Yayoi Aida caught her breath, quickly walked up to Coach Takato, and asked with a smile, " Coach Takato, may I interview you for a few minutes? It won't interfere with the game at all."
Coach Takato smiled and nodded, "Of course, Aida, this is just an intra-team practice match."
Then, Yayoi Aida took out her notebook. " Coach Takato, what are the goals for leading the team this time?"
Coach Takato replied, "There's no specific goal. We'll just give it our all in every game. The matches will definitely be tough, and we're prepared for five hard-fought battles."
Aida pressed further, "This year, the Kanagawa Team has a mixed roster, so what do you think is the primary focus of training?"
Coach Takato replied, "The primary task is to enhance the teamwork and familiarize everyone with each other."
Aida then posed one last question, "Is Maki or Sendoh the core of this team?"
Coach Takato waved his hand with a smile, "It's neither Maki nor Sendoh; I'm the core of this team, and they all have to listen to me."
Aida paused for a moment, then the two of them burst out laughing.
When Aida interviewed Takato, Coach Taoka was squatting to the side, giving instructions. He had already treated this intra-squad practice match as a head-on confrontation with Takato.
Seeing that his team was gaining the upper hand, he said proudly, "It's obvious we're stronger! You all played well!"
But the score is very close, and he doesn't dare to get complacent. "But the score difference isn't that big right now, so I can't afford to be careless!"
At this moment, Fujima spoke up, "The core of the Yellow Team's offense has always been Maki. With his strength, I simply can't completely contain him!"
Upon hearing this, Yo Aoki and the others fell silent. Indeed, not only Fujima, but no one present could completely lock down Shinichi Maki! If they could, would they still be the Emperor Maki?
Coach Taoka went through the tactics Ryonan used against Kainan in his mind. He wanted Sendoh to keep an eye on Maki, but he immediately rejected the idea. After all, the other team still had Kaede Rukawa, and that guy wasn't playing with his life on the line yet!
At that moment, Yo Aoki suddenly spoke up, " Taoka- sensei, I have a suggestion."
Coach Taoka looked up. "Oh? Tell me about it?"
Coach Taoka wondered to himself: Isn't Takezato Team famous for its unconventional tactics? Could it be that Yo Aoki has learned some tricks from that old guy Akai? After all, everyone in the team now thinks that Coach Akai is the tactical mastermind behind Takezato.
Coach Taoka looked at Yo Aoki: " Aoki, what's your plan?"
Yo Aoki: "We can use a 1-2-2 zone defense!"
Coach Taoka was taken aback. "Zone defense?" He knew that with Soichiro Jin on Kainan's roster, most teams wouldn't dare to use a regular zone defense.
Yo Aoki quickly explained, "This 1-2-2 zone defense is for preventing mid-to-long-range shots and disrupting the opponent's passing game between the inside and outside lines. It's about not letting the ball easily get to the two forwards. Unlike the 1-3-1 that Takezato used before, which was so extreme, this one is just right for the current situation."
Maki's playing style involves driving into the paint, either going in himself or passing to Jin on the perimeter. Using this zone defense, we can double-team Maki, Kaede Rukawa, and Jin at any time, limiting their movement.
Coach Taoka stroked his chin, pondering whether this tactic would work. He didn't make a decision immediately, but instead followed the substitution he had agreed upon with Takato: "We'll discuss this tactic later. Let's make a substitution first. Uozumi, you'll go off the field for a rest. Hanagata, you'll take over."
Suddenly, Hanamichi Sakuragi jumped up, pointed at himself, and shouted, "Coach! What about me?"
Coach Taoka was startled and took a step back, waving his hand and saying, " Sakuragi, you can go up later!"
"What the hell? I'm not even as good as those lousy glasses!" Sakuragi shouted, pointing at Hanagata's nose.
Just then, Yo Aoki saw that Sakuragi hadn't lost his temper yet, and quickly went up to Coach Taoka. " Coach Taoka, I suggest replacing Mitsui with Sakuragi!" Aoki said in a low voice.
" Aoki- nii!" Sakuragi's eyes lit up instantly, and he turned to give Aoki a thumbs up.
