Slam Dunk: Sakuragi learned from Kawamura Eiki's experience

Sakuragi made the free throw with ease, switching the game between offense and defense.

On the defensive end, Sakuragi Hanamichi dived into the paint and stood side by side with Akagi Takenori under the basket.

Sakuragi squatted in a horse stance, arms outstretched, his eyes fixed on the Miura Dai player with the ball, like a lion crouching in the grass.

Akagi stood half a step behind him, his hands raised high, like a black tower.

The two had even better chemistry than during practice matches. When Sakuragi rushed out to help defend, Akagi would automatically duck under the basket to protect it.

When Akagi is pulled out, Sakuragi will immediately fill in for him.

One on the left and one on the right, one in front and one behind, like two big brooms, sweeping the restricted area clean.

Miuradai's ace, number 4 Murasame, is a power forward. In the first half, he relied on his physicality to charge around the basket and scored a lot of points.

His playing style is very simple: get the ball, turn around, drive towards the basket, jump, and lay up.

But it doesn't work now.

The first time, he received the ball in the low post, and as soon as he turned around, Sakuragi was right there beside him. Their bodies collided, and Murasame felt like he had hit a wall covered with a quilt—he couldn't push it away.

He had no choice but to pass the ball out.

The second time, he refused to believe it and forced a jump shot. Sakuragi jumped from the front, his right hand raised high, his fingertips barely touching the bottom of the ball. The ball changed direction, hit the backboard, and bounced back, which Akagi caught.

The third time, he was smarter and made a feint, trying to trick Sakuragi into jumping. But Sakuragi didn't move, his eyes fixed on his waist.

Murasame had no choice but to jump. Just as the ball left his hand, a large hand slapped it from the side. "Smack!" The ball was slapped away beyond the three-point line, bounced twice, and rolled to the sideline.

Murasame stumbled when she landed, and looking at Sakuragi, she felt a bitter taste in her mouth.

What kind of monsters are sitting on Shohoku's bench? That number 11, Rukawa Kaede, is already outrageous enough. He can break through like cutting vegetables and dunk like drinking water.

This redhead number 10 is even more formidable; his jumping ability is like he's got springs in his body, and his defense is as fierce as a mad dog. Is this even fair?

Sakuragi once again dribbled the ball and drove into the paint.

The coach at Miura Dai was pacing anxiously on the sidelines, his hands cupped around his mouth: "Double-team him! Double-team him! If two aren't enough, have three!"

The Miura Dai team had excellent execution; as soon as Sakuragi stepped into the free-throw line, three players pounced on him from three directions.

Sakuragi didn't force his way in; instead, he slipped the ball through the gaps in the defense, making a low pass that went under the defender's arm and landed steadily in Mitsui's hands.

When Mitsui received the ball, his knees were already bent, his wrists were already taut, and his body was already in the optimal shooting position.

The moment he got the ball, he jumped, his body leaning back slightly in the air, and with a flick of his wrist, the ball slipped from his fingertips.

The ball traced a high arc, spinning as it rose and fell under the stadium lights.

"Swish." The needle went into the net.

Jun Uozumi sat next to Hikoichi, his gaze falling on number 14, his pupils suddenly contracting.

A scene flashed through his mind: two years ago, in the final of the junior high school league, Wushi Junior High School was playing against a certain team. A boy with a middle-part hairstyle made a game-winning three-pointer in the last few seconds, and the whole stadium erupted.

"Mitsui Hisashi..." Uozumi's voice squeezed out from his throat, carrying a hint of disbelief, "Mitsui Hisashi from Takeishi Middle School."

On the court, Shohoku had already taken the lead and started to widen the gap. Akagi Takenori received a pass from Sakuragi under the basket, slammed it down with both hands, and roared as he landed, the sound echoing several times throughout the stadium.

Mitsui Hisashi made another three-pointer from the outside, and clenched his fist after the ball went in.

Sakuragi Hanamichi scored a putback basket after grabbing the offensive rebound.

A voice rang out from behind Maki Shinichi in the stands.

