Tokyo Great Bears and Osaka Bluteon each claimed a victory during their weekend meetings in the 17th round of the men’s Daido Life SV.League regular season, maintaining their positions in the playoff race.
Osaka opened with a 3-1 win Saturday (28-26, 22-25, 25-23, 25-18). Masato Kai led all scorers with 23 points, including 21 kills, while captain Yuji Nishida added 21 points with 18 kills, two blocks and an ace.
Tokyo answered Sunday with a 3-1 victory (25-21, 20-25, 25-19, 28-26). Luciano Vicentin paced the Great Bears with 19 points, and Bartosz Kurek contributed 17 points.
Osaka remains second in the standings, with Tokyo in fifth.
League-leading Suntory Sunbirds Osaka extended their winning run with back-to-back victories over Voreas Hokkaido. Ran Takahashi scored 21 points in a 3-1 win Saturday and 18 points in a straight-sets win Sunday.
Hiroshima Thunders and JTEKT Stings Aichi split their series, as did Nippon Steel Sakai Blazers and Toray Arrows Shizuoka. Wolfdogs Nagoya swept Nagano Tridents in two matches, rallying from two sets down Sunday to secure a five-set win.