Miyazaki Isamu's nose stung, and tears streamed down his face until his vision blurred.
The pain in his nose and the tears in his eyes made it hard for him to focus on his free throws.
He took the first shot carelessly.
Thump!
The ball hit the rim.
Before the second shot, he took a few deep breaths and steadied himself.
But the ball still clanged off the rim.
He missed both free throws.
The Lakers got lucky, though. Pang Bo and Wang Yi both got their hands on the rebound at the same time, and the ball slipped free of them—only to fall into the Lakers' hands.
Hield seized the chance to drive into the paint and shoot, but Pang Bo stood tall inside, blocking Hield's path.
Hield had no choice but to pass to Saipan, who had slipped in along the baseline on the left.
Saipan looked for a shot, but Zhang Jiacheng's help defense came quickly, so he had to pass to Robin.
When Robin tried to shoot from mid-range, Hachimura Rui moved in to help on defense.
The Lakers had no choice but to pass the ball back to Miyazaki Isamu, who was open at mid-range on the left.
Seeing the pass, Miyazaki Isamu caught the ball and made a fake.
He got Wang Yi, who was rushing over from the middle, to bite, then slid one step to the right and reached the free-throw line.
He had a moment of space to shoot, so he stopped abruptly and rose straight up for the shot.
Those three players from China had just swatted him down together, leaving his eyes watering. He'd felt humiliated, and now humiliation and hatred burned in his eyes.
No matter what, he had to make this shot.
But just as he leaped,