He leaned forward slightly, his eagle-like gaze fixed tightly on the court. His brow furrowed deeper and deeper, and his already grave expression was now filled with doubt and anxiety.
With Zhu Xingda's ability, even if the opponent focused on shutting down his shooting, he should not have been unable to make a single basket, right?
Tanabe Kenichi mulled it over again and again.
Zhu Xingda's three-pointers had been Aiwa Academy's scoring weapon in previous games. Even against elite defenders, he could rely on his excellent touch and ability to adjust to sink shots. So why was he completely helpless against Ryonan?
What was more, Aiwa Academy had a two-guard setup. Both Zhu Xingda and Lei Tianzhenglun were key perimeter scorers. Even if one of them was contained, the other should have been able to find an opening. Even if the shot did not go in, they should at least have been able to create a decent shooting opportunity.
Yet the current situation was that every one of their shooting attempts had been jointly smothered by Chi Tong and Sendoh. This complete collapse of their perimeter offense was truly baffling.
Tanabe Kenichi closed his eyes and repeatedly recalled the previous key offensive possessions. When Zhu Xingda drove with the ball, Chi Tong anticipated his route. When Lei Tianzhenglun prepared to shoot, Sendoh disrupted him. There had even been a time when a pass between the two had been intercepted by Chi Tong from the diagonal.
But no matter how he reviewed it, he could not explain this strange, all-around suppression. It was as though Ryonan had long known Aiwa Academy's every move. Where exactly had things gone wrong?
Tanabe Kenichi frowned again, his fingers unconsciously tapping the tactics board. Court images churned through his mind, but he could not find