"Captain! It's confirmed! Our next opponent!"
As soon as he stepped out of the gymnasium, Kuwata came running over, panting. Earlier, while watching Shohoku's game, he had been assigned to gather intelligence, specifically to keep an eye on Shohoku's next opponent. Actually, whether they watched or not, everyone knew the answer.
"Is it Aiwa?" Akagi asked symbolically.
Kuwata nodded vigorously. "That's right, Captain! Aiwa Academy beat Yokotama Industrial by a large margin and advanced to the top 16. Their captain, Dai Moroboshi, scored 42 points and 13 assists; no one could stop him! Oh, Hakata Shodai Affiliated also won by a large margin!"
Kogure sighed; what's meant to happen will happen.
"Alright, let's go back. Focus on the present; there's a big battle waiting for us tomorrow!" Takenori Akagi said sternly. The good news of advancing to the top sixteen nationwide didn't even give them time to celebrate.
On the afternoon of the second round of matches, the latest results spread throughout Hiroshima, and another 16 teams left the guesthouse area with their luggage. Three days ago, there were 59 teams packed here; now only 16 remain. The electronic screens at the main stadium were also updated with the latest matchups.
So far, Shohoku is the only team that can be called an "upset". They defeated one of the top eight teams in the country in their first game in their first competition. Although both teams are A-level teams, it is not a big upset. However, the process of this game has become a topic of great interest.
In addition, today was a day of explosive data, with several record-breaking performances. Kaede Rukawa's 37 points didn't even rank among the best today. There were three players with 40+10: Shohoku's Shirasawa had 42+15, Aiwa's Dai Moroboshi 42+13, and Hakata Shodai Affiliated's Ken Hoshino had 40 points and 14 rebounds.
Counting down, Atsushi Tsuchiya of the Daiei Academy had 34 points and 12 rebounds, Mikoshiba of Jousei High School had 32 points and 11 rebounds, and Hajime Chiba, the captain of Hakata Shodai Affiliated, even scored 30 points and 18 assists. Hakata Shodai Affiliated is also the only team with two players scoring 30 points and 10 rebounds at the same time.
Sendoh and Kaede Rukawa are known as the Twin Stars in Kanagawa, but the first to truly earn Twin Stars title were Hajime Chiba and Ken Hoshino. Last year, they shone brightly in the national tournament, but they weren't quite mature enough then and lost to Sannoh Industrial High School in the finals. Judging from their form this year, they seem to have evolved from the Twin Stars into a "powerhouse combination." Hakata Shodai Affiliated High School is also one of only two teams in the country with more than two five-star high school players.
Besides these, there was also Hiroshi Morishige Hiroshi's terrifying 34 points, 21 rebounds, and 9 assists, which completely overshadowed Uozumi's near triple-double. Looking at this round of matches alone, it can truly be described as a flourishing of talent; having entered the top 16, all the top stars have begun to show their brilliance.
However, Sannoh Industrial High School was conspicuously absent from all the explosive statistics. Today was also Sannoh's first game, against the C-level Nakamura Kita Commercial. The two teams were worlds apart, yet Sannoh only won by 30 points. No one would think Sannoh has become weaker this year; it's more accurate to say they didn't just throw the game, they threw it to the brink.
The nation's top high school player, Eiji Sawakita, only played for 10 minutes and scored 6 points, a stark contrast to his dominant performance last year. Four key players –Kazunari Fukatsu, Masashi Kawata, Masahiro Nobe, and Minoru Matsumoto – also only played for 10 minutes and had no notable performances.
It's obvious that the main players from Sannoh came on to run a tactic and adjust their physical rhythm.
The most outstanding player in this game for Sannoh was actually Mikio Kawata brother of Big Kawata Oo. Even so, he only scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
It's clear that Sannoh doesn't want to waste time and energy on this kind of competition; their only goal is to defend their championship. Proof? The name "Sannoh Industrial High School" is the biggest proof of their success in the national tournament.
Judging from the group draw, they will most likely not really step up their game until the semifinals. These match reports are currently in the hands of each team, and the afternoon to evening is their only window of opportunity to refer to their opponents and make preparations.
Some teams are lucky; their Round of 16 opponents pose no threat, like Sannoh. Both they and their opponents know perfectly well that tomorrow's match is just a formality...
The most anticipated matchup is between Shohoku and Aiwa Academy. More precisely, it's a direct confrontation between Shirasawa and Dai Moroboshi.
Today, Shirasawa completely crushed Tsuyoshi Minami, a five-star high school student. This "crushing" has two meanings: he dominated in basketball and didn't lose in a fight either. In short, in this clash of five stars, Tsuyoshi Minami lost so badly that he almost lost everything, and his title as the top scorer in the first round the day before seemed completely undeserved.
Coincidentally, both Shirasawa and Dai Moroboshi scored 40+10 today, immediately igniting the tension for their next match. Aiwa is studying Shohoku, and Shohoku is analyzing Aiwa. In the end, both teams came to the same conclusion: the key to victory lies in the performance of the guards, namely, who can play better Shirasawa or Dai Moroboshi! Whoever gains the upper hand will advance to the quarterfinals!
Takenori Akagi patted Shirasawa seriously. " Xiao Bai, it's all up to you tomorrow." Shirasawa's nonchalant demeanor was Shohoku's greatest source of confidence—when it came to ace players, Shohoku feared no one!