"That red-haired guy number 10 is really strong. And the way he plays... it feels a bit like you, Captain."

Maki Shinichi turned his head and saw Jin Soichiro standing behind him, his eyes fixed on Sakuragi on the field.

Kiyota Nobunaga stood next to Ajin, arms crossed, his face full of resentment.

"How is it similar!"

Kiyota's voice was sharp and shrill. He pointed at Sakuragi on the court and said, "That red-haired monkey is nowhere near as good as the captain! The captain plays with such composure and skill!"

That redhead is just brute force! Brute force, you know?! He just relies on his body to overpower, there's absolutely no skill involved!

A-Shen didn't reply, and then he saw a familiar face, Fukuda Kichijou, wearing Ryonan's team uniform.

He nodded slightly in Fukuda's direction and greeted him, "Fukuda, long time no see."

Fukuda turned around, glanced at A-Shen, and nodded: "It's A-Shen, long time no see."

They were teammates in junior high school, sweating together, getting scolded together, and running countless laps on the court together.

Now they are on opposing sides, one in Hainan and the other in Lingnan, but the days they trained together still remain.

Shinichi Maki's gaze remained fixed on the red number 10 on the field.

On the court, Sakuragi Hanamichi was positioning himself under the basket to grab a rebound. He pushed his butt back, causing the center of Miura Dai to stumble to the side a couple of steps. Then he jumped up, grabbed the rebound with both hands, and after landing, made a long pass to Mitsui on the outside.

Mitsui received the ball, jumped, and made another three-pointer.

Maki Shinichi narrowed his eyes, his pupils reflecting the red-haired figure of number 10.

He suddenly realized what was happening, turned his head, and looked at Sendoh.

Sendoh was leaning back in his chair, his hands behind his head, a lazy smile on his lips, as if to say, "You finally understand."

"No wonder the Shohoku trainees defeated you; it wasn't just that number 11, Rukawa Kaede."

Maki Shinichi said with a solemn expression, "So there's this number 10. He's really a headache."

Sendoh removed his hands from behind his head, sat up straight, and the smile on his lips changed from lazy to serious and appreciative.

"That's right." Sendoh's tone carried a certainty that said, "I told you so." "This year's Shohoku is terrifyingly strong. You Hainan guys need to be careful not to upset them, Maki."

Shinichi Maki did not respond.

He turned his gaze back to the court, watching the red number 10 once again grab a rebound under the basket, once again pass the ball out amidst a triple-team, and once again use his body to force his way past his opponent towards the basket.

In the past, Shohoku only had Akagi as a top-tier center, which was not enough to carry the team alone. But this year, with the addition of Rukawa and Sakuragi, two super rookies, Shohoku is indeed terrifyingly strong.

After securing a winning start against Miura Dai, Shohoku's momentum snowballed.

In the second game against Kadono, Sakuragi Hanamichi played only ten minutes, grabbing nine rebounds, six of which were offensive rebounds. He dominated the paint, leaving Kadono's center bewildered and fouling out before the first half was even over.

Ryota Miyagi even practiced shooting in a game, attempting five mid-range shots from the outside. He made two, and the three he missed weren't too far off target; at least they touched the rim.

Rukawa made three beautiful assists: one was a bounce pass to Akagi for a dunk, another was a pass to Kogure for a three-pointer, and the last pass to Miyagi for a layup during a fast break.

The final score was 112 to 49.

The third game was against Takahata. This game was even easier; Mitsui Hisashi made six three-pointers and dominated the first half.

Akagi only played the first half before sitting on the bench to rest.

Sakuragi and Rukawa rarely played together. Coach Anzai seemed to be deliberately hiding something, splitting the five main players into two lineups to rotate on the court, never letting the opponents see the complete Shohoku team.

After three consecutive resounding victories, Shohoku's name began to spread throughout the county.

Last year, this team was a bottom-tier team that was eliminated in the first round, but this year it suddenly seems like a completely different team.

In the fourth match, the quarterfinals, his opponent was Tsuhisa Takeshi.

