Slam Dunk: Muguro

Chapter 324 Winter Selection Tournament Ends

In the second half, Ah Shen made all six of his three-point attempts in just over ten minutes, scoring 18 points on his own.

Although Sendoh, Matsumoto, and Ikegami's three-point shooting wasn't as good as Jin's, they were still very efficient, with a success rate of over 50%.

Thanks to this barrage of three-pointers, Shohoku, who were leading by 15 points, were brought back to tie by Ryonan.

Soon, the whistle blew to end the timeout, and the players from both sides returned to the field.

The Shohoku players regained their fighting spirit, clearly thanks to Coach Kitano's motivational speeches.

The game continued, and both sides returned to the court. Shoyo clearly intensified their defense against Ajin, assigning Hasegawa to specifically mark Ajin.

Judging from Hasegawa's performance against Matsumoto Minoru, he clearly cannot limit Matsumoto Minoru's ability to perform.

Besides his technical skills, Matsumoto Minoru's physical abilities are also superior to Hasegawa's.

Therefore, Coach Kitano decided to hand Matsumoto Minoru over to Minami Ryo.

Both are top players in their grade, and Minami has a chance to defeat Matsumoto Minoru.

Shohoku players began to effectively limit Ryonan's performance through quick defensive switches and coordinated rotations.

Meanwhile, Hanagata and Kishimoto intensified their efforts to grab offensive rebounds.

Shohoku's targeted defense successfully curbed Ryonan's momentum.

Seeing that Shohoku had widened the score gap again, the Ryonan players gradually became impatient and made several mistakes.

In addition, they failed to protect the defensive rebounds, allowing Hanagata and Kishimoto to steal several.

In this situation, the initiative in the game gradually shifted to Xiangyang.

With Shoyo about to build a double-digit lead, Coach Taoka had to call a timeout to begin teaching Shoyo how to counter him.

At the same time, it boosts the team's morale.

After the timeout ended, Ryonan significantly increased the frequency of picks and screens, and even set up a double pick and screen specifically for A-Shen.

Furthermore, the entire team joined in protecting the rebounds.
With the help of double pick-and-roll screens, A Shen hit consecutive three-pointers.

If he continues like this, he might be able to break the record for consecutive three-pointers held by Kogure and Mitsui.

Besides Ajin, Fukuda also began to focus his energy on defense.

His defensive awareness, positioning, and skills are all average, but his explosive physical attributes are undeniable.

With everyone working together, Ryonan finally stopped its decline.

However, they have been unable to narrow the gap for a long time.

Because Fujima and Minami were also getting hot, Shohoku rained down three-pointers under their leadership.

"Ryonan is going to lose!"

In the audience, Kogure shook his head and sighed.

Although Ryonan showed great fighting spirit and temporarily stopped their losing streak in the game, it all came at the cost of increased physical exertion.

A closer look reveals that the Ryonan players' steps began to become heavy, gradually showing signs of exhaustion.

Compared to Ryonan, the Shohoku players are in better form.

If this continues, it won't be long before Ryonan's players' defensive and offensive efficiency declines, thus affecting their performance in the game.

Unless a miracle occurs, it will be extremely difficult for Ryonan to turn the tide.

At this moment, the atmosphere on the Ryonan bench was unusually tense.

Coach Taoka was well aware that doing so was tantamount to drinking poison to quench thirst, and would inevitably be unsustainable, but he had no other choice.

Even the hottest feeling will eventually cool down.

With three minutes left in the game, Ah Shen put his hands on his knees, panting heavily, feeling increasingly powerless.

However, he still continued to run around the field with heavy steps.

However, compared to before the start of the race, his speed was noticeably slower.

Soon, with the help of his teammates, A-Shen managed to shake off Hasegawa.

In an instant, Sendoh's pass arrived.

However, this time, Ah Shen's catch was a beat slower than usual, and he almost fumbled the ball.

Before he could catch the basketball, Hasegawa pounced on him and slapped it out of his hands.

slap~
After making the interception, Hasegawa immediately passed the ball to Fujima.

Shoyo launched another fast attack, but unlike before, A-Shen and Ikegami were already overwhelmed.

Despite their best efforts to catch up, their unusually heavy steps still left them at the back.

For a time, a favorable situation of five against three emerged in the local area.

shuh~
Xiangyang seized the opportunity, and Nanlie finally got an open shot and hit another three-pointer.

This three-pointer gave Xiangyang a double-digit lead again.

bang~
Suddenly, the sound of a heavy object hitting the floor rang out.

