Nakamura's eyes lit up and he exclaimed, "So fast!"
Wakamoto drives to the inside, he suddenly stops in front of Imamura, jumps with his left foot, lifts his right foot, and shoots the ball with a powerful, controlled shot.
Nakamura excitedly shouted, "Awesome!" But the next second his smile vanished, because Imamura jumped high and slammed the ball down with a "smack."
"Beep--" Yo Aoki blew the whistle, ending the training match. In the end, the second-year students won by a margin of sixteen points.
Imamura and the others patted each other on the shoulder in celebration. Except for Terashima and Wakamoto, the first-year students were all so tired that they sat on the ground.
Yo Aoki clapped his hands twice to attract everyone's attention. "Everyone, take a break. Let me summarize the competition. First, let's talk about the second-year students. You should be able to feel your progress, right?"
Not only has his technique matured, but his mentality has also matured considerably. However, he also has weaknesses, such as a lack of variety in his offensive methods. Apart from Imamura- senpai, there is no reliable scorer, and the shooting percentages of the others are not high. These are areas he needs to work on in the future!
He then turned to the first-year students. "You guys did well today too. You created a lot of opportunities using the off-the-ball movement, cuts, and runs you've practiced in training Terashima's passing was also beautiful. Overall, you did a good job. However, I have to talk about your problems. First, your stamina. This was only a 20-minute training match. If it were a 40-minute official match, how many of you could last until the end?"
Secondly, you guys make some unnecessary passes on offense. Even when someone is open, you still pass the ball out, and this has happened several times. This gives the second-year students too many opportunities to steal the ball.
Everyone needs to remember to take the shot when the opportunity arises, and every offensive possession should end with a shot.
Finally, let's talk about personal issues. Nakamura, you overthink when you shoot.
Yoshida, you lack fighting spirit. You think the other person is stronger than you, so you don't dare to fight?
In the Nakako, a point guard's job isn't just to dribble the ball up the court; your responsibility is to orchestrate the offense.
Matsumoto, you're holding onto the ball too long; you didn't pass to your teammates when they had good opportunities.
Wakamoto, you have too little experience; you need to accumulate it gradually.
Terashima, your methods are too one-dimensional. You only think about passing the ball, which makes you easy to target. You need to vary your approach.
Yo Aoki said earnestly, "Now that Mizuki and the others have left the team after three years, we first-year students have to shoulder more responsibility. We can't slack off; we have to train hard and become stronger to prepare for future competitions."
"Did everyone understand?"
"Understood!" everyone shouted in unison.
Yo Aoki then asked, "Do you know what the three-threat stance is?"
The crowd looked at each other and shook their heads in unison.
Yo Aoki picked up the basketball, assumed a dribbling stance, held the ball in front of his chest with both hands, leaned forward, and bent his knees—a classic triple threat move.
"This is the triple threat stance. This move allows you to choose between driving, shooting, and passing, and all three can be released quickly, making it difficult for defenders to guard against."
Yo Aoki Terashima beckoned. " Terashima, come stand in front of me and assume a defensive stance."
Terashima did as instructed.
Yo Aoki asked, "You're defending against me now, what do you think my next attack will be?"
Terashima thought for a moment and said, "I can't tell."
"You can't figure it out because I can shoot, drive, and pass."
"But if all I can do is pass the ball, how will you defend me?"
"Close-quarters defense!" Terashima replied immediately.
Yo Aoki laughed, "That's why Imamura."
"Similarly, if Imamura- senpai could pass the ball, he would be even harder to defend when receiving it at a high position."
"Yes, that's true!" Imamura nodded.
At that moment, Terashima suddenly bowed to Yo Aoki and said, "Captain Aoki, please teach me how to effectively break through the defense."
As soon as Terashima finished speaking, everyone swarmed around him, shouting, " Aoki, teach me the step-back jump shot!"
"Captain, teach me how to change direction!"
" Aoki, teach me how to play one-on-one with your back to the opponent!"
Yo Aoki smiled and said, "That's no problem. I'll teach anyone who wants to learn, but the prerequisite is that you have to lay a solid foundation first."
"Yes!" "Don't worry!" "No problem!" Everyone immediately pledged their loyalty.
Yo Aoki chuckled, "Alright! Now, first graders will run 5000 meters with me, and second graders will each take 100 quick basketball shots, and they have to finish before we finish running."
"Let's begin!"
As soon as Aoki finished speaking, cries of agony rose and fell.
August 2nd, the day before the match between Shohoku and Sannoh.
Although their opponent was the relatively unknown Shohoku Team, Sannoh's Coach Domoto still attached great importance to the first game.
He recalled the veteran players from previous years and had them play a practice match against the current players, acting as a hypothetical Shohoku Team.
However, the current players actually gave these veteran players a good beating.
On the court, Yayoi Aida Masashi Kawata and asked, " Aida, what kind of team is Shohoku?"
Yayoi Aida thought for a moment, "They are a very energetic team, but their playing style is a bit rougher compared to the university team they just played against."
Kazunari Fukatsu turned to Coach Domoto and said, "Coach, can we watch the video again?"
Coach Domoto laughed, "I knew you'd say that; I've already found their qualifying match footage."
"Great! Let's go!" Fukatsu immediately led the players back to the locker room.
On the way, Minoru Matsumoto asked Eiji Sawakita, " Sawakita, are you going to study abroad after the national tournament?"
