"When the players inbound the ball, Shohoku can assign two players to set off-ball screens for Miyagi, breaking the opponent's double-team. When Miyagi receives the ball, they can continue to set screens for him, allowing him to smoothly break through to the frontcourt."
"Furthermore, the weak side of this tight defensive strategy is the flanks, Shohoku can definitely exploit the width of the court to their advantage."
Coach Anzai paused for a moment, then said, "That's indeed a good idea!"
Yo Aoki said with a smile, "Full-court press is a double-edged sword. If Shohoku breaks it easily, the Sannoh players' mentality will definitely be thrown off balance!"
Coach Anzai flashed his signature smile again, "Hehe~ Aoki -Aoki, thank you so much."
Yo Aoki said no need to thank him, and finally told Coach Anzai, "I believe Shohoku has a chance to beat Sannoh, because there's no such thing as 'absolute' in a game!"
Yo Aoki boarded the train to Hiroshima alone; today was the day Shohoku would play against Sannoh Industrial High School.
Yo Aoki wanted to witness Shohoku make a big splash and was determined to see this miracle happen.
As soon as Yo Aoki entered the arena, he heard cheers and shouts from the entire stadium, all chanting the name of Sannoh Industrial High School.
Yo Aoki looked around and indeed saw many familiar faces.
"I've finally met Atsushi Tsuchiya from Aiwa and Dai Moroboshi from Daiei. All that's missing is Hiroshi Morishige from Meihou Industrial."
Yo Aoki casually found a seat and sat down, waiting for the match to begin.
A few minutes later, the match officially began.
At the start of the Shohoku, Hanamichi Sakuragi and Ryota Miyagi performed an Alley-oop, instantly igniting the entire arena.
Immediately after, Kazunari Fukatsu responded with a mid-range jumper.
Shohoku then relied on Hisashi Mitsui's offense to keep pace with Sannoh.
Until Mikio Kawata appeared, this 2.1-meter-tall giant immediately attracted everyone's attention.
Mikio stood at the edge of the penalty area, ready to receive the ball, Hanamichi Sakuragi immediately stepped forward to defend.
Mikio followed the training method, leaning against Sakuragi and arching his back as hard as he could, but to his utter surprise, the red-haired guy behind him didn't budge an inch!
Hey! Yo Aoki couldn't help but chuckle when he saw this scene. When he trained with Sakuragi before, he taught him a lot of specific moves to defend against Sannoh, since most of them were tailor-made for Sannoh.
"Beep! White Team #15, 3-second violation!"
The entire stadium was stunned. The giant's first move was countered by Sakuragi. After only a few exchanges, Coach Domoto could only sigh and substitute Mikio.
As the second half began, the Sannoh Industrial High School players took to the court early, clearly announcing their triumphant return. Upon the start, Sannoh indeed employed a full-court press, but unlike in the manga, Shohoku didn't panic under this pressure. Mitsui guard at the baseline, ready to inbound the ball.
Sakuragi ran to the backcourt to screen for Miyagi, who used Miyagi to shake off Sakuragi Kazunari, and Mitsui Kazunari Fukatsu passed the ball. At this moment, Sawakita, who was interfering with Mitsui's serve, immediately stuck to Miyagi.
But now only Sawakita was left to defend, and Miyagi immediately rushed forward using his speed, but Sawakita's speed was about the same as his. Just as Sawakita moved in to steal the ball, he bumped into Akagi, who was screening for Miyagi. This time, Miyagi finally shook off all the obstacles and dribbled the ball to the frontcourt.
With Sannoh pressing high up the court, their Miyagi was wide open. Kaede Rukawa made a through pass to Kaede Rukawa, who immediately cut inside and slammed home a dunk!
Shinichi Maki exclaimed, his eyes wide, " Shohoku actually broke through Sannoh's full-court press so quickly?!"
Kiyota clutched his head and cried out, "Impossible!"
Coach Takato frowned and pondered, " Shohoku's tactics seem a bit like Takezato Team's screen play?"