Both players instinctively looked over and found a player lying face up on the ground.

He was none other than Ah Shen!

Among the Ryonan players present, A-Shen had the worst physical condition. Moreover, he had become a key factor in the team's comeback, which caused his physical condition to decline rapidly.

"Ah Shen, are you alright?"

The Ryonan players surrounded A-Shen, offering him words of comfort and concern.

Ah Shen tried to stand up, supporting himself with his hands, but his body was extremely weak. His body had reached its limit and was completely unresponsive.

"I'm fine, just a little exhausted. I'm afraid I'll have to leave you all here for now."

Ah Shen lay helplessly on the ground and was eventually helped off the field by his teammates.

"coach……"

A-Shen dared not look at Coach Taoka, feeling that he had failed Coach Taoka's teachings.

"Ah Shen, you did a great job. Now you can get some rest!"

Coach Taoka encouraged Ajin in a kind manner and did not express any dissatisfaction.

Ah Shen sat helplessly on the bench, panting heavily.

He was so exhausted that he could no longer play and could only watch the game from the sidelines.

Watching his teammates fight hard on the court made him feel terrible.

"If only I were a little stronger!"

Ah Shen couldn't help but sigh, silently making up his mind to further strengthen his physical training.

Despite the intense training at Ryonan, Ajin is still a first-year player, and he carries a heavy responsibility for the team in this game, resulting in a greater physical strain than before.

Of course, it's also related to Hasegawa.

Under Hasegawa's defense, Ajin had to expend more energy to fight back.

The game continued, and with A-Shen leaving the field, the situation became increasingly unfavorable for Ryonan.

Coach Taoka replaced Jin with Koshino. Although Koshino looks a lot like Mitsui, he doesn't have Mitsui's talent, and his strength is much weaker than the players on the field.

The biggest advantage of off-road running is its fighting spirit and physical fitness, but its strength is ultimately limited, and its ability is limited, so its help to the team is very limited.

Without Ashin helping to create space on offense, Shohoku could double-team Sendoh and Matsumoto Minoru without any worries.

For a time, Ryonan was put on the defensive and was almost completely overwhelmed by Shoyo, making the situation quite unfavorable for Ryonan.

On the court, Sendoh was also panting heavily.

After Ah Shen left the field, he had to take on more responsibility on the offensive end.

As his stamina waned significantly, his scoring efficiency was also affected, with his shooting percentage barely maintaining above 40%.

On the other hand, Minoru Matsumoto was also having a hard time.

Even when they were on the verge of their limits, the two persevered, keeping the score close and hoping for a miracle.

At that moment, they desperately hoped their team could stage a stunning comeback, but reality was cruel.

In the final three minutes, Xiangyang maintained a steady performance and ultimately won the game.

"Won!"

"we are the champion!"

"This is Xiangyang's first championship!"

……

At the moment the game ended, the Shohoku players celebrated wildly.

With Hainan High School dominating Kanagawa for 14 years and Shohoku High School emerging as a dark horse, Shoyo has never won the championship.

The champion of this selection competition naturally became Xiangyang's first champion.

On the other side, the Ryonan players were in extremely bad spirits. Some were silent, while others were crying their eyes out.

They were just one step away from the championship, but they lacked a bit of luck.

If Uozumi hadn't been injured, they would most likely have won.

Unfortunately, there is no if!
Sendoh looked up at the huge electronic scoreboard, a complex emotion welling up inside him, and his eyes showed a rare hint of disappointment.

At that moment, he seemed to understand what responsibility meant.

He slowly walked towards his teammates, his tone firm and powerful: "Every failure is a stepping stone to success, and I believe we will do better next time."

Inspired by Sendoh, the Ryonan players gradually emerged from their grief, transforming it into determination.

"We, Ryonan, have become stronger!"

Coach Taoka watched this scene with satisfaction, because Sendoh had grown a lot.

He has reason to believe that Ryonan will achieve even better results in this winter competition.

Meanwhile, Matsumoto Minoru became increasingly convinced that he had made the right choice.

If he continues to stay at Sannoh Industrial, he is more likely to become just another ordinary person.

On the contrary, he saw hope in Ryonan.

After the competition, the awards ceremony began.

In this winter selection competition, the Best Newcomer award was a tie, shared by Sendoh and Ashin.

Coach Kitano won the Best Coach award.

The best five are Uozumi, Sendoh, Minami, Maki, and Fujima.

Unexpectedly yet predictably, Ikegami won the Best Defensive Player award.

As for the MVP, unsurprisingly, it was awarded to Fujima.

(End of this chapter)