Yuta Watanabe of Japan in action during the 1st round Group E match between USA and Japan of 2019 FIBA World Cup at the Oriental Sports Center on September 5, 2019 in Shanghai, China.
MEMPHIS – For a moment, the score didn’t matter.
Yuta Watanabe only wanted his teammates on the court for Japan to focus on the vast experience, the global exposure and the growing expectations that lay ahead. Still, the magnitude of the moment wasn’t lost on Watanabe when that capacity crowd in Shanghai roared every time Japan scored.
It didn’t matter that Japan trailed Team USA by nearly 60 at one stage of the game.