The game resumed, with Shohoku taking the first attack. Miyagi controlled the ball and orchestrated the offense, his eyes constantly scanning the positions of his teammates and opponents. Hojo, who was guarding him, lowered his center of gravity, fearing a sudden breakthrough from Miyagi.
Miyagi was still dribbling in place, suddenly crouched down to lower his center of gravity, pushed off with both legs and rushed out, as fast as the wind, directly past Hojo.
Hojo was still standing there, muttering, "So fast! Faster than Fujima?"
Miyagi had already penetrated to the inside, thinking to himself, "Not bad, Takezato is nothing special."
But just then, Yo Aoki's tall figure suddenly blocked his way!
Miyagi instantly calmed down, suddenly stopped, and assumed a shooting stance!
To Miyagi's surprise, Yo Aoki completely ignored whether he was going to shoot or not, and simply reached out and swatted the ball away!
With a "smack," Miyagi's ball flew out of bounds.
Hojo intercepted the ball, and Shohoku's attack was immediately thwarted.
Miyagi stood there, unable to believe his shot had been intercepted. He wondered to himself, "How did he see through my feint? If I had actually shot, he would have fouled me. How could he have hesitated at all?"
After gaining possession of the ball, Hojo passed it to Yo Aoki to initiate the attack.
Yo Aoki dribbled past half-court, he saw Sakuragi standing in front of him.
Yo Aoki's eyes lit up. "Great, Sakuragi! I can finally go up against you!" He was already incredibly excited.
Sakuragi suddenly shouted, " Aoki, you're a liar!"
Yo Aoki was stunned, completely unexpected that Sakuragi would suddenly say something like that.
"Huh?" Yo Aoki looked completely bewildered.
Sakuragi huffed, "Didn't you say we shouldn't try to steal the ball when we're on defense?"
Yo Aoki immediately realized what was going on and quickly explained, "Oh, so that's what it is! I meant don't hit him. You haven't been playing for very long, hitting him too much will easily result in a foul."
Sakuragi retorted, "Hmph, geniuses don't need experience. I am..."
" Sakuragi!!!" Akagi's shout interrupted him.
Caught off guard, Yo Aoki was so startled he almost threw the ball away.
Kaede Rukawa rolled his eyes as he watched the two of them making a scene, thinking to himself, "Two idiots."
Yo Aoki snapped out of his thoughts and said to Sakuragi, "Let's put everything else aside for now and settle this once and for all!"
Sakuragi grinned, poking Yo Aoki with his finger. " Aoki, let me show you the true skills of this genius!"
Without a word, Yo Aoki suddenly exerted force with his feet and instantly darted past Sakuragi!
Sakuragi immediately lost his temper, cursing, "Damn it! You're using dirty tricks again!", and turned to chase after him. But Yo Aoki dribbled the ball to the basket, faced Akagi, took a big step, pushed off the ground with both feet to gather strength, bent his knees slightly, leaned his body back a little, and then his leg power exploded, and he took off into the air!
Upon seeing this, all the members of the Takezato Team stood up. They were all too familiar with this move; they had seen Aoki use it often before. Uozumi, noticing Aoki's stance, jumped to his feet and shouted, " Akagi! Watch out!!"
Akagi couldn't take his eyes off Aoki, who was charging towards him, and only one thought remained in his mind, "Even Uozumi couldn't stop him, can I?" Just as Aoki was about to dunk on Akagi, no one expected that Sakuragi would actually catch up!
Sakuragi leaped from Aoki's side, his speed astonishing, instantly catching up to Aoki's height. Akagi exclaimed, " Sakuragi?"
Sakuragi swung his arm and shouted, "Take this! A big block!"
Suddenly, Aoki in mid-air lowered his head and bent his waist, pulling the ball sharply into his arms, his body arching like a shrimp!
Sakuragi's palm grazed Aoki's head as he slapped him, Aoki dodged in mid-air! Immediately afterward, Aoki used his waist and abdomen to push himself up, straightening his back and pulling his body upward, re-assuming a shooting stance!
Sakuragi shouted urgently, " Gorilla!" Akagi jumped up, his muscular body completely blocking the shooting path!
Aoki raised the ball above his head, flicked his wrist, and the ball flew towards the basket with an exaggerated arc! Even though Akagi is 197cm tall, he couldn't reach the ball. Aoki's force was very soft, the ball barely spun, bounced off the edge of the rim, and fell steadily into the net! 8-0!
