Shinichi Maki paused, a hint of admiration in his voice, "His individual ability would make him a star player in most teams across the country. But in this Sannoh, he's at best the third, or even fourth, offensive option. That's Sannoh Industrial High School —outrageously extravagant."
When Shinichi Maki uttered those words, Nobunaga Kiyota's entire brain shut down on the spot.
He admitted that Minoru Matsumoto was indeed quite skilled, but he never expected the guy to be this good—being an ace for most teams is no small feat. Shinichi Maki was talking about teams nationwide, not some amateurish team from a certain county.
In other words, Minoru Matsumoto's star was overshadowed by the galaxy of stars at Sannoh; in any other school, he would have been firmly labeled a five-star high school student long ago.
After all, Sannoh already had three five-star high school students in their starting lineup, plus Minoru Matsumoto, that makes four. Nobunaga Kiyota silently calculated in his mind, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
"This isn't just extravagance, it's like putting a money-printing machine on the stadium."
He muttered to himself, then suddenly realized, "So Ryonan doesn't even have the chance to fight? Shohoku is probably in trouble too, right? Sannoh's lineup is pure cheating."
" Ryonan really has no chance. I've said that before."
Shinichi Maki paused, then changed his tone, "But Shohoku... well, that's not necessarily true."
"In my eyes, Takenori Akagi and Hisashi Mitsui are also worthy of being called five-star high school students. They're just overshadowed by Shirasawa. You should acknowledge their abilities, right?"
Back in Kanagawa, Akagi and Mitsui might have been a little short, but after fighting their way through the group of death in the national tournament, their skills and mentality had been honed through sheer hard work. Real-world experience is more effective than any training, and everyone has witnessed Shohoku's rapid growth.
At this moment, Ryonan reorganized their offensive.
This time, Kaede Rukawa couldn't even touch the ball. Eiji Sawakita seemed to have anticipated every move he made, positioning himself perfectly, flanking him, and sticking close to him. Want to run out of space to receive the ball? You'd better ask Sawakita for permission first.
Sendoh wasn't in much better shape either; Kazunari Fukatsu had him so tightly bound that his mind was practically blank. The moment he lost focus, they'd lose possession.
Left with no other option, Sendoh lobbed the ball into the paint.
Judging from the head-to-head comparison, Uozumi definitely has the advantage; Masashi Kawata is a whole size smaller in terms of physique.
With a snap, Uozumi caught the ball steadily and swung it back twice, but Masashi Kawata didn't budge an inch. In this power contest, he was no less than Uozumi. Uozumi panicked on the spot. He hadn't realized how powerful Masashi Kawata's lower body was when they were not in contact with the ball, so powerful that even he, a monster, couldn't push him an inch.
In that moment of hesitation, Masashi Kawata made his move. He moved with incredible speed, completely disproportionate to his size, and snatched the ball from Uozumi's hand in an instant.
Uozumi's eyes widened in disbelief—it was too fast! This guy could withstand his strength while also possessing such speed; it was simply outrageous. In the audience, Takenori Akagi was also stunned.
Masashi Kawata's background has been widely circulated: he started as a point guard, then switched to center after a growth spurt, and his shooting range extends to the three-point line—everyone knows that. But no matter how much you imagine it, seeing it in person still makes you gasp; the image is just too jarring.
The ball was intercepted, and Masashi Kawata dribbled past Ikegami with his back to the Ikegami, initiating a fast break himself. He first passed the ball to Kazunari Fukatsu on the left, who Kazunari Fukatsu passed it to Eiji Sawakita. After two passes, the ball was already inside the three-point line in the frontcourt.
Kaede Rukawa pressed himself tightly against him, the pressure making it hard for him to breathe. He had only ever felt this way before, thanks to Shirasawa.
Sawakita took a step off the ground and attacked the basket directly. His jumping height and hang time were no less than Kaede Rukawa's, and he even had an advantage. The two clashed in the air. Sawakita twisted his body, held the ball with one hand, and seemed to be fixed in the air. He waited for Kaede Rukawa to float past in front of him before he easily put the ball into the basket.
His movements looked effortless, as if he hadn't exerted any strength, but Kaede Rukawa's muscles were stretched to their limit.
Sannoh started with a 7-0 lead, pushing Ryonan straight into a deep hole. *Beep! Moichi Taoka called the first timeout of the game; Ryonan was in dire straits.
However, expecting Moichi Taoka just one timeout? That's wishful thinking; he himself didn't harbor such illusions. The gap between Ryonan and Sannoh lies in their overall strength, with every position at a disadvantage—this is the first time he's encountered something like this.
Of course, the disadvantage wasn't so great that it was unwinnable. Neither Sendoh nor Kaede Rukawa could completely shut them down. Right now, the pressure from Eiji Sawakita and Kazunari Fukatsu was too much, so much so that they were starting to feel overwhelmed. Moichi Taoka called this timeout for one purpose: to give the team a breather. They were already stunned; if this continued, the match would collapse after three rounds. Even if Sendoh and Kaede Rukawa were five-star high school players, they would still collapse under this kind of pressure.
During the timeout, Moichi Taoka all; it lay quietly on the bench. He squatted down, face to face with the players, his voice low and even.
"You all saw it, right? Those guys from Sannoh are really something." He paused, then continued, "But seeing it is enough. Now, it's our turn to make them bleed."