Coach Taoka, there's a reason I brought up zone defense. Don't underestimate this reason; it hit a nerve with everyone present. Aoki suddenly laughed out loud, "Once Sakuragi comes on, we'll have me, Sendoh, Hanagata, and Fujima on our side. Does this lineup look familiar to everyone?"
Fujima's eyes narrowed sharply upon hearing this, followed by a smirk. The others, who had been pondering this, instantly snapped back to reality upon seeing Fujima's reaction.
If you include Fujima, these four guys are practically the same tall man formation that Shoyo used to dominate Kainan! Shoyo used this formation to overwhelm Hainan back then!
The core of my confidence in this tactic is Fujima! No one here understands Kainan's weaknesses better than Fujima. Since we have a ready-made killer move, why bother thinking of anything else?
In the upcoming games, we'll use Shoyo's offensive and defensive tactics as the core! I don't think anyone knows zone defense better than Fujima- san!
"Reliable, I wholeheartedly agree!" Sendoh was the first to approve. Hanagata also nodded in agreement. As a veteran member of Shoyo, he was very familiar with this tactic and naturally had no objections.
Sakuragi didn't say a word. He didn't know anything about zone defense or anything like that. As long as he could play, he didn't care about tactics!
Coach Taoka stared at Yo Aoki for a long time. This suggestion perfectly captured Takezato's unpredictable tactical style. But then he suddenly remembered something and slapped his forehead. "Wait! We played against Takezato last year, how come we didn't notice Akai's ability then?"
This year! Takezato's tactical style suddenly changed. Everyone was stuck in their old ways of thinking, assuming that the coach was the one who decided the team's tactics!
Could it be the players' doing? Look who's sitting next to Taoka? It's Fujima, who's both a player and a coach!
Taoka suddenly had a thunderbolt in his mind: Could it be that Takezato's tactics were never decided by Akai, but by Aoki?
Seeing Aoki staring intently at him, Aoki couldn't figure out what the old coach Taoka thinking, so he asked, "Teacher Taoka, do you agree with this tactic?"
"Uh... I agree! Of course I agree!" Taoka snapped back to reality and nodded hastily.
With the tactics finalized, Aoki approached Taoka again: " Taoka- sensei, I'd like to ask Ms. Aida something." "Alright, go ahead." Taoka waved his hand.
Aoki strolled over to Yayoi Aida, who had just finished interviewing Coach Takato. Seeing Aoki approach, she raised an eyebrow curiously. " Aoki- kun, what do you need me for?"
"It's Ms. Aida," Aoki scratched his head, "Are you familiar with the teams in other prefectures?"
As far as I know, Aichi, Osaka, and Kanagawa are all mixed teams. Fukuoka and Akita are single teams. Yayoi Aida thought for a moment and gave her answer.
Aoki instantly understood: Akita's team was Sannoh Industrial High School, Fukuoka's was Hakata Shodai...
"Oh, right," Aida suddenly clapped his hands, "I have some information that will definitely be useful to you!"
Eiji Sawakita of Sannoh didn't go abroad to study, but he's coming to the National Sports Festival this time! Yayoi Aida's words were like a thunderbolt.
" Eiji Sawakita?" Aoki was taken aback; he really hadn't expected this kid to still be at Sannoh Industrial High School.
Aoki was ecstatic. He had been disappointed that he couldn't challenge the number one slam dunker, but now he was overjoyed!
"Why didn't he go abroad to study?" Aoki asked, puzzled. Aida rolled his eyes. "It's not that he didn't want to go, he was rejected for a visa."
"..." Aoki immediately wilted.
Aoki and Aida were talking just a few steps from the Yellow Team's bench, and since they weren't trying to keep their voices down, Maki and the others heard them all.
Everyone reacted differently after hearing this. Maki remained completely calm, his expression unchanged.
Kiyota's face instantly paled, clearly remembering Sawakita's terrifying strength. Kaede Rukawa, standing nearby, suddenly turned cold, a fierce fighting spirit igniting within him!
Sawakita's skill level is indeed superior to Rukawa's, but this kid has a fatal flaw—he doesn't like to pass the ball. In Aoki's words, Sawakita lacks the awareness to pass the ball!
