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Ehime Orange Vikings
The Ehime Orange Vikings (愛媛オレンジバイキングス, Ehime Orenji Baikingusu) are a Japanese professional basketball team based in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, that competes in the second division of the B.League.
The team was founded in 2005 as the Oita HeatDevils, one of the founding members of the bj league. The team was based in Ōita city, Ōita Prefecture until 2015, at which time the club relocated to Matsuyama for the 2015-16 season of the bj league and changed its name to the Oita Ehime HeatDevils.
The team was founded as the Oita HeatDevils in 2005 and were one of six founding members of the bj league, a professional league set up in competition to the Japan Basketball League operated by the Japan Basketball Association. Their first league game was on 5 October 2005, which they won 100–95 against Osaka Evessa. After losing to Osaka in their second match the following day, Oita hosted their first home game a week later against the Sendai 89ers at the Beppu Beacon Plaza. They lost both matches in the series though, and their losing streak increased to six until they won the second game of a return series in Sendai on 3 December. After that they won just two of their next twelve matches for a 4–16 win–loss record at the mid-point of the season. Oita improved in the second half of the season and managed a six-game winning streak at one stage. They finished in fifth place with a 15–25 win–loss record, three games behind fourth-placed Sendai. They played the majority of their home matches at Beppu Arena.
In the 2006–07 season, when the bj league expanded to eight teams, Oita compiled a 22–18 win–loss record, their only winning season to date, and finished in fourth place, thereby qualifying for their first finals appearance. They lost their semi-final against the top-placed and eventual champions Osaka Evessa 69–63, before recovering the next day to defeat Niigata Albirex BB 92–70 in the playoff for third. To increase their popularity in the wider region, the team played half of their home games in Beppu and two matches each in Hita, Oita and Usa cities in Oita Prefecture as well as Buzen and Fukuoka cities in Fukuoka Prefecture.
The following season the league expanded to ten teams and divided into eastern and western conferences, with the top three teams in each conference advancing to the playoffs. In the Western Conference, the HeatDevils finished in fourth place (19–25), one game behind the expansion Rizing Fukuoka (20–24). Oita finished the season disastrously, losing their final five games while Fukuoka won seven of their last eight to climb into third place. Coach Dai Oketani left the club at the end of the season.
The 2008–09 season under replacement coach Tadaharu Ogawa saw Oita fall to just eight wins, the worst record in the expanded 12-team, 52-game league. The following year the team hired former NBA player Brian Rowsom to coach the club. He led the team to a 25–27 record, finishing 5th in the Western Conference, four games outside of the playoffs behind the Shiga Lakestars. In the middle of April Oita was just one game behind Shiga, but a poor finish to the season once again hurt the team, losing four of their final six matches while Shiga won five over the same period.
The 2010–11 season saw the league expand to 16 teams and the playoff system was expanded to include the top six teams of each conference. However, the season was ultimately affected by the March 2011 Tohoku earthquake, which led to three Eastern Conference teams withdrawing from play before the season ended. In the Western Conference, which had expanded to nine teams with the introduction of the Shimane Susanoo Magic and Miyazaki Shining Suns, the HeatDevils were in contention for a playoff spot at the time of the earthquake, their 16–22 record placing them just one game behind sixth-placed Shimane. However, three of the team's four American players (Taj Finger, Rolando Howell and Cyrus Tate) broke their contracts and left the country in the week after the earthquake and the team subsequently fired coach L. J. Hepp for failing to convince the players to remain in Japan. Assistant coach Tony Hanson (tl) took over coaching responsibilities following the departures and the team lost their remaining ten matches, finishing the season seven games behind Shimane.
The team's star player Yukinori Suzuki, who had been with the club since its inception and appeared in three All-Star matches, retired at the end of the 2010–2011 at the age of 34 in order to take over as the club's head coach. Oita started the 2011–2012 season poorly, winning just five of their 24 games before the All-Star break. But they finished the season strongly, winning 14 of their last 17 games, including a 7-game streak in March and the final 5 games of the season, finishing 7th in the 10-team conference with a 23–29 record.
