the Group Phase and seems to be building up reputation as a crunch time shooter though he might not feel that way yet.

“I just stay ready for every single shot not matter when it is, beginning of the game or end of the game, it doesn’t matter to me,” Kojima said. “I’m just ready for every single shot and then it came to me at a good moment. That’s what happened.”

Alex Kirk was limited with foul trouble in this game and fellow big man Milan Mačvan stepped up. His second quarter burst of 10 points to end up with a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds helped Alvark hold on until the final buzzer.

Abadan’s stars Hamed Haddadi and Samad Nikkah Bahrami were still unstoppable, combining for 51 points, but it was not enough to put out Alvark who were focused on making it to the title game.

Alvark are returning to the FIBA Asia Champions Cup championship game after losing to Petrochimi last year. It will once again be an opportunity for Alvark to be the first Japanese club to win the FIBA Asia Champions Cup.

Al Riyadi have been digging deep in their bag of tricks here in Thailand. They did it once again by coming down from as much as 12 points early in the second half to beat Muharraq, 100-88.

“It’s been a tough journey for us,” said coach Ahmad El Farran. “I’m so happy we are in the finals. This is what we wanted from the beginning. We fought hard for this.

“We showed the character of a champion, we stepped up, and we controlled the game till the end.”

Facing their largest deficit so far in the competition, Riyadi blasted out to a 25-8 run. Their game deciding third quarter run was fueled by 12 points from captain Jean Abd El Nour, who finished the game with 21 points, 14 rebounds, and 3 steals.

“Riyadi played a great game,” Muharraq forward Mike Harris said of Riyadi's captain. “That’s a great group of guys, they got great chemistry, and it all starts with the captain, Jean [Abd El Nour].”

“I mean [the] guy’s amazing! I played with him before, he just does all the little things.”

“He’s the most unselfish player I’ve ever met.”

Wael Arakji lead the team in scoring once again and also flirted with a triple-double along the way. His stat line of 24 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists on an efficient 8-11 shooting from the field is solidifying his case as top contender for the MVP award.

Muharraq rode on the top-notch performance of their star duo, Mike Harris and Kevin Murphy, who scored 34 and 31 points, respectively.

In the final day of the FIBA Asia Champions Cup tomorrow, it will be Naft Abadan playing Muharraq for 3^rd place at 15:30 (GMT +7). The championship game will be between returning finalists Alvark Tokyo against 2-time champion Al Riyadi at 18:00 (GMT +7).

FIBA