DUBAI (United Arab Emirates) - Utsunomiya put a stunning end to the reign of Al Riyadi by way of a 94-93 decision to become the Basketball Champions League Asia 2025 champions, Friday night at the Coca-Cola Arena.
The Brex rode the hot hands of DJ Newbill and Makoto Hiejima's hustle in crunch time to outlast the depleted yet determined Yellow Castle toward becoming the new rulers of the continent's highest club competition.
Hiejima finished with 30 points on a 6-of-10 clip from deep alongside 9 rebounds and 5 assists, while Newbill fired 21 points together with 2 rebounds and 5 assists as they personified poise to write history for themselves.
Newbill himself knocked down the go-ahead trifecta to erase a 93-91 deficit with 23.6 seconds left, and a missed shot by Hayk Gyokchyan as time expired were all enough for the B.League titiists to come out triumphant.
So shocked was the entire pro-Riyadi crowd that filled up the venue as their team bowed to a Japanese team in the finale similar to the 2019 edition, when they lost to Alvark Tokyo in the meet held in Thailand.
It was, at the time, the very first gold struck by Japan in the tournament formerly known as the FIBA Asia Champions Cup and now, the wait for another has finally come to an end thanks to Utsunomiya.
"This is kind of what we've continued to do: no matter what situation we're in, we just fight. We stayed together, and made big plays," said acting head coach Zico Coronel. "Second championship for us. Very pleasing."
The Brex indeed stayed together even if things appeared bleak, most especially when Riyadi seemingly got it all figured out when they unloaded 11 unanswered points for a 29-16 lead late in the opening period.
Still, they managed to snap back into focus and even led by seven points twice during the third quarter, but the erstwhile defending champions just would not go down without any fight.
In fact, they appeared to have gotten the game in the bag when Gyokchyan tipped in a bucket for the 93-91 lead with 58.2 seconds remaining as he wanted to reprise his role like against Shabab Al Ahli.
Then came Newbill with the cold-blooded trifecta.
Finn Delany made his presence felt as well with 19 points and 7 rebounds alongside 4 assists, while Isaac Fotu chipped in 12 in the win that saw the Brex rain down 17 three-pointers in the triumph.
Brex hit 75 threes in BCL Asia 2025, the most in a single tournament since China Kashgar dropped 76 in 2016. They also hit the highest 3PM per game in a single tilt in the past decade, breaking Al Riyadi’s 13.8 from 2024.
Georges-Hunt, meanwhile, finished with 24 points and eight assists to lead the traditional contenders in the defeat as the BCL Asia has remained elusive for him after bowing to Shabab Al Ahli in last year's BCL.
Gyokchyan delivered 22 points while Thon Maker served his one-game suspension.
FIBA