Basketball miracles

Chapter 195 [A Disgraceful Situation]

Led by Xiao Tu, the Xiangbei players kept scoring, and within 10 minutes, the point difference had widened to 30 points.

Xiao Tu didn't arrange for a full-court press, which was already giving Xiangyang some face. Otherwise, they would definitely have made a lot of mistakes. Only Fujima Kenji was good at dribbling and advancing the ball on the court.

To increase outside shooting options, Fujima called a timeout and substituted Nagano Mitsuru with the 180cm tall Ito Taku, playing a double guard formation.

As a result, Xiangyang's offense remained weak, and their defense worsened. Seeing that Ito Taku was primarily guarding Rukawa Kaede, Xiao Tu repeatedly passed the ball to Rukawa Kaede during counterattacks, who then scored consecutive points with powerful layups or pull-up jump shots.

Fujima looked panicked, like Messi in the 18 Mengniu commercial, unable to think of any other way to adjust the lineup.

Before the game, no one expected that Takenori Akagi, considered the pillar of Shohoku, would be the lowest scorer among the starters. His main task was to protect the paint, and in positional play, he would mainly pull out to screen for opportunities rather than force his way through the attack.

Shohoku players had numerous open shot opportunities and an extremely high shooting percentage. Even when they missed a shot, Sakuragi Hanamichi could often grab the offensive rebound and score on the second-chance opportunity. The 193cm tall Takano was no match for Sakuragi in one-on-one defense; he was significantly shorter when jumping.

How can a 5cm height advantage compensate for a 50cm vertical jump difference?
In the manga, Takano's scoring ability is also quite poor; he only managed to score a few points when Sakuragi committed four fouls and became a coward. Now, he and Hanagata Toru are stunned by Sakuragi's jumping ability and have no way to stop him.

Akagi was also convinced; Sakuragi was only a rookie who had trained for two months, yet his rebounding ability surpassed his.

In the second half, Fujima tried having Hasegawa Kazushi primarily guard Xiao Tu, while he himself guarded Mitsui Hisashi. However, Hasegawa was also beaten by Xiao Tu's quick steps. Akagi then set a screen for Mitsui, who found his rhythm from beyond the arc, hitting four consecutive three-pointers.

Even if Fujima quickly gets around the screen, he can't block the shot. Mitsui Hisashi will shoot whenever there's space. He trusts his teammates; even if the shot doesn't go in, he can still grab the rebound.

Fujima is unstoppable today; he seems to be a defensive black hole.

With Shohoku leading by a large margin, Coach Anzai substituted Mitsui Hisashi for a short rest and brought on Miyagi Ryota.

Miyagi rarely gets a chance to appear, and he's so anxious he's practically patting Anzai's chin like Sakuragi did.

With one less three-point shooter, Shohoku's fast breaks are even more lethal. Moreover, Shohoku doesn't lack three-point shooters; Xiao Tu and Rukawa can take shots from the perimeter.

With two playmakers on the field, Ryota Miyagi can easily break through against Taku Ito.

Fujima, somewhat confused, called another timeout and brought back starting small forward Mitsuru Nagano. He figured Ryota Miyagi was a defensive liability, and that a big man like him should be able to score easily against him, right?
Things weren't that simple. The Shohoku players also made adjustments on the court.

Xiao Tu moved to the area near the penalty area for a zone defense, leaving Miyagi Ryota to defend Fujima one-on-one on the perimeter. As the coach on the field, he could tell how to play just by looking at the opposing team's lineup.

The lineup of four tall players became a complete joke. When the four big men were on the court, Shohoku put on a fast break dunk show, and Shohoku couldn't defend them. Shohoku even practiced a full-court press, which led to several turnovers by Shoyo, allowing them to launch fast breaks directly.

Fujima's performance today can only be described as "disgraceful". He still struggled to score against Ryota Miyagi's defense and found it difficult to break through.

Fujima appeared impatient, and his hasty three-point attempt was blocked by the 168cm tall Miyagi, much to everyone's surprise. His reputation as one of the "Two Pillars of Kanagawa," a "Strategist Coach," and an "Ace Point Guard" is about to be tarnished.

Xiao Tu received the ball and launched a quick counterattack, passing it to Sakuragi Hanamichi who was following up in the middle. Just as Sakuragi was about to put on another dunk, Hanagata Toru, the only defender who managed to get back on defense in time, chose to commit a foul by pulling Sakuragi.

With 7 and a half minutes remaining in the game, Toru Hanagata, one of Kanagawa's four great centers, fouled out.

Sakuragi's speed decreases when he dribbles, but his off-ball movement is too fast; Hanagata Toru would be completely outmatched in a race against him. Hanagata Toru committed three fouls against Sakuragi today. Sakuragi is incredibly aggressive in grabbing offensive rebounds, immediately launching second-chance opportunities upon landing, and his close-range shooting and consecutive jumps completely outclass everyone else.

Hanagata Toru seems to have left the game voluntarily; his mentality has collapsed. Continuing to play would have been agonizing for him as he couldn't defend against anyone.

Sakuragi not only dominated the penalty area, but also gave Hanagata the nickname "Najugane," which was really unfair.

Sakuragi's playing style is actually the same as that of Moses Malone, the NBA's top center in the 80s: double jump and second-chance opportunities. Once he mastered cutting inside and shooting under the basket, he made all the interior players in Kanagawa look foolish, and even if he missed a shot, he could grab the rebound and keep shooting.