The stands were already packed before the match even started. Spectators noticed that almost all of last year's top four teams were present.

On the left side of the stands, almost all of Shohoku's main players had gathered. The sudden rise of Shohoku, this dark horse, was something they couldn't afford to ignore, so they all came to watch the game and gather firsthand information.

Kenji Fujima's gaze was fixed on the court, watching the game with a serious expression.

Tsukubu was one of the top eight teams last year and is quite strong, but now, from the start of the competition until now, they have been completely defeated by Shohoku.

Rukawa Kaede has already scored twenty points, his breakthroughs are like slicing through melons, and his shooting is accurate.

He received the ball beyond the three-point line, made a crossover dribble, drove into the paint, faced two defenders helping him, and in mid-air, he reversed his hand, transferring the ball from the left side of the backboard to the right side, and banked it into the basket.

Before the audience could react, he stole a pass on the defensive end, launched a fast break, and slammed home a one-handed dunk.

Mitsui Hisashi made four consecutive three-pointers, each with a different release point: some from the corner, some from the top of the arc, and some from a 45-degree angle.

Sakuragi Hanamichi made a strong impact on both offense and defense. On offense, he drove hard with the ball, disrupting the opponent's formation, and even when double-teamed, he could still deliver brilliant passes.

On the defensive end, he and Akagi formed a twin towers that limited Tsukubu's inside scoring to single digits.

Tsukubu's power forward attempted five one-on-one shots under the basket, but was blocked twice by Sakuragi, once by Akagi, and twice was forced into turnovers before even completing a shot.

In the stands, Kenji Fujima's expression grew increasingly serious, his brows furrowing. The strength displayed by the Shohoku team before him filled him with dread.

"No wonder you lost to Shohoku in the practice match," Fujima turned to look at the Ryonan team watching from the sidelines. "You certainly didn't lose unjustly."

Uozumi kept a straight face, his gaze never leaving the court.

"more than."

Uozumi's voice carried a hint of resentment mixed with an unavoidable apology.

"Back then, Shohoku didn't have Miyagi (number 7) and Mitsui (number 14). Now that they have those two, Shohoku is even stronger than before."

Fujima frowned slightly; he had assumed that Shohoku was ready for this year.

Hanagata is stronger in the paint than last year, Hasegawa's defense has improved significantly, and the whole team has reached an unprecedented level of teamwork and tactical execution after a year of hard training.

Their goal this year is clear: to defeat Hainan and compete for the county championship.

But now, he has encountered a team he never expected.

Shohoku. This school, which didn't even make it into the top 16 last year, suddenly produced four... no, five top players this year.

Akagi, Sakuragi, Rukawa, Miyagi, Mitsui.

Fujima turned his gaze back to the court, watching Sakuragi Hanamichi grab another offensive rebound and put the ball in over three people.

He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Next Saturday, the semifinals: Shohoku vs. Shoyo.

Fujima fixed his gaze on the red number 10.

On the court, Mitsui Hisashi received a pass from Sakuragi during the final offensive possession. He was positioned at a 45-degree angle on the right side of the three-point line. The moment he received the ball, he had already jumped, flicked his wrist, and the ball flew past the defender's fingertips.

The arc is both high and stable.

"Swish." The needle went into the net.

The final whistle blew.

The scoreboard showed 98-69. Shohoku defeated Tsukubu by 29 points and advanced to the next round.

In the stands, Fujima stood up and turned to walk towards the exit. Hanagata followed behind him, and several members of the Shohoku team filed out.

Fujima paused at the exit, turned around, glanced at the Shohoku players on the court, his gaze lingering on Sakuragi and Rukawa for a second each, before walking out.

Over the next few days, Shohoku will need to make adjustments and undergo special training to prepare for their semi-final match against Shohoku next week.

After watching the game, Fujima realized that Shohoku's strength was probably even more troublesome than Hainan's.

Moreover, the semifinals are different from the semifinal round-robin tournament. The semifinals round-robin tournament allows for some room for error, but the semifinals against Shohoku is a do-or-die match.