Slam Dunk: Muguro

Chapter 332 Coach Anzai = Coach Anxi!
In the following games, Kogure focused most of his energy on the defensive end.

Kogure's defensive strategies and skills made it almost impossible for Suzuki Hisuke to find an easy scoring opportunity, making every attack extremely difficult.

Compared to Kogure, Suzuki Nobisuke's biggest advantages are his height and weight, but these two advantages are not as significant as one might imagine.

As for wingspan, the difference between the two is negligible.

Suzuki Nobisuke also possesses explosive physical abilities, but Kogure's physical abilities are even more explosive.

Kogure not only surpasses Suzuki Nobusuke in speed and agility, but is also no less impressive in strength and explosiveness.

Kogure's defense relies not only on physical attributes, but also on his excellent anticipation, rich defensive experience, and exceptional reflexes.

He is always able to accurately judge the opponent's offensive intentions, thereby effectively limiting the opponent's scoring opportunities.

As a result, under Kogure's targeted defense, Suzuki Nobisuke was forced to endure excruciating pain and suffering.

During this time, Suzuki Nobisuke also tried to use the same methods he used against Naito against Kogure, but Kogure took a step back.

So, without any physical contact, Suzuki Nohisuke pretended to fall to the ground in a flustered manner, causing the audience to burst into laughter.

Suzuki Nobisuke's plan not only failed, but also left him humiliated.

Beep~
The referee naturally wouldn't let this opportunity pass. In just five minutes, Suzuki Nobisuke had already committed three fouls, following in Naito's footsteps.

Therefore, Coach Bodo had to request a timeout.

During the timeout, Coach Bodo made several targeted adjustments.

After the timeout, both teams returned to the court.

Even though Nohisuke Suzuki had already committed three fouls, Coach Hakata still gritted his teeth and let him continue playing.

After the game restarted, the Hakata players increased their support for Nohisuke Suzuki, wanting to further unleash the team's ace.

Unfortunately, Kogure's reaction was too quick, and coupled with his impeccable physical attributes, Suzuki Nobisuke still didn't get an easy chance to score.

Moreover, the Hakata players unknowingly fell into Shohoku's rhythm.

This was certainly not good for Hakata, who were practically being led by the nose by Shohoku.

In this situation, Shohoku continued to widen its lead.

Seeing this, Coach Bodo had no choice but to call another timeout.

Unfortunately, the results were not ideal.

By the end of the first half, Shohoku had built a 15-point lead.

This was only because Kogure only played for ten minutes; otherwise, Shohoku's lead would definitely have been more than 15 points.

On the Hakata bench, the Hakata coach frowned deeply.

With Coach Anzai hospitalized and Kogure arriving late, Hakata was surprised to find himself behind.

This shows that Shohoku has made considerable progress compared to the national tournament.

Clearly, the situation is quite unfavorable for Hakata.

After much deliberation, Coach Hakata decided to speed up the pace of the game.

Compared to Shohoku, Hakata's biggest advantage is its roster depth.

Apart from the starters, most of Bodo's substitutes are of a starting quality comparable to those of strong teams.

Apart from the four starters, the rest of Shohoku's players are all role players and do not reach the level of a strong team's starters.

Coach Hakata's idea was simple: to use Hakata's roster depth to drag down Shohoku.

Does it feel familiar?
Two months ago at the Autumn National Sports Tournament, the Kanagawa team used the same tactic to wear down the Fukuoka team.

Go against Tiangang!

Coach Hakata's idea was good, but he overlooked one problem: whether Hakata could hold on before dragging Shohoku down.

Compared to the serious atmosphere of Hakata, the atmosphere on Shohoku's bench was noticeably more relaxed, even leading to some humorous situations.

At this moment, the Shohoku players stared at Mitsui with surprised and shocked expressions.

"It feels really strange without the coach!"

Mitsui muttered to himself, then placed a framed photo of Coach Anzai on the chair.

The problem is, this photo looks suspiciously like a funeral portrait...

A scene from the underworld!
Coach Anzai became Coach Anzai!
Of all the players on the Shohoku team, only Mitsui was extremely dependent on Coach Anzai.

Akagi immediately cursed, "Damn it, don't do such unlucky things!"

After being persuaded by everyone, Mitsui had to regretfully put away the 'posthumous portrait of Coach Anxi' after kneeling in prayer.

After the farce, Kogure, acting as the temporary coach, scanned the faces of each teammate and began explaining the tactics for the second half.

He quickly scribbled on the tactics board, marking it and pointing out the role of each player.

