In the eyes of a famous coach like Gaotou, this game is actually over.
Although Coach Gaotou already believed that his team had no hope of winning, when he talked to his players, he did not directly tell them to give up.
You can have ideas, but you can’t say such things to these young people.
"Everyone, come over here!"
After a long silence, Coach Gaotou stood up from his seat, turned around, waved to the players sitting on the bench, and said. After hearing Coach Gaotou's words, the Hainan players all leaned forward, and some substitutes who had not played gathered around Coach Gaotou, and everyone's eyes were focused on Coach Gaotou.
"We in Hainan have no way out!"
"We lost to Ryonan before. If we lose to Shohoku again, we won't even be qualified to compete in the national competition."
"The Hainan High School where I coach will never allow this to happen!"
Although Coach Gaotou is aware of the gap in hard power between Hainan and Xiangbei, he still hopes that the players will maintain their desire for victory. If he lets the players give up, it will be a blow to these young kids.
This level of blow is likely to affect their future basketball career. Let the players give it a try, even if they lose to Xiangbei, it will not affect their mentality.
"Shohoku High School is very strong. I think you all know this and have experienced it."
“Your class is lucky to be able to play against a team like them.”
"Only by competing with a strong team can you become stronger!"
"Shohoku's weakness on the court is the shortest player, Ryouta Miyagi. In the second half of the game, everyone should focus on attacking this one point."
"Da Zheng, if you can't score, you can pass the ball to Amu and the others, and use the pick-and-roll to create a mismatch between Amu and the opponent."
"Shohoku has also realized the weakness of their team. With Jinguji Budo supporting the inside, the offensive pressure from the outside will not be that great."
"Seize this opportunity, organize the offense well, and keep the score close."
"Play steadily and don't think about using three-pointers to narrow the score. Our team doesn't have a player who is good at three-pointers. You just need to seize every mistake made by Xiangbei and convert every opportunity into points, and there is still hope of victory!"
"On the defensive end, I need you to do your best to defend. Don't spare your energy. Right now, Hainan is on the edge of a cliff. There is no way back!"
Coach Gaotou had plenty of time to arrange tactics for the players, but at this time, he did not make any major tactical adjustments, but repeatedly emphasized to the players the importance of "keeping a stable mentality". When the score was far behind, the players' mentality was what Coach Gaotou was most concerned about at this time.
"yes!
"The Hainan players listened to Coach Gaotou's arrangement and responded in unison. Everyone could understand Coach Gaotou's intention, but how many people could actually maintain their competitive state under such pressure, only God knew.
Compared to the solemn atmosphere on the Hainan side, the Xiangbei side seems much more relaxed.
During the 20-minute halftime break, Coach Anxi did not take the players back to the lounge to rest, but let the players stay in the stadium to rest. Some of the Xiangbei players chatted with each other, and some first-year students went outside to buy drinks for the players. Several players who played, such as Mitsui Shou and Wudao, sat in their seats and rested quietly.
The stands that were originally packed with people now have a lot of empty seats. Some people go there to drink water, while others just sit there to relax and get some fresh air because they are bored.
Sakuragi Hanamichi, Mito Yohei and their group leaned leisurely against the wall, observing the two teams that were resting.
"Haruko, Hainan High School should lose this game, right?"
"So, if Budo-ge and his team beat Hainan, will they become the strongest team? And then they will play a game against Ryonan, and then receive the certificate and that's it?"
Sakuragi Hanamichi had never cared about IH before, and was completely clueless about the competition system and schedule.
“This is just the county competition. After the county competition, there is the national competition.”
"If my brother and his team can beat Hainan, they will be guaranteed second place and have already secured a spot in the next round."
"Qualifying means they can participate in the national competition, and then compete with top players from all over the country."
Akagi Haruko patiently explained to Sakuragi that she was in a very good mood. She had not expected that Xiangbei High School would lead Hainan by a large margin in the first half. She was also happy for her brother that Xiangbei could gain such a big advantage.
"Fighting with masters from all over the country!" Sakuragi Hanamichi murmured, imagining the corresponding scene in his mind, a little fascinated. It was not until now that Sakuragi Hanamichi had a concrete understanding of the phrase "dominate the country" that Akagi Takenori always said.
The goal of "dominating the country" also silently planted a seed in Sakuragi's heart.
The 20-minute halftime break passed very quickly, and the spectators who had been taking a break returned to the stadium one after another. Five minutes before the start of the second half, Jinguji Budo stood up from his seat and began to stretch, preparing to go on the court.
Seeing how seriously Budo prepared, several members of Xiangbei team began to follow his example.
