Slam Dunk: Sakuragi learned from Kawamura Eiki's experience

Chapter 100 The Last 46 Seconds

Sakuragi Hanamichi closely followed Fukuda's movement under the basket, while keeping a close eye on Ryonan's offensive formation. Sendoh held the ball at the top of the arc, and Uozumi positioned himself in the low post.

This triangle offense scored countless points against Shohoku starting in the second half, with each play seemingly orchestrated by Uozumi and finished with Fukuda and Sendoh's cuts, flowing smoothly like water.

But Sakuragi now sees through it all; Uozumi is just a supporting player.

Fukuda doesn't have many victories; most of them were won by Sendoh. He's prepared to gamble that Sendoh will be the one to finish things off this time as well.

So the instant that Koro came up to screen for Sendoh and Rukawa was caught, Sakuragi immediately let go of Fukuda, took two steps from the edge of the restricted area and took off.

Sendoh caught the ball in the corner and jumped. Just as the ball left his fingertips, Sakuragi's hand arrived and slapped the ball out of bounds.

Ryonan serves from the sidelines, and Ikegami comes up again to set a screen for Sendoh, and Rukawa gets caught again.

Sendoh drove straight to the basket, but Uozumi stepped to the side to block his path. Sendoh jumped and sent the ball toward the basket with his right hand.

However, that red shadow reappeared, slapping the ball away with another powerful block.

"What!" Taoka Shigeichi was stunned on the sidelines.

The first time was a coincidence, but what about the second time?

Could it be that Sakuragi has seen through the flaws in Ryonan's stripped-down triangle offense?

Uozumi's offense was mediocre, Fukuda lacked mid-range shooting, and only Sendoh was responsible for most of the finishing.

The ball, swatted away, flew towards the sideline. Rukawa Kaede and Ikegami Ryoji lunged at the same time, their four hands gripping the basketball tightly, entangled together and refusing to let go. The two fell to the floor, writhing in a tangled mess.

The referee's whistle blows and the ball is scrambled.

Akagi Takenori walked up to Sakuragi, patted him on the shoulder with a heavy thud, and said in an even louder voice, "Well done. That was crucial."

Sakuragi grinned, said nothing, and simply wiped the sweat from his chin with his wristband.

The referee tossed the ball up. Rukawa and Ikegami jumped simultaneously, Rukawa flicking the ball to Sakuragi at the highest point of his jump. Sakuragi caught the ball, immediately started running, and quickly sprinted across half-court.

Sendoh Akira was the first to get back on defense, lowering his center of gravity at the top of the arc to block Sakuragi's path.

Sakuragi didn't stop, maintaining his dribbling rhythm. He suddenly stopped in front of Sendoh, pushed off with his right foot, and bounced back a step for a three-pointer.

Sendoh jumped to block the shot immediately, stretching his fingers to their limit.

But when he fell, Sakuragi was still in the air. Sakuragi's hang time was a little longer than his, and he flicked his wrist out steadily.

Swish. Three points made.

Shohoku is leading by 4 points. The bench erupted.

The red formation of Shohoku, along with the flags of Rukawa, Yano, and Sakuragi, all erupted simultaneously in that instant, causing the ceiling of the entire basketball arena to shake.

There were about one and a half minutes left in the game.

Shigeichi Taoka called the final timeout.

Ryonan's bench. Taoka looked at his teammates, who were huddled in a semi-circle, each one breathing heavily, their jerseys soaked with sweat.

Taoka's voice was deep and heavy: "The final moments. Don't give up. Defend with all your might. If you can hold on for just one round, you can catch up. Just one round."

Then he turned to Sendoh, paused for a moment, and said, "Sendoh, the attack is yours."

Sendoh nodded.

The Shohoku bench. Five players, huddled in a semi-circle, were hunched over, panting. No one was sitting. Sakuragi Hanamichi pulled a towel off his neck, tossed it onto a chair, and spoke, his tone as confident as a coach: "I'll guard Sendoh next. I know Ryonan well; they'll definitely give the ball to the spiky guy for offense."