During the tactical explanation, Kogure would occasionally stop to ask his teammates for their opinions, ensuring they could keep up with the pace of the explanation.

The second half began shortly afterward.

During the jump ball phase, Suzuki Nobi helped Akagi to win the jump ball.

slap~
Just as the Hakata point guard was about to receive the ball, Kogure suddenly rushed in from the side and tipped the ball away first.

With his short legs, Miyagi was the first to grab the basketball and launch a fast break.

Hakata's point guard rushed towards Miyagi, who didn't hold onto the ball and passed it to Kogure instead.

Kogure didn't catch the ball, but casually swatted it towards the right baseline.

Beyond the three-point line in the corner, Mitsui shook off his defender and had an open shot opportunity.

With the ball arriving just in time, Mitsui seized the fleeting opportunity and swiftly unleashed a three-pointer.

shuh~
The basketball traced a beautiful arc and fell precisely into the hoop, creating a splash of net paint.

Offense and defense reversed!

When it was Hakata's turn to attack, the Hakata point guard dribbled the ball past half-court and began to organize the team's offense.

Compared to the first half, Bodo significantly increased their offensive pace, giving the impression of a pseudo-run-and-gun style.

However, it was all for naught; Hakata seemed ill-suited to a fast-paced attack and made some unnecessary mistakes.

slap~
Hakata's passing intention was too obvious; the moment he made the pass, Miyagi leaped and made a steal.

The basketball hurtled towards the frontcourt, and the two players lunged at it together.

Miyagi grabbed the ball first, but lost the fast break opportunity due to the entanglement of Hakata's point guard.

When in doubt, call Kogure!
This demonstrates the extent to which the Shohoku players depended on Kogure.

Without hesitation, Miyagi passed the ball to Kogure again.

Kogure receives the ball with both hands, adopting a triple threat stance, and then uses a powerful shot to quickly break through the Hakata power forward, charging towards Suzuki Nohisuke who is positioned under the basket.

snort~
With a screeching sound of shoes scraping against the floor, Kogure abruptly stopped and jumped up.

Nobisuke Suzuki also jumped up, swinging his right hand at the basketball.

In mid-air, Kogure pulled back to avoid the opponent's block and slammed the ball into the basket with a reverse dunk.

Bang~
slap~
At the same time, Suzuki Nobisuke was caught off guard and slapped Kogure's arm.

Hua Hua Hua~
At that moment, the stadium was silent for a moment, then erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.

Kogure's fan club was incredibly excited, and some of the more sensitive girls were so thrilled that they trembled all over and shed bitter tears in their seats.

"Blue team's number 4 committed a foul, Red team's number 4 gets a free throw!"

At this point, the referee made his ruling.

This goal severely damaged the morale of the Hakata players.

Suzuki Nohisuke's face was ashen; he had already picked up his fourth foul at the start of the second half. To avoid fouling out, Suzuki Nohisuke would undoubtedly be hampered in the remaining games, unable to unleash his full potential.

Furthermore, Shohoku extended their lead to 20 points.

At the free-throw line, Kogure didn't dribble and shot the ball directly.

shuh~
The basketball swished cleanly through the rim, completing another 2+1 play.

As the point difference widened to 21, Coach Bodo felt a strong sense of unease and couldn't help but come to the sidelines, his eyes fixed on the court.

What made him even more desperate was that Suzuki Nobisuke already had four fouls.

As a result, the tactics specifically devised for Suzuki Nobisuke during the halftime break were effectively stillborn.

The situation is very unfavorable for Hakata!
Before Coach Hakata could come up with a solution, Shohoku seized the opportunity and their lead continued to widen.

For a time, Xiangbei launched a relentless offensive.

If no intervention is taken, Bodo could very well collapse.

"not good!"

The experienced coach Bodo finally reacted and used his last timeout without hesitation in an attempt to stabilize the situation.

This decision did indeed have an effect, finally stopping the possibility of Shohoku team widening the point difference.

The match quickly became even more intense.

The audience instinctively held their breath, staring intently at the scene, afraid of missing any exciting moments.

However, the situation on the field changed again not long afterward.

In one offensive play, Kogure and Akagi once again used the 'Kogure Link'.

Taking advantage of Suzuki Nobisuke's unsteady stance, Kogure drew another foul.

This was also Suzuki Nobisuke's last foul, and he was immediately asked to leave the field.

The nation's top center ended his career with five fouls and being forced to leave the game.

Suzuki Nohisuke left the arena dejectedly, his heart filled with mixed feelings, his eyes brimming with resentment, helplessness, and longing.

