The audience gasped in amazement, "Wow!" That was such a beautiful dribble!
Rushing into the paint, Shirasawa didn't care who was standing in front of him and jumped up without hesitation. Takayuki Otomo hesitated for a moment, thinking it would be safer to block after Shirasawa jumped, but before he could react, Shirasawa had already raised the ball like a drawn bow and slammed it into the basket with a one-handed dunk! Sakuragi had also dunked in the previous round, but in terms of momentum, Shirasawa's move was like a thunderclap, igniting the passion of the Shohoku fans, and the stands instantly erupted.
After landing, Shirasawa casually raised his hand towards the audience, which made the cheers even louder.
On the sidelines, Eiji Sawakita raised an eyebrow, a smile of appreciation on his face, "You really know how to utilize the sixth man on the court."
When Sawakita mentioned the "sixth man," he was naturally referring to the fans. The fans' cheers have a huge impact on the team's morale, sometimes even influencing the course of the game—for the home team, it's motivation, making the players more and more excited; but for the away team, it's torture, the sound is like noise, it can be irritating and disruptive, even affecting on-court communication. When a team wants to gain momentum, the fans are absolutely crucial, just like now, Shirasawa's dunk directly ignited the enthusiasm of the Shohoku fans, their cheers drowning out the entire arena and continuing for a long time.
Several Aiwa players visibly frowned; the cheers were irritating them. Want to shut the fans up? They'd have to score a goal!
Dai Moroboshi took a deep breath and dribbled the ball past half-court. This time, Shirasawa was a bit further away from him than before, sometimes pressing him closely, sometimes giving him a couple of steps back, making his defensive rhythm unpredictable. Dai Moroboshi already couldn't figure out Shirasawa's tactics, and now he was even more confused—was this distance meant to let him shoot a three-pointer? It must be a trap!
He was hesitating whether to break through when Shirasawa suddenly closed in and reached for the ball! Dai Moroboshi reacted quickly, making a behind-the-back switch at the last second to dodge the attack. But Shirasawa didn't stop, continuing to chase the ball and press, putting Dai Moroboshi on the defensive. Just then, Fukumori Suzuki on the left wing used a screen to run to the top of the arc, Dai Moroboshi quickly passed the ball to him, thus getting out of the predicament.
But just as the ball was released, Dai Moroboshi suddenly widened his eyes—because Shirasawa had also rushed after the ball!
Just as Fukumori Suzuki received the ball at the top of the arc, Shirasawa had already charged in front of him. Without hesitation, Fukumori Suzuki pushed off with his weak side and jumped up to shoot—he had done this several times before, even when the Shohoku players were practically lunging at him, they still dared to shoot. Although it was illogical, they couldn't resist their good touch!
But just as he stood up, Shirasawa's two large hands suddenly reached out and clamped the basketball firmly in his grasp! Before Fukumori Suzuki could react to how Shirasawa was so fast, the ball had already been snatched from his hands. He jumped up and waved his hands in the air, but touched nothing.
"Wow!! It's Shirasawa's steal again!" the commentator exclaimed excitedly. "This is the first time we've seen such a fierce steal in the national tournament!"
"Charge, Shirasawa! Well done!" The cheers from the audience reached another climax.
The cheers from the audience had barely subsided when they were immediately replaced by an even louder wave, leaving everyone's voices nearly hoarse.
Even the seasoned bigwigs at Sannoh Industrial High School couldn't help but gasp in surprise.
"Hiss... This kid's ruthless!"
Shirasawa intercepted the ball and charged forward, instantly switching into attack mode.
Dai Moroboshi chased after him desperately. Although he realized the moment he passed the ball that Shirasawa's defensive tricks were designed to force him to pass, he never expected that the opponent would dare to steal the ball directly!
Fukumori Suzuki must be panicking right now...
However, Dai Moroboshi didn't have time to worry about others, as Shirasawa rushed into the three-point line in the blink of an eye.
He quickly followed, sticking close to Shirasawa's left side. The two of them took large strides almost simultaneously and jumped up together!
Shirasawa could jump, and Dai Moroboshi knew that perfectly well, but he himself was no pushover! In terms of physical attributes, he was also top-tier, and he felt that even if he couldn't block the shot, he could at least give it a good interference.
Bang!
The two collided solidly in mid-air.
Dai Moroboshi frowned slightly. "Not bad, I can withstand this impact!"
But the moment that thought crossed his mind, Shirasawa's impact came crashing down like a small Koyama, completely overwhelming him!
Shirasawa used his chest to block Dai Moroboshi, then suddenly pulled up his right arm and slammed it down hard onto the basket!
Thump!!
With a loud bang, the basketball was slammed into the hoop by Shirasawa... and he slammed it in over Dai Moroboshi!
In an instant, the shouts from the entire stadium almost lifted the roof off!
"Holy crap! A dunk! Shirasawa dunked over Dai Moroboshi!"
"I've never seen such a powerful dunk in my life!"
"My God! Shirasawa is going to ascend to the heavens!"
"...!!"
