At the same time, Hanamichi Sakuragi took the opportunity to turn around, pinning Ikegami behind him, and drove straight to the basket.
Sendoh's mind was still racing, trying to figure out what Shirasawa would do next.
As long as the ball hasn't actually been passed or shot, the situation can change at any time.
In his opinion, if it were him, the best choice right now would definitely be to pass to Sakuragi, who is cutting in from the left!
Immediately afterwards, he saw Shirasawa combine the ball and take the first step.
Just as Sendoh thought!
As Shirasawa took his first step, he grabbed the ball with his right hand and dribbled it from in front of him to behind his back!
Pass it on to Sakuragi!
Sendoh was certain that his judgment was correct, and immediately slowed down to prepare to intercept.
However... right under his nose, Shirasawa managed to snatch the ball back with his big hand!
Sendoh wasn't the only one fooled; Uozumi under the basket also fell for the trick!
Seeing that Shirasawa was about to pass the ball behind his back, Uozumi immediately judged that the ball was going to Sakuragi. He turned around and circled to the other side of Akagi, preparing to intercept him halfway.
Sakuragi himself had already gotten into position to receive the ball, and he had even planned his next move—to receive the ball and go head-to-head with Uozumi, either dunking it or getting blocked.
But Shirasawa made them all miss their target.
He snatched the ball back, then took a second step and leaped up, using one arm to scoop the ball towards the basket like he was holding a torch...
boom!!!
The ball was slammed into the basket!
This dunk finally allowed the excited fans to sit back down in their chairs.
Akagi yelled from under the basket, "Great shot, Xiao Bai! That was a beautiful dunk!"
After watching the whole process, Kaede Rukawa nodded thoughtfully and even secretly gestured with his hand to mimic the action of catching the ball.
Hmm... I should be able to do that kind of shot myself.
Shirasawa's consecutive points made even the usually composed Moichi Taoka restless.
He stood up and called the first timeout of the game.
Taoka called this timeout mainly to disrupt Shohoku's offensive momentum.
Shirasawa scored three consecutive points, culminating in a powerful dunk, seemingly poised to get the entire Shohoku team into a rhythm.
Moreover, Shohoku had already fully mobilized their energy through the previous rounds of offense and defense.
If we let them gain momentum again, we might not be able to control them.
Even if the score is 10 to 2 now, Taoka can still hold back.
But 6-0 is a different story.
Six points isn't much, but not getting a single point is really embarrassing.
The impact on a player's mentality is vastly different when they have difficulty scoring versus when they can't score at all.
If Ryonan's attack fails again, the team's morale might collapse.
Therefore, Taoka must nip this problem in the bud now.
"We're playing fine! Be more aggressive and score! You have to score!"
Moichi Taoka spoke, he clenched his fist and slammed it into his palm, as if he wanted to personally take the field.
" Rukawa, you have to drive like crazy, get as close to the basket as possible!"
"If there's no opportunity, pull Mitsui out for a one-on-one sparring session to wear him down; he won't last long."
" Ikegami, you do the same. Try to get Sakuragi out of the restricted area to make room for Uozumi. If Sakuragi leaves you open, just shoot! Teach him a lesson."
Taoka's instructions boiled down to one thing: the next ball must be scored!
However, the strategy changed from targeting Mitsui exclusively to prioritizing Mitsui, while also creating some opportunities for Uozumi.
As for Sendoh, Taoka still wants him to mainly play the role of organizer, and not to think about attacking on his own yet.
Ryonan has no shortage of scorers, but right now, only Sendoh can contain Shirasawa on offense.
Kaede Rukawa might be able to do it, but he can't connect the whole team.
Taoka firmly believes that to beat Shohoku, they need to have a well-rounded performance.
Expecting a star player to go toe-to-toe with Shirasawa in a one-on-one battle? That's absolutely unwise. Shoyo and Kainan have already taught him a lesson with their own experiences.
Whether it's Fujima or Shinichi Maki, the outcome of going head-to-head with Shirasawa is the same: they both end up packing their bags and going home.
Because of Shirasawa's unpredictable passing, he can feed his teammates at any time.
Taoka felt that no one but Shirasawa could do this.
Therefore, it's essential to get the whole team warmed up and prepared beforehand.
On the other hand, Coach Anzai didn't have much to say.
He was extremely satisfied with the team's performance.
It was obvious that everyone got into the rhythm right from the start, and Shirasawa's dominance on the offensive end was as strong as ever.
Maintaining the momentum right now is more important than any adjustments.
Of course, Coach Anzai appeared calm and composed, but he had actually prepared some backup plans for this match.
It's just not the right time to use it yet.
He is determined to win this championship as well.
He wanted to show these kids that they were the strongest!
The timeout ended, and both teams returned to the court.
Ryonan Sendoh the ball across half-court and initiates a positional attack.
After several crossovers, he suddenly bent down and accelerated, forcefully attacking Shirasawa!
He drove to within one step of the three-point line, stopped abruptly, and pulled up as if to shoot!
Shirasawa immediately followed up with a block, while on the other side, Kaede Rukawa made a turn without the ball, shaking off Mitsui and driving straight into the paint.
Sendoh wasn't really shooting; he simply shifted his hands to the side, feigning a shot but actually passing the ball straight to the basket.
Kaede Rukawa received the ball, turned around, and assumed a shooting stance.
Mitsui, who was covering the defense, was indeed eliminated.
Kaede Rukawa immediately twisted his pivot foot, turning around and smoothly hitting the ball with a backboard.
Ryonan finally hatched!
Moichi Taoka finally settled back down on the bench, having weathered the storm at Ryonan.
The two teams then engaged in a back-and-forth battle.