Because this was destined to be Nohisuke Suzuki's last match during his high school years.

"I'll be waiting for you at university!"

Before leaving the field, Nohisuke Suzuki made a bold statement, vowing to avenge his defeat at university.

You're probably going to be disappointed!

Kogure shrugged; the two were destined to be from different worlds.

With his talent, Nohisuke Suzuki has a good chance of becoming a professional player in the future, but he can only play in the island league in the future and is destined to be unable to go any further.

Forget the NBA, they probably wouldn't even be able to get into European leagues.

With Suzuki Nobisuke leaving the field, Hakata's morale plummeted.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Shohoku launched wave after wave of fierce attacks.

In an instant, the numbers on the electronic scoreboard changed rapidly, and Shohoku's lead continued to widen.

With ten minutes remaining in the game, Shohoku's lead had exceeded 30 points.

Seeing that there was no way to turn the tide, the coach of Bodo had no choice but to bring on a substitute.

On the other side, Shohoku substituted some of their key players, leaving only Mitsui, Naito, and Miyagi on the court.

With Suzuki Nohisuke off the court, Naito began to dominate under the basket, always able to easily score with sheer force, giving the impression of Shaquille O'Neal.

"Naito is probably no less capable than Mori now!"

Watching Naito wreak havoc on the rim, Kogure couldn't help but sigh.

In less than a year, Naito went from knowing nothing about basketball to his current level, a truly remarkable improvement.

Of course, this is also closely related to Naito's talent.

With Naito drawing attention, Mitsui played more easily on the field.

In this situation, the gap between the two sides not only did not narrow, but actually widened.

The Hakata players visibly breathed a sigh of relief when the final whistle blew.

For them, this was pure torture.

In the end, Shohoku team had the last laugh and successfully advanced to the finals.

As the game ended, the supporters of Shohoku once again erupted in thunderous applause and cheers.

"Shohoku is stronger now!"

In the stands, the coaches and players of Sannoh Industrial were quite troubled.

The Sannoh players began to discuss the matter, and were generally pessimistic.

Shohoku has become stronger, while Sannoh, having lost Matsumoto Minoru, has become weaker instead of stronger.

"Alright, let's focus on the present and defeat Ryonan first!"

Coach Domoto stopped the players' discussion in time; otherwise, if it had continued, Sannoh Industrial might have lost without a fight.

However, Coach Domoto still has one hidden worry.

In yesterday's game against Shoyo, Shoyo had a hot hand in the first half, raining down three-pointers and once leading Sannoh Kogyo by double digits.

Unfortunately, Shohoku's shooting touch went cold in the second half.

Sannoh Industrial also tried to use a tight defense against Shoyo, but it had limited effect on Shoyo.

In order to counter Sannoh Industrial's tight defense, in addition to Fujima, Coach Kitano also sent out Ito Taku, and even Minami Ryotsu has excellent organizational skills.

In this match, Xiangyang demonstrated unwavering willpower, and the outcome was not decided until the very end.

Although Sannoh Industrial won in the end, the Sannoh players were also exhausted, after all, Shohoku is a typical run-and-gun team.

Sawakita is indeed very strong, easily defeating Hasegawa, but he eventually needs time to catch his breath and cannot keep attacking indefinitely.

Without Matsumoto Minoru, Sannoh has one less main offensive point and can only rely on Sawakita and Okawata.

In this game, Sawakita and Kawada combined for 88 points.

Because of Xiangyang, both teams scored over 130 points in total.

However, the cost is also enormous.

The two were clearly affected and were unable to fully recover in just one day.

Apart from Sawakita and Okawata, the other main players of Sannoh were also not in good form, after all, they played almost the entire game.

The course of this match made Coach Domoto realize the importance of Minoru Matsumoto, and he secretly regretted not having tried to retain him.

People often only learn to cherish things after they've lost them!

Coach Domoto now deeply understands the meaning of this sentence.

He began to reflect on his decision when Matsumoto Minoru left, wondering if it was too hasty and if he had not fully considered Matsumoto Minoru's contributions and impact on the team.

If Minoru Matsumoto were still on the team, the course of this match would have been very different, at least much easier.

For a moment, Coach Domoto was filled with regret and self-blame.

Unlike Sannoh Industrial, Ryonan finished the game in just half a match, ensuring the best form for their key players.

In short, a low-health Mountain King versus a full-health Ryonan!

Shohoku was naturally paying close attention to this match.

After the match ended, they did not leave but waited in the stands for the match to begin.

(End of this chapter)