Not only ordinary spectators, but even the Sannoh players, Shinichi Maki, and Nobunaga Kiyota couldn't help but shout a few times. Even if they didn't shout anything else, that "Whoa!" just came out of their mouths; the visual impact of that shot was simply too explosive!
Haruko, standing in the stands, stared wide-eyed, her mouth agape, as if she were completely dumbfounded and unable to utter a sound.
Her admiration for him skyrocketed like a rocket.
Could it be... the power of that kiss from last time?
If that's really the case...
Um...
On the court, Dai Moroboshi staggered a few steps after landing, and quickly grabbed the basket support to steady himself.
His last thought was, "I can hold on," and the next second... that was it.
As the "backdrop" to this dunk, Dai Moroboshi must have felt terrible. Especially for a star player of his caliber, being dunked on in front of a national audience is a minor matter compared to the devastating impact on the team's morale, since he is the team's ace!
This is like two armies facing off, with their commanders fighting evenly, until one of their own commanders is suddenly slashed in the face. Do you think the soldiers wouldn't panic?
Amidst cheers from the crowd, Shirasawa proudly bent his arm, showing off his bulging biceps.
This dunk is the best proof of power.
The female fans in the stands instantly went wild, their eyes shining, their minds filled with all sorts of random thoughts.
This arm... if you used it to hug me... oh my god~~~
Even just pressing it once... would be fine!
"Coach! We've got momentum! Now, Aiwa will definitely be completely crushed!"
Kogure shouted excitedly from the side, "Now I finally understand what 'offense is better than defense' and 'defeat without a fight' means!"
The sheer volume and the sheer force of the atmosphere would make any Aiwa player's legs go weak. Just imagine the pressure Aiwa is under right now. Even with the strongest resilience, they could never have such a smooth ride like before!
"Roar roar roar~~"
Aiwa's coach wasn't stupid either; seeing the situation, he quickly called a timeout. They couldn't play in this atmosphere; they needed to at least let Dai Moroboshi catch his breath.
" Moroboshi, don't take it to heart. These things happen all the time in competitions. We'll definitely get back at you next time!"
On the bench, Coach Aiwa walked over to Dai Moroboshi and patted him on the shoulder to comfort him. Talking to your ace player is part of the coach's job. He also believed that Dai Moroboshi wasn't that fragile.
After saying that, he waited expectantly for Dai Moroboshi to make a statement.
Dai Moroboshi sighed softly, a hint of helplessness in his voice. "Even if it happened again, I still couldn't stop him..."
Head Coach: "..."
He opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word for a long time. His expression was like someone had stuffed a lemon into his mouth, sour but with nowhere to express it.
That's just how straightforward Dai Moroboshi is.
This alone shows he's definitely not a bad person... Following his previous statement, "I can't beat Eiji Sawakita," this guy has contributed another famous quote. "I can't defend against Shirasawa!"
If you were to calculate the psychological trauma suffered by Aiwa and the head coach right now, you'd probably need calculus to figure it out, and the result would definitely be at the level of "ecstasy and agony." He was completely frozen in place, utterly at a loss for words.
"Coach, I'm just telling the truth. I can't defend against it, and not everyone can defend against me."
Dai Moroboshi, however, took it all in stride, even smiling at the coach, "But don't worry, I'll definitely do my best!"
In any case, it's clear that the dunk didn't seem to have affected his mentality much.
The head coach coughed twice, quickly trying to cover up his embarrassment.
Dai Moroboshi's mentality doesn't collapse, that's good. As for the rest... I'll just have to bear it all alone.
"Yes Moroboshi, I believe you!"
The timeout ended, and both teams returned to the court.
In Aiwa's first attack, Dai Moroboshi passed the ball to Fukumori Suzuki.
As soon as Fukumori Suzuki received the ball, he instinctively gripped it tightly, as if afraid the ball would grow legs and fly away again in the next second.
Tōji Jun, using his teammates' screens, circled out from the baseline, received the pass from number 06 while facing Hisashi Mitsui's defense, and took a three-point shot!
Although it was still the same ball and the same person, Hisashi Mitsui clearly sensed something was wrong. Aiwa's offensive rhythm this time was completely different from before. When Tōji Jun, his movements also seemed a bit hesitant. The smoothness he used to have with every shot was obviously interrupted by Shirasawa!
"Rebound!"
Hisashi Mitsui suddenly turned around and shouted.
When~
The basketball bounced off the rim as expected.
Hanamichi Sakuragi sprang up like a spring, grabbing the backboard tightly in his hand, as if he had found some rare treasure.
Kogure, waving his fist excitedly from below, his face flushed, exclaimed, "Yay! Aiwa's rhythm has finally been broken! It's our turn to fight back!"
Hanamichi Sakuragi received the ball and, without thinking, threw it towards the frontcourt. Shirasawa, Hisashi Mitsui, and Ryota Miyagi charged forward like arrows released from a bow, launching Shohoku's signature fast break.
Shirasawa received the ball in the middle and turned to get past Fukumori Suzuki was rushing towards him. Hanamichi Sakuragi and Ryota Miyagi spread out to the left and right, drawing the attention of the other two defenders from the Aiwa team.
In the blink of an eye, Shirasawa charged into the three-second zone and faced Dai Moroboshi once again!