Shirasawa and Sendoh successively provided assists for their teammates.
Ryonan's main offensive weapon is still Kaede Rukawa, allowing him to continuously wear down Mitsui on both offense and defense.
After scoring his first goal, Kaede Rukawa's mentality stabilized considerably, and he became less impatient in the face of Mitsui's experienced defense.
Just like Taoka said, abandon mid-range shots and drive to the basket every time.
Uozumi blocked Akagi, and Ikegami pulled Sakuragi to the outside, clearing the way for Kaede Rukawa.
During this time, Sakuragi couldn't stand Kaede Rukawa's arrogance and wanted to cover for Ikegami.
As a result, not only did they fail to defend themselves, but Akagi also yelled at them.
Akagi knew Ikegami's strengths and weaknesses well. Although Ikegami wasn't particularly strong offensively, he was quite reliable in the mid-range, so he shouldn't be allowed to go unchallenged.
Shohoku's offense had no specific tactics and was as unpredictable as ever.
It all depended on Shirasawa's orchestration on the field.
Shirasawa would sometimes attack himself and sometimes pass the ball, which made Sendoh's defense a little confused.
I can never guess what he'll do next.
That pass repeatedly tore through Ryonan's defense, creating many good opportunities for his teammates.
Mitsui even managed to cut through Kaede Rukawa's defenses.
Sakuragi, however, was unable to find a comfortable opening due to Ikegami's defense.
Ikegami defended very cleverly, targeting his weak points and always leaving him a step away to block his receiving routes.
The competition was tough enough that Sakuragi couldn't get going at all.
In the 12th minute, the score was 38-33.
Shohoku is leading by 5 points.
Every goal on the field was hard-won; the score was low, but the competition was extremely fierce.
The audience felt their hearts tighten with each viewing.
"At this rate, it'll probably be a fight to the last minute before we know who's in charge," Nobunaga Kiyota muttered.
He wasn't just watching the show.
He stared intently at every attack and defense of the Ryonan Twin Stars and Shirasawa, occasionally gesturing with his hands, desperately trying to learn something from it.
Kiyota has now admitted that all three of them are currently stronger than him.
But he only cares about the present. He doesn't mind learning from them to improve himself.
We'll see who's stronger next year; who knows?
Jin shook his head at Kiyota's opinion.
"That's how it seems now, but don't forget, Ryonan still has Fukuda who hasn't been promoted yet."
"We were actually a bit overwhelmed when he played."
As they were talking, Kiccho Fukuda stood up on the sidelines and began warming up.
Jin smirked, "Look, he's up there now. Whether they can keep up the fight depends on who on Shohoku can hold him off."
" Shirasawa and Mitsui will definitely have to keep an eye on Sendoh and Rukawa, and as for the rest..." He paused, "I don't think anyone can stop my old classmate."
Kiyota and Shinichi Maki turned their heads at the same time, looking surprised.
"Old classmate?"
"You knew Fukuda before?"
Jin laughed, "I already mentioned it once, you might not have noticed. Didn't I say that Fukuda is stronger than before?"
Kiyota stroked the few hairs on his chin. "Since we were classmates, why didn't we come to Kainan together back then?"
Jin his head, a slightly helpless smile on his face. "He's a strange guy; I don't think anyone can get along with him."
As they were talking, the Koshino- road player committed a foul, Fukuda took the opportunity to enter the game.
Hanamichi Sakuragi's eyes lit up immediately.
He turned to Akagi and yelled, " Gorilla, just you wait and see how I deal with this substitute!"
In the 13th minute of the first half, Moichi Taoka finally took his shot.
He substituted in the team's ace sixth man Kiccho Fukuda.
The objective was clear: to break the deadlock and allow Ryonan to gain an advantage in the first half.
Moreover, he didn't bench any of his key players.
Sendoh, Kaede Rukawa, and Fukuda were all on the court at the same time, with Uozumi and Ikegami added to the inside.
This lineup is arguably the strongest that Ryonan can field right now.
From a timing perspective, now is the perfect time to change tactics.
Kogure watched from the sidelines, his heart pounding with anxiety.
As soon as Fukuda stepped onto the court, his palms started sweating.
"Coach, Ryonan has gained another offensive option. How should we defend against it?"
Coach Anzai, however, was all smiles and not in a hurry at all.
"It's okay, just trust them."
These words left Kogure speechless.
Coach Anzai didn't watch the game between Ryonan and Kainan at all.
Kogure felt that the coach had no idea how dangerous Fukuda was.
If there isn't a proper response, he's sure to break the balance on the field.
But there's no use in rushing things; Ryonan has someone to replace them, while Shohoku truly doesn't.
The so-called adjustments are nothing more than the starting lineup swapping positions; the substitutes are not worth relying on at all.
The game continues.
Shohoku inbounds the ball.
Ryonan's defensive formation has changed.
Ikegami marking Mitsui, Kaede Rukawa is marking Miyagi, and Fukuda is marking Sakuragi.
In Taoka's view, Sakuragi's offensive ability was indeed the weakest link in Shohoku.
Fukuda just needs to stick close to him and try to stay inside the paint.
Once Sakuragi gets moving, leave it to Uozumi to handle.
Taoka didn't think Sakuragi had the brains to pass the ball on the spot.
Shirasawa controlled the ball on the right wing, looking for an opportunity.
Sakuragi cornered Fukuda at a 45-degree angle, desperately trying to get the ball.
Ever since watching the Ryonan vs. Kainan game, he'd been itching to teach this substitute a lesson.
The change of defender from Ikegami to Fukuda was like a huge relief for Sakuragi.
Seeing this, Shirasawa changed direction and pulled back, then charged in against the Sendoh.