"In my eyes, none of you are inferior to them." Moichi Taoka said this, Uozumi's eyes lit up, and the others followed suit.
After the timeout, Ryonan returned to the court, and their eyes were different.
Takenori Akagi stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed, and said in a low voice, "They've recovered. The real battle is just beginning." There was no ease on his face. Ryonan was the touchstone for Sannoh. If they were to collapse in one fell swoop, Shohoku would also feel a sense of unease.
" Fukuda came on early, Ryonan needs to grab points." Kogure pushed up his glasses, his gaze fixed on every Sannoh player, as if he wanted to etch them all into his mind.
Sendoh dribbled the ball across half-court, paused for a moment, then received the ball in the midfield position, facing off against Kazunari Fukatsu. He first feinted with a triple threat, then dribbled the ball sideways, pulled it up, and threw it.
Fukatsu could only block the lower body and reach out to interfere, but Sendoh's height and wingspan made his jump shot almost an open shot. Swish, the mid-range shot went in easily. Ryonan finally took their first point from Sannoh in the national semifinals.
Moichi Taoka pumped his fist on the sidelines; with that, he believed the team was back on track.
When it was Sannoh's turn to attack, Kazunari Fukatsu advanced. Sendoh immediately pressed forward, adopting a defensive stance, making Fukatsu feel as if he were walking on a swamp.
" Sendoh is a mismatch against anyone at point guard," Shinichi Maki said, stroking his chin. "The only point guard in the country who can match his physique is Shirasawa. Fukatsu is only 180cm, a full 10cm shorter, that's the gap."
"Wouldn't it be much better to strangle him?" Ryonan Nobunaga Kiyota interjected.
Shinichi Maki shook his head. "It's not that simple. Fukatsu's passing is his killer move."
Before the words were even finished, Fukatsu executed a series of crossovers, then suddenly flicked his wrist, sending the ball in a slicing arc that pierced the defense. Eiji Sawakita cut in to receive the ball, took a step into the three-second zone, and launched himself into the air.
He used his signature mid-air hang time technique again, pausing his body in mid-air and waiting for Kaede Rukawa to float past him before deftly sending the ball into the basket. Twice in a row, Kaede Rukawa fell for the same trick.
It wasn't that Kaede Rukawa didn't jump high enough or stay still long enough; it was that Sawakita's body control was too precise. Kaede Rukawa gritted his teeth, but the fire in his eyes burned even brighter.
Sure enough, in the next round, Kaede Rukawa called for the ball at a 45-degree angle, facing Eiji Sawakita- on. His eyes were like ice daggers, making Sawakita feel a chill run down his spine.
Hanamichi Sakuragi couldn't sit still on the sidelines, muttering repeatedly, " Stinking Fox, you dead fox, you stray dog, you worthless piece of trash..." While he was cursing, he was actually holding back a different kind of anger.
He may have been cursing, but he didn't really want Kaede Rukawa to lose. In Sakuragi's logic, he could beat up Kaede Rukawa and curse him, but no one else could. Kaede Rukawa's defeat should be left to Hanamichi Sakuragi, not Eiji Sawakita.
Asking him to cheer for Kaede Rukawa is absolutely out of the question. This scolding is just him being disappointed in Rukawa. If he could play, he'd kick Kaede Rukawa in the butt to make him explode.
Shirasawa sat beside him, his tone confident. "Just watch, Kaede Rukawa won't fall so easily."
In terms of fighting spirit, Kaede Rukawa is truly unparalleled in the entire country.
However, Hanamichi Sakuragi only snorted, "Utterly shameful."
His words were directed at the management team, but he was genuinely worried for Kaede Rukawa. Shirasawa, on the other hand, found it quite amusing—the centripetal force was finally there.
On the court, Kaede Rukawa Eiji Sawakita at a 45-degree angle. The entire stadium stopped to watch their one-on-one duel. Ryonan could only rely on him; only when he got into form could Ryonan return to their familiar offensive strategies.
Kaede Rukawa planted his foot firmly as the pivot, his entire body taut like a string. He would never make the same mistake again, and he would never let Sawakita take the ball away from him again.
With two quick, menacing steps, he then swayed his shoulders left and right, causing a momentary lapse in Eiji Sawakita's judgment.
In that instant, Kaede Rukawa dribbled the ball and started his attack, driving straight in from the left.
Eiji Sawakita immediately stepped up; the earlier disarray wasn't enough to cause him to lose his position. The two of them charged towards the basket at an angle, but Kaede Rukawa suddenly braked and jumped.
He rode a horse and shot an arrow, his entire body suspended in mid-air. Almost exactly the same way Sawakita had hit him earlier, he made Eiji Sawakita slide past him.
In this type of shot, whoever seizes the initiative first holds the advantage. Kaede Rukawa seized the opportunity and shot, the ball hitting the backboard and going into the basket.
He finally secured his first personal attack.
After scoring, Kaede Rukawa's face turned as cold as ice, even colder than before. His Ryonan teammates knew that he was completely in form, with only one thing on his mind—to put the ball in the net.
Eiji Sawakita a smile, "This guy is quite interesting."
Kaede Rukawa's counterattack further fueled his fighting spirit. To score a goal in his own way right in front of him—that certainly took a lot of courage.
Sendoh and Kaede Rukawa. The Twin Stars of Ryonan aroused Eiji Sawakita's interest, a feeling that Hakata Shodai Affiliated couldn't give him last year.