Slam Dunk: Muguro

Chapter 292 Zebei's Ultimate Move

As one of Mitsui's three lackeys, Yamamoto Kuma is not particularly talented, but he is hardworking and has now reached the level of a key substitute for a strong team.

Unfortunately, compared to Zebei, he is far inferior.

Even though Yamamoto Kuma did his best, he was easily defeated by Sawakita and almost fell to the ground.

After breaking past Yamamoto Kuma, Sawakita drove straight to the basket.

Kogure immediately abandoned Okawada and rushed towards Sawakita.

As Kogure expected, Sawakita had no intention of passing the ball and instead launched a layup right over Kogure.

Unlike ordinary layups, Sawakita's layup release point is very high, just like the high layup he made against Sakuragi's defense in the story.

Even with Sakuragi's physical attributes, he still couldn't stop Sawakita's high-arcing shot.

Unfortunately, Kogure reacted even faster than Sakuragi.

Under his strong interference, the shot ended up missing.

bang~
Naito single-handedly held off Kawada and Ito, allowing Kogure to grab the rebound.

This scene bears a striking resemblance to the future gOat.

"You used too much force just now!"

Zebei shook his hand forcefully, secretly thinking it was a pity.

During the training camp, Zebei felt his own shortcomings when he saw Black athletes suffer setbacks.

So, he developed this technique based on Kogure's fingertip lob.

In the future, Curry, Harden, and others have also used this technique.

However, in actual games, due to the low efficiency, such a weak shooting motion is usually only made when the offensive player is at a significant disadvantage in height or athleticism, when facing the rim protector.

Watching Zebei's retreating figure, Kogure thought to himself, "It would be best to restrict him from making his move from a greater distance!"

He didn't take this move seriously.

As long as Sawakita is kept away from the basket, the accuracy of this technique is difficult to guarantee.

Furthermore, Zebei hasn't had time to learn this move, so it's definitely not as smooth as the plot.

Offense and defense reversed!

Soon, Nobuhiko Okamoto dribbled the ball past midfield.

This time, Fukatsu immediately clung to him, not giving Okamoto Nobuhiko a chance to pass the ball.

With Fukatsu's persistent entanglement, Nobuhiko Okamoto found himself in a difficult situation.

Fukatsu is arguably the best defensive point guard in Slam Dunk, but his offense is another story. After all, he only managed to score 5 points against the shorter Miyagi, despite the obvious height and wingspan difference.

Kogure immediately stepped in to help, taking the basketball from Nobuhiko Okamoto.

Fukatsu quickly switched defenses with Owada, and Kogure used Okamoto Nobuhiko's body as a screen to easily break through with a feint.

Ito, who was closest, rushed to cover, but when he got close, he was shocked to find that the basketball in Kogure's hands was gone.

"When?"

Ito Yu was completely baffled and was looking for the ball.

Bang~
It was at this moment that a loud banging sound came from behind.

Ito Yu turned his head and saw that Naito was hanging on the basket.

Soon, Sannoh Industrial served.

Before Fukatsu could organize the team's attack, Sawakita once again took the initiative to ask for the ball.

As the team's ace, Fukatsu naturally had to give him face and had no choice but to pass the ball over again.

Sawakita blew past Yamamoto Kuma in one step, and Kogure immediately stepped in to cover, blocking Sawakita outside the paint zone.

Without a doubt, Sawakita was a stubborn guy, and once again launched a high basket at Kogure.

The basketball leaped past Kogure's fingertips and flew towards the basket.

bang~
The basketball hit the neck of the rim and, by sheer coincidence, got stuck there.

beep~
The referee immediately blew his whistle, declaring the ball dead and giving possession to the defending team.

"Ze Bei, this is the first time I've seen something like this in an official match. Impressive!"

Kogure couldn't help but make a comment.

"Damn it!"

Zebei felt his cheeks burning; he hadn't expected the basketball to get stuck in the rim.

After possession changed, Nobuhiko Okamoto once again carried the ball past midfield.

This time, Kogure stepped forward to screen for Nobuhiko Okamoto.

Kogure's screen was of very high quality, completely blocking Fukatsu.

With the help of Kogure's screen, Nobuhiko Okamoto took the opportunity to drive forward with the ball.

Owada had no choice but to switch defenses, and Okamoto Nobuhiko did not hold onto the ball, quickly passing it to Kogure who was cutting towards the basket.

Bang~
Kogure strode into the paint and unleashed a tomahawk dunk.

Hua Hua Hua~
This series of actions amazed the audience, and the arena once again echoed with loud cheers and applause.

When Shohoku returned to defense, Fukatsu gave Kawada a meaningful look.

Read my eye and do as I say! (jpg)

Kawada immediately understood and then forcefully hooked his arm around Sawakita's neck.