So when Rukawa played against Sannoh, he was inspired by Sendoh and used the triple threat to fight Sawakita to a standstill! Sendoh was the basketball IQ expert, Sawakita was the pinnacle of basketball skills.
"This time I'm going to beat you into submission!" Rukawa secretly vowed to himself.
After finishing the interview, Takato returned to the Yellow Team's bench and made a substitution, replacing Akagi with Takasago and not bringing on Miyagi.
Takato shouted to the Yellow Team players, "We must strengthen our defense! We've given the White Team too much space! We need to put pressure on them and force them to make mistakes!"
Jin and Rukawa, shoot decisively after receiving the pass from Maki! Takato then gives instructions.
What Takato really wanted to say was to encourage Maki and Rukawa to work together more, but after thinking about it for a long time, he couldn't figure out how to make them have the same chemistry as Sendoh and Aoki. After all, both Maki and Rukawa can only perform well when they have the ball.
"If Maki starts, Rukawa is better off not playing." Takato as he looked at the starting lineup.
At this moment, Taoka called out to Takato, " Takato, it's time to go on the field!" "Alright! Everyone, get on the field!" Both teams entered the field, and the match resumed!
Takasago crouched at the baseline and passed the ball to Shinichi Maki; Kainan Team was about to attack. Shinichi Maki dribbled past half-court and suddenly stopped—he saw Fujima at the very front of the three-point line, with Sendoh and Yo Aoki flanking Fujima on either side, and Sakuragi and Hanagata standing parallel on either side of the baseline in the restricted area.
"Did the white team switch to a zone defense? They're using a zone defense now?" Takato scoffed, fanning himself with a paper fan. "Zone defense? Utterly useless against Kainan!"
With a whoosh, Shinichi Maki flicked the ball to Soichiro Jin on the left. The easiest way to break a zone defense is to pass the ball to an outside shooter. Yo Aoki immediately clung to him and clung to him tightly, but Fujima stepped back and moved to the left edge of the free-throw line, sandwiching Soichiro Jin with Yo Aoki, his eyes still fixed on the ball's trajectory, ready to steal it.
"Fujima, that was close! Uozumi's just going to Shinichi Maki?" Taoka, munching on his tactical tablet, chuckled, "It's not that simple!"
Sendoh, who had been marking Rukawa, suddenly moved towards Fujima, positioning himself to the right of the free-throw line, facing Fujima side-by-side, seemingly trying to trap Shinichi Maki inside. Uozumi slapped his thigh. "Oh! I get it!"
Taoka chuckled, "The best defensive strategy is to outnumber the opponent!"
That wasn't all. Hanagata, who had been marking Takasago, suddenly withdrew and rushed towards the middle of the basket. Sakuragi was still standing there, staring blankly with a head full of questions, but the formation was already set up, so Sakuragi didn't need to move for the time being.
Although the White Team temporarily left Rukawa and Takasago alone, they couldn't pass the ball out at all, leaving the two of them standing there helplessly, completely at a loss.
Soichiro Jin now has three options: either shoot directly, but Yo Aoki is sticking to him tightly, so even if he shoots, it's unlikely to go in, and Fujima is waiting to grab the Hanagata under the basket; or drive to the basket, but he can't even get past Aoki Yo, let alone with Yo Aoki by his side; or pass the ball, but the only possible passes are to Shinichi Maki at the top of the key and Kiyota at the baseline.
Pass to Shinichi Maki? Fujima and Sendoh are waiting to trap him; pass to Kiyota? Yo Aoki and Sakuragi immediately double-team him! In other words, whoever receives the ball on Kainan's side will face two players from the White Team blocking them. This is the ruthlessness of the 1-2-2 zone defense – always having a numerical advantage!
With a crisp snap, Fujima, taking advantage of Yo Aoki's predicament of being unable to break free from Soichiro Jin's grasp, swatted the ball away from his hands!
The sidelines erupted instantly: "Holy crap! Jin got stripped?" "That defense is too ruthless!" "This zone defense doesn't look difficult, it's easy to learn!" Uozumi exclaimed excitedly.
Taoka shook his head to correct him. "Wrong! This zone defense isn't simple at all; it takes a long time to practice and achieve this effect!" Uozumi his head. "But Aoki only said a few words, how did they know it?"