Coach Domoto, seeing his team's tactics broken so quickly, immediately called a timeout. After the timeout, Sannoh changed their strategy, relying entirely on Kawata's one-on-one play. Unsurprisingly, Akagi was immediately overwhelmed by Kawata, but Akagi's mentality had changed since his match against Takezato Team. Instead of fighting tooth and nail to beat Kawata like in the manga, he used his body to shield his teammates, completely becoming a "blue-collar" player.
Shota Sugiyama spoke from the stage, "Although Akagi is no match for Kawata, he sacrificed himself to create opportunities for his teammates, revitalizing the entire team."
Kazuo Karasawa exclaimed, "That's what a leader should be like! Technical skills can be honed over time, but this kind of drive isn't something everyone possesses!"
Then, Sannoh's ace, Sawakita, finally unleashed his full potential, single-handedly widening the score gap in an instant. At this moment, even Yo Aoki had to admit, "The strength of Slam Dunk's number one player is truly undeniable!"
Just like in the manga, Kaede Rukawa soon got the hang of it and started passing the ball, which distracted Sawakita, allowing Shohoku to slowly catch up. But then, Yo Aoki's worst fear came true— Sakuragi got injured!
Yo Aoki stared intently at Shohoku's bench. After a quick check-up, Sakuragi insisted on going back on the court. But then Coach Anzai pulled Sakuragi aside and hugged him, the two whispering something. Although they were far apart, Yo Aoki seemed to hear Sakuragi grit his teeth and say, "Old man, what was your most glorious moment? Was it when you were a national team player?"
"For me, the most glorious moment is right now!"
With the game entering its final moments, Sannoh trailed Shohoku 77-78 with little time remaining. Kaede Rukawa led the charge, leaping high above the defense of Sawakita and Kawata. Suddenly, Kaede Rukawa spotted Sakuragi unguarded nearby. This time, Kaede Rukawa was no longer the impulsive lone wolf; seeing Sakuragi in a better position, he immediately passed the ball to him.
Sakuragi received the ball and jumped to shoot from his perfect spot. "Swish!" The ball went in!! Sakuragi sealed the victory against Sannoh! Shohoku won!
Yo Aoki looked at the Shohoku Team huddled together, his eyes welling up with tears. This was his youth. "Get well soon, Sakuragi! I'm waiting to see you become a true Slam Dunk!"
Yo Aoki gave Sakuragi a deep look, then turned and left the arena. The Summer Interhigh) has ended; the Autumn National Sports Festival are just around the corner!
In September, in a teahouse in Kanagawa, Moichi Taoka and Riki Takato sat facing each other. Riki Takato calmly picked up his teacup, blew on it, took a small sip, and looked completely relaxed.
Moichi Taoka voice, " Takato..."
Riki Takato laughed and said, "What brings you here, Taoka- senpai?"
In just these two lines of dialogue, Taoka and Takato have already exchanged a move.
Coach Taoka stared at Takato: "What are the plans of the National Sports Festival? The competition starts in October. Will Kainan still be fielding a separate team this year?"
Riki Takato shook his head. "This year I want to form a mixed team, picking two or three players each from Kainan, Shohoku, Ryonan, Shoyo, and Takezato!"
In previous years, the National Sports Festival team for Kanagawa Prefecture was always formed by Kainan alone, and even Shinichi Maki's old rival Kenji Fujima, had never participated. But this time was different. Kainan had already lost its dominance in the prefecture during the preliminaries and ultimately lost to the Takezato Team.
Moreover, Kanagawa Prefecture has a wealth of promising young talents this year, and with the encouragement of many influential figures, it was ultimately decided that a mixed team from different schools would represent the prefecture in the competition.
Taoka stared at Takato and said, " Takato, you specifically mentioned Takezato just now, so you're definitely going to choose that kid Aoki, right?"
Takato picked up his teacup, took a sip, and asked with a smile, "Of course, does Senior Taoka also intend to take him under his wing?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the two looked at each other and burst out laughing at the same time.
Takato counted on his fingers. "At the center position, our Kainan's Takasago definitely has to take one."
