Slam Dunk: Sakuragi learned from Kawamura Eiki's experience

Chapter 161 A dunk from the three-point line to the basket

Kazunari Fukatsu dribbled the ball slowly and steadily, waiting for his teammates to get into position.

Sannoh's offensive formation resembled a precisely calibrated machine. Kawata Masashi dropped into the low post, Nobe Masahiro spread out on the weak side, Ichinokura Satoshi ran along the baseline to distract Shohoku's defense, and Sawakita Eiji positioned himself on the wing, ready to receive the ball and start his attack.

Fukatsu stopped the ball at the top of the arc and scanned Shohoku's defensive positioning.

Akagi Takenori was entangled with Kawata Masashi in a low position, while Mitsui Hisashi followed Ichinokura Satoshi.

Rukawa Kaede stood guard beside Sawakita Eiji, the two similarly sized boys an arm's length apart. Sakuragi and Nobe Masahiro positioned themselves to secure the best rebounding spot.

Fukatsu's gaze finally settled on the person in front of him, Kiminobu Kogure.

The vice-captain of Shohoku spread his arms, bent his knees slightly, and defended properly, with no obvious missteps in his positioning.

But Fukatsu saw through his shifting speed immediately. It wasn't that Kogure wasn't trying; it was just that his physical condition was what it was.

Fukatsu didn't even make a feint. He dribbled the ball with his right hand and took a step forward to the left, causing Kogure's center of gravity to shift to the left as well.

Then Fukatsu flicked his right wrist, and the ball bounced back to his left side from under his legs, while his body simultaneously shifted to the right.

It wasn't a fancy move, just the simplest crossover, but the explosive power of that initial movement caused Kogure's left foot to...

Before he could push off the ground, his center of gravity was pinned to the spot, and he could only watch helplessly as Fukatsu cut past him from his right side.

Fukatsu easily drove to the three-point line and went straight to the free-throw line area. Akagi Takenori, who was in the low post, was guarding Kawata Masashi. He caught a glimpse of Fukatsu rushing in, but he didn't dare to let Kawata go.

If he takes one step out, Fukatsu can immediately pass the ball to Kawata, leaving the basket wide open. So Akagi can only stand there, gritting his teeth as he watches Fukatsu charge into his defensive zone.

Rukawa, who was closest to him, made a choice, moving laterally from the flank to block Fukatsu's breakthrough path.

But this was exactly what Fukatsu was waiting for. The moment Rukawa moved, Sawakita Eiji was caught off guard.

Fukatsu slapped the ball out from the outside of his palm, it bounced off the ground and flew precisely into Sawakita's hands.

When Eiji Sawakita received the ball, Kaede Rukawa was already out of position while trying to help defend Fukatsu, and he easily jumped and shot.

"Swish!" The ball goes in.

The game transitioned from offense to defense. Sakuragi received the inbound pass from Kogure at the baseline, slowly dribbled the ball across half-court, and came to the top of the arc again. This time, however, it wasn't Fukatsu Kazunari standing in front of him.

Instead, it was Eiji Sawakita, Sannoh's ace and the number one high school player in all of Japan, who switched onto him.

Zebei lowered his center of gravity slightly, using his left hand in front to obstruct the opponent's view, while his right hand was behind him, ready to steal the ball at any moment.

"Come on," Sawakita said to Sakuragi. "Sendoh said you're strong, let me test your strength."

Sakuragi slammed the ball to the ground twice. "Now, I won't hold back."

Sakuragi's first move was to push the ball forward and to the right with his right hand, leaning his body to the right and sliding his foot half a step outward.

Zebei's defensive center of gravity remained unchanged. He only lightly tapped his feet on the floor and turned his body slightly to the same side by half an inch, without shifting his center of gravity.

Sakuragi pulled the ball back from between his legs, switched it to his left hand, and leaned his body to the left. Sawakita shifted his weight to the left as well, his steps small but extremely precise, maintaining an arm's length distance between his feet and Sakuragi—not too close to defend against drives, and not too far to defend against shots.

On his third change of direction, Sakuragi dribbled the ball with his right hand from behind his back to his left hand, while simultaneously taking a step forward and to the left.

This time, his movements were more exaggerated than the previous two times, and his shoulders had dropped to an angle where he could initiate a breakthrough.

This time, Zebei finally shifted his weight, taking a small half-step back with his left foot and tilting his body slightly to the left, preparing to block Sakuragi's left-side breakthrough route.

But Sakuragi didn't go to the left. He pulled the ball back from his left hand to his right, swayed his body dramatically, and quickly switched positions with a scissor-step on the floor.