By the time the pre-match preparations were completed, it was nearly evening. Most teams had already dismissed to rest, allowing the players to recuperate, perhaps soak in a hot spring or go for a walk in the evening, to relieve their tension and prepare for the upcoming grueling schedule. After all, only by reaching the semi-finals could they have a real day of rest.
But there's one exception: the current strongest team, Sannoh Industrial High School. They analyzed the standings this afternoon and watched the video of their next opponent. Even if it's just a formality, they want to know their enemy beforehand. Sannoh's strength is all-encompassing, and they won't waste a single minute.
Today, Goro Domoto didn't give his captains much playing time. Firstly, it wasn't necessary; beating weaker opponents proves nothing. Secondly, he wanted to conserve their energy. However, this energy isn't for tomorrow; they'll likely only play for about 10 minutes, or even less, tomorrow. For the captains, the real competition is tonight!
The Sannoh basketball team has a large investment and was the first team in the country to go abroad for a competition. It has always maintained its top strength and is worthy of this investment. With money, Goro Domoto has a lot of room to maneuver. Tonight, he rented a basketball court to hold a training match exclusively for Sannoh, against former Sannoh players.
These former players are no ordinary players; they are now the backbone of their respective university basketball teams, some even becoming star players. Goro Domoto recalled a total of 10 players to form a temporary team to face the current Sannoh team. This is Sannoh's real training; the group stage was far too easy!
In Goro Domoto's eyes, this year's Sannoh is the strongest in history. He also received news from the basketball committee that something big is about to happen in high school basketball, even more important than this year's away trip plan. He must make this Sannoh even stronger as soon as possible!
Boom!! In the basketball gym, Eiji Sawakita dribbled past three players to the paint and slammed home a dunk! The score in the practice match instantly became 35-20, with the former team trailing. Those players who shone in the college league were almost powerless against the current Sannoh.
Of course, this is related to their teamwork. Although they all came from Sannoh, they changed teammates in college, the tactical system was different, and their positions were different from in high school. Some were the core players and some were support players. Suddenly putting them together as a team, the chemistry was bound to be poor. But then again, the current Sannoh is indeed more perfect!
As the game progressed, the former players' team found it increasingly difficult to compete, because there were two positions they simply couldn't handle. One was Eiji Sawakita, whose offense was unstoppable—whether it was soaring through the air or shooting from mid-range or long range, he had no weaknesses. His playing style was also incredibly elegant, best described as a feast for the eyes. It was precisely because of this elegant playing style that Sawakita gained a large following of female fans. Regarding this, one person at Sannoh was extremely jealous.
Another player who left his former team helpless was Masashi Kawata. Shota Sugiyama, the current top center in the nation, once said that even if Masashi Kawata went straight to college, he would be a top-three player.
Don't forget, he himself is in the top three—meaning that in the entire college basketball circle, and even nationwide, Shota Sugiyama believes that besides himself, there is at most one other person who can surpass Big Kawata, and that person is vague and may not even exist. The existence of just these two people has put the former team in a lot of trouble.
Although the former team was being dominated, Goro Domoto's brow remained furrowed. In his mind, Sannoh still had potential and room for improvement. At the beginning of this year, Sannoh went abroad for a week-long expedition, somewhat like Shohoku's trip to Shizuoka Prefecture, where they practiced with the local team and played friendly matches.
That week, the seemingly invincible Sannoh experienced the thrill of being outmatched – they won one and lost two of the three friendly matches, with the outcomes being very close, often decided by a single point or two mishandled. From then on, Domoto became even more dedicated to training, striving for perfection.
Clearly, Sannoh is still far from meeting his requirements. What troubles him most is Eiji Sawakita's condition. Sawakita's title as the number one high school student in the country is absolutely genuine, so so far, he has not encountered a real opponent in the country—neither Shinichi Maki nor Dai Moroboshi, who is said to be second only to him, were on a completely different level from him last year.
The only Domoto had ever seen Sawakita go all out was during that expedition. Aside from that, Sawakita had never been completely at his peak. This was also related to his personality; if Sawakita didn't go all out, Sannoh's fighting power wouldn't reach its peak, like being stuck at a bottleneck. But you couldn't blame Sawakita; form is something that improves against stronger opponents, and Sawakita was already at his strongest—what could you do? For Domoto, this was a happy problem...
However, this worry won't last long. Sawakita has already submitted his application to study abroad, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, he'll be heading to the Lighthouse Country around the time of the Winter Selection Tournament this year. Sawakita doesn't have much time left for Sannoh.
" Sawakita! What are you looking at!" Domoto suddenly yelled at the court. Because Sawakita was daydreaming again—yes, daydreaming again! Lack of concentration is Sawakita's biggest problem right now, or you could say that the current game is making him lose interest. Take today's game for example, Sawakita played for at least ten minutes and only scored 6 points... It's not that he's not in the game, it's that he finds it boring.
Last year in the national tournament, freshman Sawakita showcased his talent in every way, overshadowing all the top players as a newcomer; this year, he's clearly had his fill of that. This game was no exception; after leading his former team by 20 points, Sawakita started to lose focus from time to time. It's fair to say his strength far surpasses the high school level, and with him on the team, this Sannoh was no different.