Taoka frowned. "Our Ryonan's Uozumi and Shohoku's Akagi are both stronger than him."
Takato sighed, "It's a pity that Uozumi has already retired."
Although Uozumi retired, Akagi had no such intention. After the National Tournament, Akagi had already decided to retire, but Coach Anzai had a special talk with him.
Anzai looked at Akagi and said, " Akagi, I don't think the national tournament should be the end of your basketball career."
Akagi lowered his head, his tone calm. "Teacher, my guaranteed admission to Fukazawa Sports University has fallen through... I plan to work hard on my grades and apply to my original target university, so..."
After his duel with Kawata, Akagi realized his true capabilities, so he could understand Fukazawa University's decision.
Anzai adjusted his glasses and continued, " Akagi, with your skills, apart from Fukazawa, other universities would definitely be vying for you. It's just that you haven't had enough opportunities to shine on the national stage."
Akagi looked up, hesitated, and said, "Teacher, the Winter Selection Tournament clashes with the college entrance exam..."
Anzai laughed, "I wasn't talking about the Winter Games, I was talking about the National Sports Festival!"
Akagi suddenly looked up, his eyes lighting up. " National Sports Festival? Teacher, can I participate in the National Sports Festival?"
Anzai nodded. "That's right. Kanagawa will be fielding a mixed team this National Sports Festival, so you still have a chance to fulfill your dream!"
Akagi pressed further. "To dominate the entire nation?"
Takato picked up the teapot and refilled Taoka's teacup, asking, " Taoka- senpai, are you planning to have Uozumi the team?"
Taoka stared at his teacup and slowly began, "I've always remembered Uozumi's hard work over the past three years. He deserves more honors, but I didn't help him achieve them before..."
Takato chimed in, "In that case, I think we should settle on Akagi, Uozumi, Takasago as the center forwards for the National Sports Festival Academy."
Taoka readily agreed, "I have no objection!"
Takato smiled, then changed the subject. "Next up is the forward line."
Taoka spoke first, " Sendoh's definitely going to be selected, right?"
Takato nodded. " Sendoh was the first person I locked onto. As for the others, Kaede Rukawa from Shohoku is a must-have, and our Kainan's Jin and Kiyota are also qualified."
Taoka added, "Everyone can see Fukuda's offensive capabilities!"
Takato replied, "Hmm, I can consider it."
He did agree with Taoka's words, after all, Fukuda had previously caused Kainan a lot of trouble.
"The choice for the defense should be pretty much a no-brainer; Maki, Fujima, Miyagi, and Mitsui are all excellent players!" Taoka said.
"The confirmed lineup includes Maki, Jin, Kiyota, Kiyota, Takasago, Akagi, Kaede Rukawa, Miyagi, Mitsui, Sendoh, Uozumi, Fukuda, and Fujima, making a total of Aoki."
Takato continued, "We can also include Shoyo's Hanagata."
Taoka nodded. "We're still missing one person!"
Takato smirked. "I'll mention someone else, Sakuragi!"
The moment Sakuragi was mentioned, Taoka's expression changed immediately, as if a sudden pain had shot through his body.
Takato said, " Sakuragi's physical attributes are comparable to Maki and Aoki, and he's an excellent rebounder, which can significantly boost the team's score. Most importantly, there's that unpredictability about him, Taoka- senpai, don't you think?"
Taoka reluctantly hummed in agreement. "Perhaps!"
"Now that you've decided on about five or six players, who are Taoka's starting lineup in mind?" Takato asked.
Taoka immediately replied, "My starting lineup is Uozumi, Sendoh, Fukuda, Jin, and Maki!"
Takato immediately chimed in, "My starting five are Maki, Jin, Kiyota, Sendoh, and Takasago!"
Taoka yelled, " Takato, your starting five selection is so biased!"
Takato laughed, "Isn't Taoka- senpai the same? Who doesn't favor their own people?"
Taoka snorted again, then suddenly raised an eyebrow. "The starting roster can be decided later, but the most important thing right now is, who will be the coach of this team?"