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Ehime Orange Vikings
The Ehime Orange Vikings (愛媛オレンジバイキングス, Ehime Orenji Baikingusu) are a Japanese professional basketball team based in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, that competes in the second division of the B.League.
The team was founded in 2005 as the Oita HeatDevils, one of the founding members of the bj league. The team was based in Ōita city, Ōita Prefecture until 2015, at which time the club relocated to Matsuyama for the 2015-16 season of the bj league and changed its name to the Oita Ehime HeatDevils.
The team was founded as the Oita HeatDevils in 2005 and were one of six founding members of the bj league, a professional league set up in competition to the Japan Basketball League operated by the Japan Basketball Association. Their first league game was on 5 October 2005, which they won 100–95 against Osaka Evessa. After losing to Osaka in their second match the following day, Oita hosted their first home game a week later against the Sendai 89ers at the Beppu Beacon Plaza. They lost both matches in the series though, and their losing streak increased to six until they won the second game of a return series in Sendai on 3 December. After that they won just two of their next twelve matches for a 4–16 win–loss record at the mid-point of the season. Oita improved in the second half of the season and managed a six-game winning streak at one stage. They finished in fifth place with a 15–25 win–loss record, three games behind fourth-placed Sendai. They played the majority of their home matches at Beppu Arena.
In the 2006–07 season, when the bj league expanded to eight teams, Oita compiled a 22–18 win–loss record, their only winning season to date, and finished in fourth place, thereby qualifying for their first finals appearance. They lost their semi-final against the top-placed and eventual champions Osaka Evessa 69–63, before recovering the next day to defeat Niigata Albirex BB 92–70 in the playoff for third. To increase their popularity in the wider region, the team played half of their home games in Beppu and two matches each in Hita, Oita and Usa cities in Oita Prefecture as well as Buzen and Fukuoka cities in Fukuoka Prefecture.
The following season the league expanded to ten teams and divided into eastern and western conferences, with the top three teams in each conference advancing to the playoffs. In the Western Conference, the HeatDevils finished in fourth place (19–25), one game behind the expansion Rizing Fukuoka (20–24). Oita finished the season disastrously, losing their final five games while Fukuoka won seven of their last eight to climb into third place. Coach Dai Oketani left the club at the end of the season.
The 2008–09 season under replacement coach Tadaharu Ogawa saw Oita fall to just eight wins, the worst record in the expanded 12-team, 52-game league. The following year the team hired former NBA player Brian Rowsom to coach the club. He led the team to a 25–27 record, finishing 5th in the Western Conference, four games outside of the playoffs behind the Shiga Lakestars. In the middle of April Oita was just one game behind Shiga, but a poor finish to the season once again hurt the team, losing four of their final six matches while Shiga won five over the same period.
The 2010–11 season saw the league expand to 16 teams and the playoff system was expanded to include the top six teams of each conference. However, the season was ultimately affected by the March 2011 Tohoku earthquake, which led to three Eastern Conference teams withdrawing from play before the season ended. In the Western Conference, which had expanded to nine teams with the introduction of the Shimane Susanoo Magic and Miyazaki Shining Suns, the HeatDevils were in contention for a playoff spot at the time of the earthquake, their 16–22 record placing them just one game behind sixth-placed Shimane. However, three of the team's four American players (Taj Finger, Rolando Howell and Cyrus Tate) broke their contracts and left the country in the week after the earthquake and the team subsequently fired coach L. J. Hepp for failing to convince the players to remain in Japan. Assistant coach Tony Hanson (tl) took over coaching responsibilities following the departures and the team lost their remaining ten matches, finishing the season seven games behind Shimane.
The team's star player Yukinori Suzuki, who had been with the club since its inception and appeared in three All-Star matches, retired at the end of the 2010–2011 at the age of 34 in order to take over as the club's head coach. Oita started the 2011–2012 season poorly, winning just five of their 24 games before the All-Star break. But they finished the season strongly, winning 14 of their last 17 games, including a 7-game streak in March and the final 5 games of the season, finishing 7th in the 10-team conference with a 23–29 record.