The pause has ended.

From the stands, the Ryonan team chanted in unison, "Defense, defense, defense—"

On the other side, the Shohoku team was not to be outdone, their voices a jumble of shouts: "Attack! Attack! Attack!"

Amidst the commotion, Sendoh Akira dribbled the ball across half-court. Looking up, he saw that instead of Rukawa Kaede waiting for him at the top of the arc, it was Sakuragi Hanamichi.

"Come on, Sakuragi. Let me see just how strong you really are." Sendoh's expression was the most serious he'd ever been, the ball moving from side to side between his legs, his dribbling rhythm fluctuating between fast and slow.

Sakuragi is sticking close to them, and Shohoku currently has a 4-point advantage. The best option is to defend against shots, not drives.

Sendoh executed several feints in quick succession, utilizing his shoulders, eyes, and footwork, while Sakuragi's center of gravity remained completely still. His three-point shooting path was effectively blocked.

As the shot clock ticked away, Sendoh lowered his center of gravity and drove hard from Sakuragi's right side, cutting into the paint and pulling up for a jump shot.

Akagi and Rukawa simultaneously moved in from both sides to reinforce the defense, their two large hands covering Sendoh's attack space.

Sendoh leaned back slightly in mid-air, met the two players' block attempts, and flicked his wrist, sending the ball off the backboard into the basket.

The point difference is back to 2 points.

As the offense transitioned to defense, Sakuragi had just received the ball when Sendoh and Koshino pounced on him again, blocking his dribbling route with all four hands.

This time, Rukawa was there to receive the pass. Sakuragi passed the ball to him. Rukawa received the ball and used his speed to break through Ikegami's defenses, charging towards the frontcourt.

Ikegami chased desperately, his fingers barely brushing the hem of Rukawa's jersey. After crossing half-court, Rukawa made a long pass to Akagi Takenori in the low post.

Akagi catches the ball and leans his back against Jun Uozumi.

Uozumi's chest pressed firmly against his, and a rough voice came from behind: "Come on, Akagi. Let's have a duel to settle our grudges."

The two third-year centers, who had been battling each other in the county tournament since their second year of high school, were now relying entirely on this one round.

Akagi, with the ball in his back to the basket, drove towards the rim. One stroke, two strokes, and he was at the basket.

Taoka Shigeichi clenched his fist on the sidelines. There was a chance. Uozumi's defense was stronger than Akagi's. As long as they could stop this shot, Ryonan could launch a counterattack.

All eyes were on Akagi's turnaround jump shot. But instead of turning, Akagi hurled the ball hard towards the three-point line.

Sakuragi Hanamichi receives the ball. In front of him are Sendoh and Koshino, who are desperately trying to catch up. Sakuragi jumps straight up, his body straight, and flicks the ball with his wrist.

The ball flew past the fingertips of the fairy road and the cross-country cover.

Whoosh! The point difference widened to 5 points.

With 46 seconds left on the timer, Taoka Shigeichi plopped back into his chair. Sakuragi sank another three-pointer, and he knew the game was over.

Jun Uozumi stood under the basket, looking at Takenori Akagi with disbelief on his face.

His provocation didn't work. He thought Akagi would force the shot, and he was confident he could defend it.

But Akagi passed the ball. His old rival didn't challenge him to a one-on-one match, but instead passed the ball to the red-haired guy at the most crucial moment.

Akagi looked at Uozumi, a smile involuntarily creeping onto his face: "Not just you, I also have very capable teammates I can trust!"

With 46 seconds left, the score difference was 5 points.

Takenori Akagi knew that the championship trophy was just 46 seconds away, and his three-year dream was about to come true.

But when he was on the defensive, Takenori Akagi yelled with a stern face, "The game isn't over yet, defend the next ball!"