The bus stopped outside the basketball arena, and the Shohoku Basketball Team strode confidently inside.
Everyone was ready for a tough battle against Shoyo, while Shohoku's Problem Children Gang was even more carefree, not taking Shoyo seriously at all.
But the instant the Shohoku Team entered the court, everyone was stunned by the sight before them.
Hundreds of Shoyo supporters in matching green school uniforms sat in neat rows on the left side of the stands. Red ribbons were tied around their heads, giving them an imposing presence.
When they saw the Shohoku Team's players appear on the court, every member of the cheering squad took out two empty drink bottles and began banging them together in unison.
"Burn with fighting spirit! Shoyo will win!"
"The green tide surges! Swallow the opposition!" The cheering squad also performed a wave, creating an overwhelming visual spectacle.
This was Ryota Kudo's first time seeing such a professional cheering squad, too. Basketball truly had limitless appeal.
No wonder the NCAA was so popular in the United States. Every year, during the NCAA finals, even the NBA had to stay out of its way.
The sound of those empty drink bottles banging together was terrifying, producing a wall of noise even more piercing than the roar of a motorcycle.
Quite a few Shohoku players, seeing a spectacle like this for the first time, were so intimidated that their bodies felt a little weak. Before the game had even begun, Shoyo's cheering squad had already put Shohoku under pressure.
But some were completely unaffected. Hanamichi Sakuragi stormed into the center of the court with a dark expression and shouted at Shoyo's cheering squad.
"Shut up! All that banging is useless! With a genius like me here, Shoyo's definitely losing today!"
Faced with Hanamichi Sakuragi's provocation, Shoyo's cheering squad actually had a way of dealing specifically with him.
Whoever started it, the entire cheering squad began chanting in unison.
"Redheaded monkey! Five fouls and you're out!"
"King of fouls! Get off the court!"
Hanamichi Sakuragi exploded with rage. He pointed at the cheering squad in the stands and cursed.
"What did you bastards just say? I'll beat you flat!"
With the situation about to spiral out of control, Takenori Akagi went over and dragged Hanamichi Sakuragi away.
"Stop making trouble, Sakuragi. Let's get ready in the locker room. Don't let them get to you."
The Shohoku Team fled into the locker room looking somewhat bedraggled, with Hanamichi Sakuragi still grumbling. "Damn it! Those bastards actually called me the king of fouling out!"
This was actually the moment for the head coach to step forward and steady the team, and in Coach Anzai's eyes, Shoyo's cheering squad was nothing special.
Coach Anzai had coached college basketball before. Those home-court atmospheres were truly terrifying.
For anyone who wanted to become a professional player, being able to ignore the opposing team's fans was a basic skill.
Being cursed at by opposing fans was unavoidable. If it affected a player's mindset every time, it would be difficult to play professional basketball well.
However, Coach Anzai was currently taking a largely hands-off approach. Unless it was a critical moment, he would not step forward to speak.
It was the same now. Coach Anzai sat there smiling, with no intention of stepping in to calm everyone down.
That left the job to their captain, Takenori Akagi. He rested a hand on Hanamichi Sakuragi's head and reassured him.
"Don't take it to heart, Sakuragi. We just need to teach Shoyo a proper lesson on the court. Let our ability shut those people up."
Even while changing into his jersey in the locker room, Ryota Kudo could still hear the thunderous cheering outside.
But it did not make Ryota Kudo nervous. Instead, it excited him even more. With such a great basketball atmosphere, it would be a disservice to their enthusiasm if he did not put Shoyo under some serious pressure.
Soon, it was almost time for the game, and Shohoku returned to the court.
Shohoku's starting lineup remained unchanged, with Ryota Kudo at point guard alongside the other four mainstays, while Ryota Miyagi served as a substitute.
Shoyo's lineup was truly frightening. Every player was tall, making them look thoroughly imposing.
Point guard: Taku Ito, number 9, 180 cm tall.
Shooting guard: Kazushi Hasegawa, number 6, 190 cm tall.
Small forward: Mitsuru Nagano, number 7, 191 cm tall.
Power forward: Shoichi Takano, number 8, 193 cm tall.
Center: Toru Hanagata, number 5, 197 cm tall.
Apart from the point guard, not one of them was under 190 cm.
Strangely, though, despite knowing how fast Shohoku was, Kenji Fujima still had not put himself in the starting lineup. There was no telling what he had planned.
Ryota Kudo looked toward Shoyo's bench. Kenji Fujima sat there with a jacket draped over his shoulders, calmly watching the players on the court.
Perhaps Kenji Fujima wanted to gather some information on Shohoku's players first.
Putting those off-court matters aside, Ryota Kudo decided to focus on the court. Once Shoyo fell behind, Kenji Fujima would naturally enter the game.
The two teams' centers stood in the center circle for the jump ball. Takenori Akagi looked solemn, but his skin was too dark to tell whether he was nervous.
"Tweet!" The whistle sounded, and the referee tossed the ball into the air.
Before the ball had even begun to descend, however, Takenori Akagi jumped early and slapped it.
The next second, the referee's whistle sounded again. "Jump-ball violation, Shohoku number 4! Shoyo possession!"
In the prefectural quarterfinal, Takenori Akagi was actually so nervous that he made a mistake on the jump ball.
Clearly, being the captain did not mean Takenori Akagi never got nervous. Rather, he had strong mental composure and never let it show on his face.
Shoyo inbounded the ball, and Taku Ito dribbled across half-court. The backup point guard had fairly good ballhandling skills.
Ryota Kudo did not rashly step forward to attempt a steal right away. Today's game would not be easy, and he did not intend to exhaust himself from the outset.
Playing conventional defense and pressuring Taku Ito, Ryota Kudo was highly effective.
Unable to dribble smoothly, Taku Ito soon passed the ball away, but Shoyo's players at the other positions all had some ability to dribble.
Their offense would not lose its flow simply because Ryota Kudo had shut down their point guard.
After several patient passes, the ball finally reached Toru Hanagata.
Holding the ball in both hands with his back to Takenori Akagi, Toru Hanagata went to work one-on-one. Rather than wrestling with Takenori Akagi inside, he took just one dribble before going into a fadeaway jumper.
Despite Takenori Akagi's considerable defensive reach, against a fadeaway from a player 197 cm tall, he could only just jump and stretch out a hand to contest it, with almost no defensive effect.
With a gentle flick of the wrist, the ball traced a beautiful arc and swished through the net.
Toru Hanagata did not celebrate after landing. He merely pushed his glasses up confidently and immediately headed back on defense.
Takenori Akagi looked grim. As the Shohoku Team's captain, in this crucial game against Shoyo, he had first committed a jump-ball violation and then let his opponent score on him.
Takenori Akagi was under tremendous psychological pressure, especially when Hanagata's basket prompted an immediate, thunderous roar from the cheering squad in the stands.
The game had only just begun, yet large beads of sweat were already rolling down Takenori Akagi's forehead.
"Keep your heads up, everyone! Let's score this possession!" Ryota Kudo shouted encouragement to the team. This was when he needed to step up.
Receiving the pass from the baseline, Ryota Kudo immediately burst forward with astonishing speed toward Shoyo's half.
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