A single loss meant a complete farewell to this Autumn National Sports Festival, with no room whatsoever for recovery.
Whether players or coaches, no one wanted to suffer an upset through a momentary lapse in such a crucial tournament, leaving behind irreparable regrets.
Besides Chi Tong, their absolute ace, taking the starting spot, Kanagawa had also made targeted adjustments at the other positions. A brand-new starting lineup took shape: Rukawa Kaede at small forward, Sakuragi Hanamichi at power forward, Yu Zhu at center, and Jin Soichiro at shooting guard.
Even if this lineup still was not Kanagawa's ultimate strongest roster, not a single team in the entire tournament dared underestimate them because of it.
The reason no one dared look down on them was simple: Chi Tong was in this lineup. The sheer imposing presence emanating from Chi Tong alone was enough to intimidate the entire high school basketball world and make every opponent wary.
This was by no means deliberate exaggeration, but the truest and most widely accepted reality in the current high school basketball scene.
It could not be helped. Chi Tong's performance at the previous National Tournament had simply been too dazzling, too deeply ingrained in everyone's memory.
His dominance on the court, whether his unstoppable offense or his ironclad defense, had left an indelible impression on every spectator and opponent.
A monster-class player like Chi Tong could be on any team, and even if his other four teammates were mediocre or outright useless, as long as he was on the roster, that team would have the confidence to stand against anyone—a bona fide national-level powerhouse.
This had long been an unquestionable consensus throughout the high school basketball world.
When the Hiroshima players clearly saw Chi Tong's familiar figure in Kanagawa's starting lineup, every face abruptly stiffened,