Leaders Vegalta Sendai crushed Nagoya Grampus 4-0 on Saturday to stretch their advantage to five points in the J.League standings.
After midfielder Ryang Yong-Gi opened the scoring in the 38th minute, they doubled their lead through an own goal in first-half stoppage time. Brazilian forward Wilson and defender Naoki Sugai added two more in the last three minutes to complete the scoring.
Sendai have 27 points from 12 games, ahead of Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Shimizu S-Pulse on 22 points, while Jubilo Iwata and Urawa Red Diamonds are on 21 points.
Ryota Moriwaki scored a decider in stoppage time to give Hiroshima a dramatic 3-2 win over Vissel Kobe, while Shimizu went down 1-0 to Urawa with Yuki Abe scoring the only goal in the 42nd minute.
Iwata overwhelmed Albirex Niigata 6-1 while seven-time champions Kashima Antlers did even better, trouncing Consadole Sapporo 7-0 with seven different players on target, while Kawasaki Frontale downed Omiya Ardija 2-0.
Yokohama F Marinos drew 0-0 with Gamba Osaka, and defending champions Kashiwa Reysol came back from a goal down to beat Cerezo Osaka 2-1 thanks to Junya Tanaka's decider in the 66th minute.