With Ito Taku back on the court, Shohoku's defensive retreat became faster. Shohoku also substituted Miyagi Ryota for Mitsui Hisashi, who had been resting for a while.

Mitsui Hisashi sank three more three-pointers, leaving Hasegawa questioning his existence. With Akagi's screens and Xiao Tu's passes, Mitsui's shots were always easy.

With Hanagata Toru off the court, Takano, playing center, was also someone who couldn't defend outfield. He dared not defend too far out, otherwise no one could compete with Sakuragi for rebounds. Xiao Tu felt that Hasegawa Kazushi was also a seriously overrated player; Fujima called him a "defensive expert" and said he "had the ability to become a captain."

The results of it?
The scene in the manga was truly an epic slap in the face. Hasegawa boasted before the game that he would "limit Mitsui to within 5 points," but the exhausted Mitsui hit 5 three-pointers and scored 20 points in the game.

The most outrageous thing is that at a crucial moment, he was stunned by Mitsui's gaze while holding the ball, and was easily intercepted by Miyagi Ryota.

This guy with triangular eyes and spiky hair doesn't have Sendoh's offensive ability. Despite being 190cm tall, he can't score against an exhausted Mitsui, and he can't even score a single point against Kogure Kiminobu, who came off the bench.

Whose commander is so useless?
Without Xiao Tu, Shohoku was able to pull off an upset and advance to the semifinals, and Hasegawa, the undercover agent, deserves much of the credit.

With a final score of 155-48, Shohoku crushed second-seeded Shoyo by 107 points to advance to the semifinals of the prefectural tournament. Shoyo's performance was even worse than Tsukubu's; their playing style was completely countered by Shohoku.

The entire Shohoku team made 24 three-pointers, with Mitsui Hisashi making 10 of 13. Adding three free throws and two layups, he racked up a whopping 37 points, proving that the middle school MVP hasn't lost his edge.

Xiao Tu casually racked up another 30+30 stat line. He had been trying to take as few shots as possible, but unfortunately, the opponents were just too weak. There were some shots he couldn't avoid taking because no one was guarding him.

Rukawa Kaede also scored 32 points, and he, Sakuragi, and Akagi had several dunks.

After the game, all the players from Shohoku cried; they had never lost so badly before.

Xiao Tu had always felt that Hasegawa looked familiar, and after the match, he finally remembered who he resembled. He looked just like Jong Tae-se, the future North Korean football player, especially when he cried.

Fujima only scored 4 points, 4 assists, and 6 turnovers, but he looked quite handsome while crying. Xiao Tu had passed him countless times, including two points against Miyagi Ryota.

Coach Gao Touli and the players from Hainan also came to watch the game, and they were all stunned.

Takato's current focus isn't on retaining the prefectural championship; he's trying to contact Coach Anzai and persuade him to substitute his key players after taking a commanding lead, to save face for the Hainan team. Coincidentally, Ryonan's coach, Taoka Shigeichi, has the same idea.

The coach knew from watching the game that it was impossible to defeat Shohoku; with Xiao Tu leading the charge, Shohoku's offensive power was too strong.

What kind of "King of Hainan" is this? They should just give up now. They can put away their "Ever-Victorious" banner; they'll only need to display it again in the semifinals to embarrass themselves.

Japanese high school basketball doesn't have much influence, otherwise Xiao Tu, who is so good, would have been on TV long ago.

Even though Japan doesn't have many basketball fans, local media outlets followed Xiao Tu and the Shohoku team closely. Fans in Kanagawa Prefecture were eager to know if Shohoku could overcome all obstacles and ultimately win the national championship.

After winning the game, the Shohoku team had time to rest. The semifinals will be held next weekend, with Shohoku's first game being against Hainan University Affiliated High School.

The schedule for the Kanagawa high school basketball tournament is very relaxed. For example, Shohoku only played two official games all year and was eliminated in the first round. Then, Akagi Takenori, chanting the slogan "Conquer the nation," entertained himself with a few friends on campus.

To third-grade students, this guy is simply mentally ill and refuses to go to the hospital for a checkup.

Many players in Kanagawa have untapped potential, but the national tournament presents a completely different picture. All teams play one match per day in a single-elimination format, quickly determining the champion.

Xiao Tu felt that in the manga, Shohoku's path to the championship was incredibly difficult, probably the hardest of all the teams. They played one more game than Sannoh Kogyo, and faced the defending champions back-to-back without any rest.

The author simply didn't want Shohoku to go too far; he wanted the protagonists' youth to be filled with regrets. Shohoku faced strong opponents in three days, and given that players' stamina wasn't their strong suit, it was no wonder they collapsed.

There are solutions, the simplest being for coaches to lead players in rigorous physical training, like Shigeichi Taoka, who arranged grueling training sessions.

However, Shohoku's training has always been very casual. After defeating Shoyo, Mitsuyoshi Anzai went off somewhere to slack off again.

Preparing for the semifinals? What's that?
If Anzai doesn't come to the stadium on his own initiative, it's hard for others to find him. You can't exactly call Akagi to question the coach about why he's not coming, can you?

Now the players don't have to worry about not having a coach; Xiao Tu seems much more reliable.

(End of this chapter)