Everyone stared, mouths agape. Aoki's series of movements was dazzling, even top players like Shinichi Maki and Sendoh were filled with disbelief. Some muttered, "This..." while others exclaimed, "His core strength and hang time are outrageous!"
Aoki's shot was simpler than the toss shot Sawakita used in the national tournament, but the effect was about the same, and it was even more practical. Aoki smiled at Akagi and made a "far inferior" gesture.
Akagi read contempt, provocation, and mockery in that smile, and gritted his teeth, "Damn it!" Veins bulged on his brow. This time, Sakuragi didn't cause much of a scene. Looking at the sulking Akagi, he asked, puzzled, " Gorilla, what's gotten into you today?"
Yayoi Aida exclaimed, " Aoki is 189cm tall, his jumping ability and hang time are so good, and his mid-air dodging is so beautiful, he's amazing!" Nakamura chuckled, "I captured that move on camera!"
Uozumi slumped back onto the bench, dejected. He and Akagi were arch-rivals, but they admired each other and were both rivals and friends. Uozumi muttered, " Akagi..." He recalled their previous encounters, how he had tried his best but still couldn't beat him. To Akagi, he was just a tall, imposing figurehead.
Seeing Uozumi's expression, Taoka said in a deep voice, " Akagi isn't in good form today; his mind isn't on the match." Uozumi turned and asked, "Teacher, Akagi, he..."
Taoka analyzed, "This match is crucial for both teams to advance to the national tournament. Akagi is afraid of both winning and losing; he's carrying too much pressure." Uozumi cursed, "That idiot!"
Shohoku is on offense. Miyagi passes the ball to Kaede Rukawa. Kaede Rukawa is Mizuki. He takes a step to the right to shift his weight, and seeing Mizuki shift his weight, he suddenly breaks through to the left.
Mizuki couldn't keep up at all and was easily beaten. Kiyota stared at Kaede Rukawa and called out, " Kaede Rukawa!" He had always considered Kaede Rukawa his rival, and he kept a close eye on Kaede Rukawa whenever he got the ball.
Could he score? But Kaede Rukawa didn't hesitate, he jumped with his left foot and dunked! With a "bang," the ball went in! 8-2, Shohoku got their first goal of the game!
Rukawa Kaede Fan Club roared, " Kaede Rukawa! Kaede Rukawa!" The shouts shook the entire court. Haruko Akagi's eyes lit up. " Kaede Rukawa!" Sakuragi sulked. "Damn it! It's Kaede Rukawa again!"
Kogure shouted, "Everyone, keep a close watch! Stop one more of them!" The game switched sides, Takezato Team attacked. Aoki organized the attack, dribbling the ball up the court, but Sakuragi was right there with him again.
Sakuragi gritted his teeth. " Aoki, I'm going to beat you this time!" Aoki smiled faintly, "It's still early." He then passed the ball to Hojo.
Sakuragi stomped his feet in anger. "Damn it!" Hojo received the ball and immediately gestured to Imamura to set a screen.
No Imamura finished speaking than he saw him firmly hold off Kaede Rukawa, who was guarding Hojo, on the outside. Hojo had only taken two steps forward when he crashed into Akagi's defensive circle.
Hikoichi Aida stared at the formation on the sidelines and couldn't help but laugh out loud, "So Shohoku stole our tactics?"
Taoka, with his legs crossed, looked smug. " Takezato's screen play as soon as he entered the game. I think not only Shohoku, but even Kainan will have to copy our tactics!" He slapped his thigh as he spoke, feeling incredibly cocky.
On the court right now, Hojo was entangled with Akagi, Imamura was facing off against Kaede Rukawa. Just when it seemed like this play was going to fail, Shindo, who was standing on the baseline, suddenly moved and drove straight towards the basket.
Hojo caught a glimpse of Shindo cutting in, immediately stopped dribbling, gripped the ball with both hands and sent it diagonally downwards. With a "thud," the ball bounced off the ground and went right through Akagi's legs. All that practice on teamwork had paid off; the ball arrived just as Shindo reached the basket.
Shindo received the ball, and with a reverse layup over Miyagi, the ball swished through the net, making the score 10-2!
Sanada, on the bench, slapped his thigh and shouted, "Great shot!"
Coach Akai, hands on his hips, exuded an air of confidence. "Heh heh, even Anzai- senpai has fallen this time!"
Hikoichi Aida pointed at the court and shouted urgently, "Teacher! Takezato has changed his tactics! Teacher, look!"