Sawakita Eiji caught up again. His lateral movement speed was indeed faster than Fukatsu's, and his footwork was more agile. Moreover, when Sakuragi made that last change of direction, Sawakita's body was already close enough to close in, defending him very tightly and giving him no space to shoot.

The sneakers made a dense screeching sound on the wooden floor as the two players tentatively grappled with each other a step beyond the three-point line.

On the Sannoh coaching bench, Goro Domoto stood with his arms crossed, his eyes fixed on his opponent on the field.

Sawakita's rise to become the top high school player in Japan wasn't solely due to his offense. His defense was also among the best in the national high school basketball scene.

Domoto watched as Sawakita kept up with Sakuragi's changes of direction three times in a row, looking very confident.

The red-haired boy's ball control was indeed stronger than expected, but against Zebei, it wasn't so easy to get past him by just faking it.

Sakuragi on the court also noticed this, but couldn't shake off Sawakita, whose reaction and speed were on point.

Since we can't shake it off, then we won't shake it off.

Sakuragi slammed the ball to the ground, then suddenly turned ninety degrees, pressing his back and shoulder against the ball, switching to a back-to-the-basket move.

Sawakita Eiji was completely dumbfounded; it was another backstab.

He recalled how he couldn't defend against Sendoh Akira's back-to-the-basket moves in yesterday's semi-final against Ryonan, and now this red-haired guy in front of him was also using a back-to-the-basket move.

Sakuragi didn't give him time to think. He leaned back, his back slamming into Sawakita's chest, causing Sawakita's feet to slide half a step on the floor.

"It's so heavy," Zebei thought to himself in surprise.

This red-haired guy is even stronger than Sendoh. Sendoh's back attack relies on rhythm and footwork, while this guy relies on pure core strength to directly attack.

Sakuragi continued to drive towards the inside. His dribbling rhythm and the rhythm of his back impacts were perfectly synchronized. The ball landed, his body bumped backward, and his feet followed. The movements were fluid and seamless, and each step created half a body length of space.

Zebei was forced to retreat repeatedly, his shoes making a series of rapid friction sounds on the floor, his defensive position was compressed from beyond the three-point line all the way to near the free throw line.

He tried to turn to the side to reduce the force, but Sakuragi's back was like a steel plate, offering no angle to reduce the force at all.

The spectators in the stands were stunned. Japan's top high school student was backed down all the way from the three-point line to the inside.

Just as Sakuragi was about to drive into the basket against Sawakita, Kawata Masashi decisively abandoned his defense on Akagi and moved to help defend.

If they don't come to the rescue, Sakuragi will just turn around and finish the game under the basket.

After reaching the target position, Sakuragi exerted his last bit of force to push Sawakita away, pivoted on his right foot, and suddenly turned and jumped.

Sawakita and Kawata, who rushed over, jumped up at the same time to block the shot. The two of them covered almost all of Sakuragi's shooting angles.

But Sakuragi jumped higher than them, his feet were more than 90 centimeters off the ground, and his hang time was unbelievably long.

Sakuragi Hanamichi, in mid-air, held the ball high in his right hand and, facing the two defenders' attempts to block him, slammed the ball toward the basket.

"Bang!" The basketball went through the net with a loud crash.

Sakuragi Hanamichi's body collided with Kawata Masashi's in mid-air, and both of them lost their balance, almost losing their footing when they landed.

"Beep!" The whistle blew.

The referee ran over and pointed at Masashi Kawata: "White number 7 committed a defensive foul. The goal stands. One free throw."

Looking at the red-haired man in front of him, Masashi Kawata, whose face was accustomed to all kinds of opponents, finally revealed an undisguised shock.

This red-haired kid surpasses him in jumping height and hang time. His core strength is at least on par with his.

The fact that he was able to complete a dunk after being hit in the air means that Sakuragi's aerial combat ability is stronger than he expected.

He glanced at Zebei, who was also completely bewildered. Being pushed from beyond the three-point line to the basket and then dunked on was probably the first time he had ever experienced such treatment in his basketball career.

The stands erupted, and the Shohoku stands went wild once again.

The area around Sannoh fell silent. Some people rubbed their eyes in disbelief, while others whispered, "It's a lie, isn't it?"

Sannoh fans have seen countless big moments, but seeing their two aces dunked on by the same person at the same time in the finals is something that has never happened before in previous games.

Sakuragi Hanamichi walked to the free throw line.

Loud boos and disruptive noises began coming from the Sannoh stands, attempting to disrupt his free throw rhythm.

Sakuragi ignored him, slammed the ball to the floor three times, bent his knees slightly, and shot.

The ball swishes into the net, a clean penalty.

6:2.

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