Zebei feigned pain, yet was unable to break free.

"Zebei, your move isn't quite there yet. Let's try something different. You don't want to lose the match, do you?"

Kawada did not use a tone of discussion, but rather a commanding tone to announce it.

Zebei had no choice but to agree.

As the saying goes, every creature has its nemesis.

In the Sannoh Industrial team, Sawakita's biggest fear wasn't Coach Domoto, who was suspected to be related to Sendoh, but Kawada.

In just a few months, he was bullied badly by Dahetian, which reminded him of his youthful days.

Yeah, the memory of being beaten up by an older student in junior high.

That was his lost youth!
"If you forget, I might get rough with you!"

Owada knew very well how stubborn Sawakita was, so he made another harsh statement.

What could Zebei say? To avoid getting beaten up, he could only obediently do as he was told.

Sannoh Industrial's attack saw Fukatsu pass the ball to Sawakita once again.

Facing Yamamoto's defense, Sawakita did not rush to succeed, but patiently looked for an opportunity to break through.

Using his agile footwork and skillful ball control, Yamamoto Kuma appeared to be struggling.

Just as Yamamoto was caught off guard, Sawakita seized the opportunity, accelerated sharply, and broke through.

Yamamoto Kuma reacted quickly, immediately turning around to chase after Sawakita.

Sawakita seemed to have learned his lesson, and before Kogure could come to his aid, he pulled up for a jump shot and scored.

shuh~
The basketball traced a beautiful arc through the air and landed perfectly in the basket.

"We finally scored!"

Zebei couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

Since we can't defeat Kogure, it's not a bad idea to avoid him and try to take him down.

After Zebei was forcibly enlightened, Sannoh Industrial finally got back on track.

Under Fukatsu's organization, Sannoh Industrial was well-connected, demonstrating an offensive capability that was no less than that of Shohoku.

When Sannoh Industrial is unable to score easily through teamwork, Zebei will use his exceptional individual skills to easily defend and score.

As long as he's not facing Kogure, Sawakita's ability to break through defenses and score is virtually unstoppable.

Meanwhile, Sannoh Industrial's defense became more solid. They were able to switch and help on defense quickly, which limited the opponent's scoring opportunities to some extent.

On the other side, the Shohoku team continued to steadfastly implement their one-star-four-shooter strategy.

With Kogure as the offensive center, the team is surrounded by four shooters with excellent outside shooting abilities.

Kogure can not only score himself, but also activate the team's offensive system through passing and playmaking.

His presence diversified Shohoku's offense, with both strong inside attacks and accurate outside shots, making it difficult for opponents to defend against.

At the same time, due to their extremely high scoring efficiency, Sannoh Industrial had to strengthen their defense against Kogure.

As an excellent playmaker, after effectively drawing the opponent's defensive attention, Kogure then began to create opportunities for the outside shooters.

Among them, Mitsui performed the best.

His three-pointers were like precision-guided missiles, effectively relieving Kogure of the scoring pressure.

For a while, the two sides were tied.

On the electronic scoreboard, the scores of the two sides kept changing.

The audience's emotions were also stirred up, and they began to cheer wildly for their favorite team.

Ten minutes later, Shohoku still held a 5-point advantage.

beep~
At this point, Coach Domoto requested a substitution, replacing Minoru Matsumoto with Satoshi Ichinokura.

After learning that he had been substituted, Matsumoto Minoru paused for a moment, then left the field somewhat dejectedly.

In the recent game, Matsumoto Minoru's performance was mediocre, while his opponent Mitsui made four three-pointers.

Minoru Matsumoto is a typical ball-handling offensive player and is not good at playing off the ball, so his poor performance is understandable.

It has to be said that Minoru Matsumoto is currently in a very awkward situation.

Not only did he fail to gain the coach's approval, but his status on the team plummeted, making him the most easily replaceable player among Sannoh's key players.

It's obvious that Coach Domoto wants to mold Minoru Matsumoto into the Mitsui we know and love.

Unfortunately, this was destined to fail.

With Ichinokura Satoshi entering the game, he began to closely follow Mitsui.

As a long-time rival, Mitsui is naturally familiar with Ichinokura Satoshi's style.

Unlike his matchup against Matsumoto Minoru, Mitsui unusually didn't move, instead standing directly outside the three-point line at the top of the arc and actively asking Kogure for the ball.

Kogure did not refuse and made a bounce pass, successfully passing the ball to Mitsui.

This pass was flawless in both angle and power.

Mitsui received the ball very comfortably and silently gave Kogure a thumbs up.

So the instant he received the ball, Mitsui launched a pull-up jump shot right in front of Ichinokura Satoshi.

The instant Mitsui jumped, Ichinokura Satoshi quickly followed suit.