Taoka's face darkened, and he roared, " Hikoichi! Shut up!" Taoka, who had just been floating on air, was now ashamed.
Coach Takato, fanning himself with a paper fan, commented. " Takezato's response was timely. To defend against Yo Aoki and their screens, Shohoku sent Akagi, Rukawa, and Sakuragi to the perimeter to guard their players. But with all three of them on the outside, the paint was wide open. Takezato's cut in now, and it became a killer move."
Coach Anzai frowned, racking his brains for a way to break the deadlock, but no matter what he thought of, Takezato could always find a weakness. He clenched his fist and muttered to himself, "There must be a way to break this!"
When it was Shohoku's turn to attack, Miyagi was seething with anger. He'd conceded an easy point on defense because of his height, and now Aoki had stolen the ball on offense. He felt like a complete liability to Shohoku, but a burning desire simmered within him. "This won't do!"
With that thought, Miyagi suddenly accelerated, and Hojo couldn't stop him at all. He was easily shaken off and rushed into the restricted area. Without slowing down, he charged straight towards the basket.
It wasn't Aoki Takezato came to help defend, it was Imamura, but he stood still under the basket, arms raised, waiting for Miyagi to come over. Imamura was still thinking about what Aoki had said earlier, "When Miyagi drives, don't go forward, don't jump, just keep your arms up!"
Miyagi reached the basket, straightened his head, and pretended to go for a layup, but Imamura didn't move. Miyagi knew that his opponent wouldn't fall for it, so he could only pass the ball to Sakuragi, who was unguarded.
"That was a brilliant pass from Ryota!" Sakuragi caught the ball and floated away, yelling at the top of his lungs, "Watch this genius shoot!" He jumped up and threw the ball.
As soon as Aoki saw Sakuragi's shooting motion and rhythm, he knew the shot was hopeless, so he immediately blocked Akagi outside and waited to grab the rebound! With a "bang," the ball hit the backboard, a hard hit that didn't even touch the rim!
"Ouch!" Sakuragi grabbed his head and stomped his feet.
Aoki spread his arms, bent his legs slightly, and used his core strength to firmly block Akagi behind him. No matter how Akagi pushed, he couldn't move him an inch, thus securing a good position. Seizing the opportunity, Aoki pushed off the ground and jumped up, reaching out to grab the ball. With a twist of his core, he pulled the ball back to his waist, firmly securing the rebound!
"Quick attack!" Aoki shouted immediately after landing.
Miyagi has already rushed into the restricted area, and Sakuragi and Rukawa are double-teaming Aoki. These three from Shohoku are really fast!
On the sidelines, someone muttered, " Shohoku's speed is really fast!" Another said, "I wonder how Aoki will attack."
Kogure shouted from the bench, "Watch out for his pull-up jumper!" The three of them were near the three-point line in the blink of an eye, right in Aoki's shooting range. Rukawa and Sakuragi were on edge, watching Aoki's movements.
Sure enough, Aoki stopped abruptly outside the three-point line, bracing himself with his left foot. Rukawa and Sakuragi were prepared and rushed forward, but after stopping, Aoki neither shot nor drove. Instead, he took a step back and started dribbling the ball in place.
Aoki thought to himself, "Even if I'm arrogant, I wouldn't dare shoot when you two are double-teaming me."
Nakako exclaimed, " Kaede Rukawa is truly amazing!" Sanada exclaimed in surprise, "Those two first-year students from Shohoku are incredibly fast; they're making it impossible for Aoki to shoot!"
Coach Akai shook his head. " Aoki can still shoot if he wants to, but there's no need."
Akai stared at Akagi and Mitsui running back. "Our third step in the plan is to fight a war of attrition with Shohoku, to wear them down." He shouted, " Sanada, Akiyama, you two get ready to warm up, we're coming in a bit!"
Yes, teacher!
Aoki was still dribbling in place, waiting for his teammates to get into position, while Sakuragi and Rukawa were still double-teaming him. Sakuragi yelled at Rukawa, " Kaede Rukawa, move aside! I'll guard Aoki!"
Rukawa ignored him and kept staring at Aoki.
Upon seeing Sakuragi and Rukawa bickering, Yo Aoki grinned and muttered, "These two are a match made in heaven." The players on both sides quickly returned to their positions, Kaede Rukawa, seeing that Yo Aoki showed no intention of breaking through, reluctantly retreated to his defensive zone.