Eiji Sawakita laughed, "Yeah, the domestic competitors are no longer interesting to me. I want to take on a bigger challenge."
Kazunari Fukatsu said, "I think you're too early. Maybe there will be stronger competitors this time."
Eiji Sawakita smiled smugly, "Then I look forward to it, I look forward to someone like that appearing."
Back in the apartment, Domoto put the videotape into the VCR.
"To make it easier for everyone to understand the players of Shohoku, this videotape has been edited. Please take a look."
"Yes!"
The television started showing the footage, and the first Shohoku Team to appear was center Takenori Akagi.
" Takenori Akagi, 197 cm tall, 93 kg, averaged 20.8 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 3 blocks per game in the Kanagawa qualifiers against Toyotama!"
Nobe exclaimed, "The data is truly comprehensive."
Kawata said, "He's still one of the top five teams in Kanagawa, and he's the core of Shohoku on both offense and defense."
Nobe exclaimed in surprise, "This player is really something else, Kawata. Do you see any weaknesses in him?"
Kawata observed carefully.
Just as Sawakita was about to speak, he was suddenly interrupted by a shout from a Sannoh player, "Wow! He actually managed to complete the attack like that!"
The TV screen switched to the game between Shohoku and Takezato. Yo Aoki went inside to face Akagi and jumped directly.
But Sakuragi jumped up from the side and reached out to block the hat.
Yo Aoki executed a fancy layup to dodge Hanamichi Sakuragi's block, and then, facing Takenori Akagi's defense, he flicked the ball into the basket.
Minoru Matsumoto glared and shouted, " Sawakita, his shooting is exactly the same as your floater, it's just that his release form is a little off!"
Eiji Sawakita his eyes glued to the screen and didn't say a word, but before everyone could exchange a few words, the TV screen switched to a clip of Yo Aoki keeping an eye on Akagi.
Eiji Sawakita narrowed his eyes. "It seems his weakness has been spotted long ago!"
"He's indeed fierce under the basket, but his offensive methods are too limited. As long as we don't let him get close to the rim, no matter what..."
Eiji Sawakita suddenly pointed at the screen. "That number 10 player did a good job."
The scene shifts, Kaede Rukawa appears, but then we see Yo Aoki covering Kaede Rukawa's face.
Minoru Matsumoto pointed at the screen. "It's that guy again!"
But the screen kept turning, and whenever it was a clip of Shohoku vs. Takezato, you could always see Yo Aoki's figure.
"How can this guy guard both the point guard and the center?"
Kazunari Fukatsu said calmly, "His defensive toughness and coverage are indeed top-notch."
Eiji Sawakita turned to Coach Domoto had just entered, and asked, "Coach, do you have any video recordings of Shohoku's matches against this team?"
Coach Domoto stared at the TV screen for a moment, then thought for a moment, "This should be Takezato High School Kanagawa, right?"
Coach Domoto rummaged through the tournament data at hand. " Takezato finished fourth in the Kanagawa preliminaries and didn't make it to the national tournament."
"Huh? They actually beat the Kainan Team?" Coach Domoto looked surprised.
" Sawakita, do you think the footage of Takezato's game will be helpful for our match against Shohoku?"
Eiji Sawakita smiled and said, "I have a feeling it will happen."
"Alright, let's take a look."
The video playback ended a dozen minutes later.
Coach Domoto spoke first, " Takezato analyzed Shohoku very thoroughly in this game, which was a great help to us."
Eiji Sawakita with a look of regret, "It's such a pity that Yo Aoki didn't make it to the national tournament!"
Kazunari Fukatsu said to Sawakita, "We'll definitely meet during the National Sports Festival era, but it's a pity you won't be able to see us!"
Eiji Sawakita his lips and turned away from him.
Meanwhile, at the Shohoku Team's accommodation, Coach Anzai was looking through the Sannoh Industrial High School's roster.
"We're both high school students, we definitely have a chance. There's no such thing as 'absolute' in a competition!"
At this moment, Coach Anzai's thoughts drifted back to the last day of Sakuragi's special training, when he had a conversation with Yo Aoki.
"Coach Anzai, what are your thoughts on full-court press defense?" Yo Aoki suddenly asked Coach Anzai.
"Full press?"
"Yes, you should have received the schedule for this national competition by now, right?"
Coach Anzai nodded. "I've got it."
"Actually, I've seen it too," Yo Aoki rubbed his nose. "If Shohoku wins the first round, they'll face Sannoh Industrial High School in the second round."
"And Sannoh's secret weapon is their full-court press defense!"
"As far as I know, Kainan fell victim to Sannoh's defensive strategy last year."
Coach Anzai remained silent.
"Coach Anzai, what method do you plan to use to break this defense?"
"To break through the full-court press, the players must undergo a long period of targeted training."
"But Shohoku obviously isn't prepared for this, so you can only rely on Miyagi's speed, right?"
Coach Anzai smiled and praised him, "As expected of Aoki, you saw it right away. This is Shohoku's only solution."
Coach Anzai's praise made Yo Aoki blush, "You flatter me too much."
He immediately changed the subject. "I think Shohoku could also try Takezato's screen-and-play tactics."
"Oh?" Coach Anzai's heart skipped a beat.
Actually, after Shohoku played against Takezato, everyone was already familiar with this tactic.
"When Miyagi dribbles, with the help of his teammates' screens, it's like this." Yo Aoki gestured with his tactical board.