However, there is a clear difference in height and wingspan between the two.

Despite Ichinokura Satoshi's best efforts to interfere, the impact on Mitsui was quite limited.

After reaching its highest point, Mitsui released the basketball with a graceful motion.

shuh~
The basketball swished through the net, creating a splash.

Mitsui glanced at Ichinokura Satoshi, then turned and went back to defend.

He was not surprised by this result.

Compared to last year, Ichinokura Satoshi has only grown 1 centimeter, and is only 171 centimeters tall.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Ichinokura Satoshi's height is basically set, as he was only 171 cm tall during the story's timeline.

On the other hand, Mitsui, perhaps due to not having a two-year hiatus and his frequent exercise, has already reached 185 cm, exceeding the 184 cm he was in the story, and may very well reach 190 cm in the future.

As long as Ichinokura Satoshi doesn't closely guard him, it's no different from an open shot for him.

When it was Sannoh Industrial's turn to attack, Sawakita broke through Yamamoto Kuma's defenses once again.

Unfortunately, Kogure's help defense was extremely quick, and under his strong interference, the shot ended up missing.

Naito once again transformed into a defensive midfielder, using his explosive physical abilities to tightly entangle Kawada and Ito, giving them no chance to compete for rebounds.

After missing his shot, Zebei tried to grab the rebound.

With his excellent positioning skills, Kogure easily blocked Sawakita behind him, stretched out his hands, and easily grabbed and protected the rebound.

Sannoh Industrial retreated quickly on defense. Seeing no opportunity for a fast break, Shohoku slowed down their pace and stepped into the frontcourt at the right moment.

Soon, Kogure passed the ball to Mitsui again.

Satoshi Ichinokura's flaws are too severe, making it impossible for him to limit Mitsui's performance.

If Mitsui could easily defeat Ichinokura Satoshi back in the story, then he's even stronger now.

Mitsui was taller, heavier, faster, and more skilled than him; he could use his head to limit him.

Satoshi Ichinokura dared not let Mitsui take a pull-up jump shot and had to choose to defend him closely.

Unfortunately, Mitsui easily pushed aside Ichinokura Satoshi with just a little effort and completed the breakthrough.

Because he often sparred with Kogure, Mitsui's fighting skills were also developed without him even realizing it.

Even if it's not as good as the Imperial Shepherd, it's not that much different.

Dealing with Ichinokura Satoshi would be a piece of cake.

The moment Ichinokura Satoshi was beaten, Kawada realized the situation was bad and tried to cover Mitsui.

Kogure naturally noticed Kawada's actions and immediately ran to the other side.

Kawada hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to reinforce Mitsui or keep an eye on Kogure.

Mitsui seized the opportunity and pulled up for a jump shot.

shuh~
The basketball pierced the rim once again.

Mitsui's pull-up jump shot has clearly been passed down from Kogure, and both his rhythm and consistency are much better than last year.

With Mitsui scoring that basket, the situation in the game began to subtly change.

Sannoh Industrial is already ten points behind!
On the Sannoh bench, Minoru Matsumoto, who was watching the game, couldn't help but glance at Coach Domoto.

Last year, Ichinokura Satoshi was completely outmatched by Mitsui, and unexpectedly, Coach Domoto has assigned him to defend Mitsui again this year.

Coach Domoto frowned slightly, feeling greatly disappointed with Ichinokura Satoshi, and racking his brains to think of a way to defend against Mitsui.

Since Ichinokura Satoshi is no good, then we'll use someone else to defend.

Coach Domoto first glanced at Sawakita, then shook his head.

Sannoh Industrial needs a consistent scoring option, and he hopes that Sawakita will focus more on the offensive end.

Finally, his gaze fell on Fukatsu.

Fukatsu possesses excellent physical attributes, defensive awareness, and game experience, which is enough to limit most perimeter players. It's time for him to take on greater responsibility.

Coach Domoto stood up, went to the sidelines, and beckoned Fukatsu over.

"Fakatsu, you'll switch with Ichinokura and you'll be guarding Mitsui!"

Fukatsu didn't speak, but nodded solemnly.

So he began to switch positions with Ichinokura Satoshi, taking on the heavy responsibility of defending Mitsui.

The game continued, and as Fukatsu defended Mitsui, the latter's performance was no longer as active as before.

In response, Mitsui proactively changed its playing style.

He stopped asking for the ball and started playing without it, without being significantly restricted.

Fukatsu had no choice but to grit his teeth and stick close to Mitsui, knowing full well that if Mitsui found an opportunity, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Under these circumstances, Fukatsu's physical strength began to decline rapidly.

On the Sannoh bench, before Coach Domoto could even breathe a sigh of relief, Ichinokura Satoshi messed up again.

(End of this chapter)