Invitational

After redeeming the Open Three-Pointer skill, Tang Tian went to the Training Facility that night.

The previous Individual Defense was a defensive skill. Once his ability improved, there was not much to adapt to; it was more closely tied to his physical attributes.

But this Open Three-Pointer package was different.

Shooting was something that required time to adapt to and adjust.

The Training Facility lights were on, but no one was there. After entering, he found two racks of basketballs, placed them outside the three-point line, and began shooting from a fixed spot.

This body was not completely incapable of shooting, but its level was low. Its Shooting Percentage on open shots was around 40%, utterly amateurish.

Shooting itself required extensive practice to produce results, but this body had started late, so its level was not high.

It was possible to develop it through practice alone, but that would take years of hard work. And for an ordinary person, even with practice, reaching Novak's level would be impossible.

He took the ball, aimed at the hoop, and released it.

It was the same training as usual, but he could feel that his control over the ball and his follow-through after release were far smoother than before.

Bang!

The first shot was slightly off.

He picked up the second ball.

As he released this shot with the same motion, he suddenly felt as if the basket were as vast as the sea.

Swish!

The ball dropped cleanly through the net, smooth as silk.

The seamless feeling was as though Novak's practice results had been directly added onto him.

After playing so many NCAA games without scoring a single point, this comfortable shooting feeling was like going without sex for ages, then suddenly seeing a naked woman right in front of him—a momentary rush of climax.

Awesome!

Tang Tian kept shooting, and the balls kept going in.

Swish!

Swish!

Swish!

The sound of balls dropping through the net echoed continuously through the gym.

There were forty balls on the two racks. Other than the first miss, he made all thirty-nine remaining shots!

It really was exactly as the system description said. A 97% Shooting Percentage, without the slightest exaggeration.

After shooting all forty, his arms were a little sore. He rested for a while, then continued.

Tonight, he was going to get his fill first.

In the Head Coach's office at the gym, Cahoon stared at an invitation and remained undecided.

The NCAA was divided into the Regular Season and the Playoffs, with the Playoffs also known as the tournament. When people spoke of the NCAA, they usually meant Division I, which had a total of thirty-two conferences.

During the Regular Season, teams within each conference played one home game and one away game against one another. The top eight teams in the Regular Season standings then entered their conference championship, using a single-elimination format to determine the conference champion. This produced the thirty-two teams that advanced to the Top 64.

After that, the NCAA authorized the selection committee to choose the remaining thirty-six wild-card teams. A total of sixty-eight teams advanced to the tournament, what fans knew as "March Madness."

"March Madness" also used a single-elimination format. First came the wild-card games, reducing sixty-eight teams to sixty-four. Then the sixteen teams in each region determined their own Final Four, which came together as the Sweet Top 16, followed by the Elite Eight, the Final Four, the championship game, and finally, the champion.

The entire season was incredibly long. And because the tournament used single-elimination games, upsets happened constantly, making it thrilling from start to finish.

During the Regular Season, home and away conference games were mandatory. UConn had been playing this kind of game since the season began.

But beyond those games, some teams also chose to play schools outside their conference to improve their strength and build hype for themselves.

The invitation in Cahoon's hand had come from Washington State University. They hoped to invite UConn to their school for an invitational game.

The outcome of an invitational also counted toward the Regular Season record, and it would be an away game. The invited side always had to treat it with caution.

Cahoon considered it for a long time without reaching a final decision. In the end, he put the invitation back into the drawer, turned off the lights, and left the office.

Because he had still been in the office, no one had turned off the gym lights. He walked down the corridor, switching them off as he went.

But when he passed the Training Facility, he stopped involuntarily because he heard the sound of a basketball striking the floor inside.

Clearly, someone was training in there.

A trace of confusion flashed across his face.

There had been a training session today, and it was already so late. Who could be putting in extra work?

He walked to the door. It was slightly ajar, and after gently pushing it open, he saw the scene inside.

Tang Tian was practicing Three-pointers.

And he was shooting very accurately.

An utterly astonished look appeared in Cahoon's eyes.

He knew exactly what Tang Tian's shooting level was. It was so poor that opponents had begun leaving him wide open over the last two games. Yet this... was his eyesight failing him in his old age?

He took off his glasses, wiped them, and looked again. It was still the same.

Tang Tian's release was exceptionally soft, and he was making nearly every shot.

This was unbelievable.

After watching for a while, Tang Tian finished shooting, drenched in sweat. When he turned around, he saw Cahoon standing at the doorway.

"Coach?"

At that surprised call, Cahoon walked straight in.

Tang Tian had never expected Cahoon to still be at the gym. When he saw that seventy-year-old face peeking in from the doorway, he nearly jumped out of his skin.

But the old man had come in.

"You've been practicing for a while, haven't you?" Cahoon asked, looking at his clothes.

"Yeah." Tang Tian nodded.

"I just saw that your Three-pointers were very accurate. Why haven't I seen you shoot them in games?" Cahoon asked.

The question caught him somewhat off guard, but Tang Tian had weathered plenty of storms. After a brief pause, he immediately came up with an explanation.

"My stamina is still a little lacking. After putting too much into the defensive end, I can't find my rhythm when I shoot. And today, my touch is unusually good."

It was a simple explanation, and Cahoon nodded after hearing it.

There was nothing wrong with that. With so many people watching NCAA games, players truly did not dare shoot casually without confidence. Otherwise, there would be no distinction between stars and ordinary players.

"I can see that your stamina has improved a lot compared to before. If you get an opportunity in a game, you still need to dare to shoot," Cahoon encouraged him.

"Yeah, I will." Tang Tian smiled and nodded. Now that he had a new skill, he had to shoot whenever he was open!

Cahoon had been preparing to leave after saying that, but he suddenly remembered the invitational. Thinking of the basketball IQ Tang Tian had displayed in games, he could not help speaking up.

"Washington State University sent me an invitation for an invitational game. Do you think we should play or not?"

Tang Tian looked somewhat surprised. After all, coaches usually made such decisions themselves. But since Cahoon had asked, he did not mind offering an opinion.

"Washington State University? How strong are they?" he asked.

"Other than Klay Thompson, none of them are particularly strong." Cahoon did not seem to think much of the opponent.