Coach Anxi originally wanted to remind the players not to take it lightly, but when he saw a player stretching early, he swallowed his words back. When he looked at Jinguji Budo, his eyes were full of satisfaction and relief.
Budou is now the true ace of the team. A qualified ace should correctly guide the atmosphere of the entire team. In this regard, Budou Jinguji has done an excellent job without the reminder of his coach Anzai.
"Beep!" Not long after, a quick whistle sounded on the field, and the half-time break was over.
As the players of both teams returned to the field, deafening cheers rang out from the stands.
There were no changes in the players on the Xiangbei side, including Akagi, Chiba Daishi, Mitsui Hisashi, and two first-year players, Jinguji Takeshi and Miyagi Ryouta.
On the Hainan side, there were some changes. Kazuma Takasago, who played as the power forward, was substituted. The replacing player was a teenager wearing No. 11 jersey, about 185cm tall. Judging from the way he communicated with Amu and others, he should be a third-year player and a stranger.
"There's a change of players on the Hainan side!" Mitsui Hisashi, Takeshi and others walked into the stadium. He also noticed the changes in Hainan's personnel and whispered to Takeshi beside him.
"Should we make changes?" Mitsui asked Wudao in a low voice. He was not sure what kind of team Hainan was now.
"Let's maintain the previous tactical play for now, with the focus on defense inside and defending Miyagi."
"Play a few rounds and see what kind of style he plays."
Wu Dao replied quietly, and soon, he and his teammates took their positions in the center circle. At the beginning of the second half, there was a jump ball again. With the referee's whistle, Akagi Takenori and Kainan's Maekawa Daiki stood on the center line.
After a sharp whistle sounded, Akagi and Maekawa Daiki rose into the air together and hit the basketball one after the other.
Although Takenori Akagi's skills are not as good as Daiki Maekawa's, his physical fitness is not inferior to the other. Akagi's control of the timing of this jump ball is also quite good. Although the opponent also hit the basketball, the ball still flew towards Jinguji Budo as Akagi expected.
"Well done, Akagi!" Jinguji Takeshi, who received the jump ball, was also a little surprised. He was very clear about the gap between Akagi and his opponent, but he did not expect that Akagi actually won the jump ball.
After getting the basketball, Takeshi Jinguji immediately dribbled the ball forward without any hesitation.
The one defending Jinguji Takeshi was Shinichi Maki. The moment Takeshi got the basketball, he stuck to Takeshi and did not avoid physical collision at all, not wanting to let Takeshi speed up at all.
Even though Shinichi Maki is much shorter than Takeshi, the force of the collision is enough to affect Takeshi's dribbling rhythm. Takeshi Jinguji's solo fast break was resolved silently by Shinichi Maki.
Wu Dao, whose rhythm was affected, had to slow down and let Maki Shinichi go around in front of him. Then he used intermittent quick stops and starts to move towards the three-point line with the ball.
By the time Wudao arrived near the three-point line, the Xiangbei players had already taken their positions. When the Xiangbei players had taken their positions, the defense from Hainan also pressed forward.
The enthusiasm of the Hainan players who were ready to give it a go was obviously completely different from that in the first half. They had no intention of conserving their energy at all, and almost all of them adopted a sticky defensive strategy.
The new number 11 stuck to Mitsui Hisashi, Omasa Shifuku went to Chiba Oishi, and Kun stuck to Miyagi. Miyagi Ryouta had no chance to receive the ball, and it was extremely difficult for him to even run to an open space.
On the contrary, Akagi Takenori was standing in a very comfortable position in the inside. Maekawa Daiki did not put too much pressure on him. Looking at his appearance, he seemed not to care at all whether Akagi received the ball or not.
"You left Akagi open in disguise. Are you asking me to give the ball to Akagi?"
"It's just a little defensive trap. It's amazing that they could come up with it."
Takeshi Jinguji looked around and found that almost all the players on the Shohoku side were under tight defense. It was not that they could not receive the ball, but if they forced Mitsui and the others to receive the ball, there would be a risk of being intercepted. On the other hand, Akagi was in a very good position with space around him, making him the best choice to receive the ball.
If he changes to an open position with the ball, he will definitely pass the ball to Akagi in the inside.
But Jinguji Budo knew what Hainan was planning. Akagi could catch the ball, but what about attacking? In front of Maekawa Daiki, Akagi's attack was very weak. If Akagi attacked independently, the probability of success was too low.
But if he doesn't pass the ball, Wu Dao will only have one choice.
"Do you think you can definitely defend against me, Maki Shinichi?"
Wu Dao stood up straight, dribbled the ball with his right hand, maintained a high center of gravity, and suddenly spoke out.
"Stop talking nonsense and attack me!" Mu Shen smiled and also slightly raised his center of gravity. He was afraid of Wu Dao's attack.
