Aisin¡¯s Japanese ace Kosuke Kanamaru put his previous struggles emphatically behind him, scoring a team-high 29 points in the SeaHorses¡¯ 81-69 win over the Toyota Alvark in Game 3 of the NBL Finals at Yoyogi National Gymnasium Annex on Monday night.

With the victory, Aisin needs just one more win to clinch the league championship. The fourth game of the best-of-five series will tip off at 3 p.m. on Saturday at the same venue.

Kanamaru and the SeaHorses got off to a hot start from the beginning. They had a 31-17 lead at the end of the first quarter and entered halftime up 54-36. Toyota bounced back in the final period but it was way too late.

¡°If we had lost, we would have had our backs against the wall, so we wanted to give everything we had today,¡± Aisin head coach Kimikazu Suzuki said after the game. ¡°We started the game in a good way, and played with the rhythm we wanted to have.¡±

Kanamaru, the best Japanese scorer in the league this season, was held by the Toyota defense to just 11 and two points, respectively, in the first games of the series. But he claimed the first two scores of the game on Monday and ended up showcasing his genuine potential.

Kanamaru went 4-for-7 from behind the 3-point line and gave the Aichi Prefecture-based club a huge boost.

¡°I didn¡¯t do any job for our team in the first and second games, so I was determined to go all out from the very beginning today,¡± Kanamaru said. ¡°We got off to a great start and were able to finish the first half with a big lead. That was the biggest reason for the win.¡±

Gavin Edwards provided another inside presence with 20 points and 14 rebounds, while J.R. Sakuragi followed with 16 points and nine boards.

For the Alvark, center Xavier Gibson led the team with 20 points and forward/center Jeff Gibbs had 18 points and 12 rebounds.

¡°We made too many easy mistakes, like with free throws and layups,¡± Toyota¡¯s Daiki Tanaka said. ¡°But once the game is over, it¡¯s not going to help you solve anything if you keep thinking about your loss. A championship hasn¡¯t been handed to anyone yet and we are just going to prepare for Saturday¡¯s game as best we can.¡±