For 34 minutes, 33 seconds out of the 40 minutes of regulation, the Toshiba Brave Thunders led the game.

But it was their experienced opponents who ended up getting the ¡°W.¡±

Aisin geared up defensively to take the momentum and prevailed late in the game as the SeaHorses defeated Toshiba 70-65 in Game 1 of the NBL Finals before a crowd of 2,706 at Ota City General Gymnasium on Saturday.

With the win, reigning champion Aisin extended its unbeaten postseason streak to five.

Game 2 will tip off at 3 p.m. on Sunday at the same venue.

The Brave Thunders got off to a hot start as they led 27-14 at the end of the opening quarter. But they were held to just 38 points for the remainder of the contest by Aisin¡¯s grinding defense.

¡°Toshiba got off really aggressively both offensively and defensively, and we really played badly early on,¡± Aisin head coach Kimikazu Suzuki said after the game. ¡°But we played patiently, trying to catch up with them playing resilient defense, and believing that we would have a chance to win the game. It almost feels like we won it with only two or three minutes left in the game.¡±

Former University of Connecticut center/forward Gavin Edwards had a big fourth quarter at both ends of the floor. The 206-cm player racked up eight points, seven rebounds and two blocks in that period alone.

¡°I just wanted to do little energy plays, kind of give us a boost, and get everybody excited,¡± said Edwards, who had 15 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks overall. ¡°I just kind of did the little stuff to help us win.¡±

For the SeaHorses, center Isaac Butts led the team with 17 points, and Japanese youngster Makoto Hiejima chipped in with 15 points. The Aichi Prefecture-club reigned underneath the basket and scored 40 points in the paint. They notched nine blocks as well.

¡°They came out really hard early and we weren¡¯t able to move the ball well,¡± said Hiejima, a national team player. ¡°But we played patiently, trying to have them turn the ball over and it paid off. This is a valuable win.¡±

Toshiba had nine turnovers in the game, seven of them in the final quarter.

¡°We played our ball early on,¡± said Brave Thunders guard Naoto Tsuji, who hit five 3 pointers for 15 points. ¡°We knew Aisin is capable of having extra focus when the game is on the line, but we turned the ball over and gave them the momentum.¡±

Center Nick Fazekas had a game-high 21 points for Toshiba.