Jinguji Budou didn't waste any words. Nearly ten seconds had passed since he had been holding onto the ball for too long. Budou made the decision and quickly leaned forward, his arms wide open, like an eagle spreading its wings.
Without waiting for Maki Shinichi to make any move, Jinguji Budou stepped forward with his left foot and broke through sideways. Although Maki Shinichi's reaction was a little slow, his body hit Budou hard. Although his action was fierce, it did not attract the referee's whistle.
Such an action is actually regarded as a reasonable action.
"Huh?!" The moment Maki Shinichi's body hit Wudao, Wudao felt a weight on his side. The rhythm of his dribbling was affected, and he didn't dare to rush forward with the ball mindlessly. After a momentary pause, Wudao switched the basketball from his crotch to his left hand, changed direction directly, and rushed forward from the left.
Takeshi Jinguji was very skilled at changing directions while moving, and his speed hardly slowed down. In the blink of an eye, he passed Shinichi Maki. As Takeshi strode towards the basket, when he was about three meters away from the basket, Takeshi held the ball with his left hand, grabbed the ball two steps ago, and made a layup with one hand.
Although Maki Shinichi caught up in time, Jinguji Budou's height, wingspan and jumping ability were stronger than Maki Shinichi's. His defense could not stop Budou's layup. As for Maekawa Daiki under the basket, he was led to the other side by Akagi at this moment and had no time to make up for the defense. Jinguji Budou's breakthrough speed was too fast, and even Maki Shinichi could not limit his speed.
"Swish!" With a slight sound, the basketball went into the net.
There was a cheer from Xiangbei, and then the players began to rush back to the court. As for Jinguji Budou's standing stick singles, Xiangbei people were already accustomed to it. Not to mention Maki Shinichi, Ryonan's Shinomiya Tano and Sendoh might not be able to stop Jinguji Budou's attack.
Soon, the Hainan team adjusted their mentality and started to fight back. After receiving the advice from Coach Gaotou, the Hainan team focused on Miyagi. The players covered each other, creating an opportunity for Maki Shinichi to attack Miyagi alone. Maki Shinichi pushed forward like a bulldozer, and Miyagi was no match at all. However, Miyagi was also a person who would not admit defeat, and his defensive moves were obviously much bigger.
But the result was that Miyagi received a foul just at the beginning of the second half, and Shinichi Maki also made a layup and scored the ball.
With Maki Shenyi's steady free throws, Hainan successfully scored two plus one and pulled the score back to one point.
In the second half, the two teams were in a stalemate. Kainan fought hard on defense and focused on Miyagi Ryouta on offense. On the other hand, Shohoku, relying on Jinguji Budo's outstanding personal ability and Mitsui's occasional open shots with the help of his teammates, still maintained a considerable lead.
For a while, although the score difference between the two teams did not narrow significantly, the battle was much more intense than in the first half of the match. Both the Xiangbei players and the Hainan players were consuming more and more energy.
Ten minutes into the second half, the score between the two teams was 77:64, and the difference had narrowed to 13 points. As Jinguji Budo's physical strength declined, his offensive efficiency was no longer as terrifying as in the first half, but unfortunately, Shohoku also lost the rebound.
“Drink!
!”
As the roars rang out from under the basket, the rebound was controlled by Daiki Maekawa. Jinguji Budo missed the mid-range shot, giving Hainan a chance to counterattack with a fast break. With A Kun's layup in the frontcourt, the difference between the two teams reached 11 points.
In the transition from offense to defense, Miyagi brought the ball to the frontcourt and passed it to Jinguji Takeshi. After receiving the ball, Takeshi was immediately stuck to Maki Shinichi, while Maekawa Daiki in the inside also slightly improved his position and secretly guarded a large area behind Maki Shinichi.
In the second half, it was the efforts of Shinichi Maki and Daiki Maekawa that slightly restricted the performance of Jinguji Takeshi. Although Takeshi, whose physical strength declined, was still able to dribble past two people, his hit rate was greatly reduced when he shot against the defense.
After all, if Budo could maintain a hit rate of nearly 70% throughout the game, it would be too terrifying.
The biggest problem for Xiangbei now is rebounding. Akagi Takenori has only got 2 rebounds since the second half.
Another weakness of Xiangbei High School was exposed to Hainan as the game progressed.
"I was so impressed by the performance of Jinguji Budo and Mitsui Shou that I almost forgot that the foundation of Xiangbei High School is quite average!"
"If we keep playing like this, there's still a chance for the game to turn around!"
Coach Gaotou has adjusted his mentality at this moment. He opened the folding fan in his hand and fanned it gently, looking like a romantic old uncle.
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