The game entered the halftime break, and the players from Kanagawa Prefecture were all very relaxed. They were resting and chatting, and the atmosphere was relaxed and pleasant.
Coach Takeo adjusted the players for the second half. Except for Jinguji Takenori and Shinomiya Tano who remained on the court, Akagi Takenori in the inside, Maki Shinichi in the outside and Sendoh Akira were all replaced by Coach Takeo.
Replacing them were Jun Uozumi, Kenji Fujima and Mitsui Hisashi.
Taking advantage of the half-time break, Uozumi, Fujima and Mitsui, who had been sitting for a while, began to do simple warm-up exercises. Although Mitsui played for ten minutes at the beginning of the game, he was soon substituted off. At this moment, his body was a little stiff from sitting.
Among these three people, the one that Coach Tanaka is most worried about is Jun Uozumi, who replaced Takenori Akagi.
Both Mitsui Hisashi and Fujima Kenji have been playing basketball since elementary school. Having gone through elementary school, junior high school, and high school, they have sufficient competition experience.
Moreover, these two people have always been the absolute main force in the past. Relying on their abilities, even if they cannot suppress Kazunari Fukatsu and Minoru Matsumoto from Akita Prefecture, they will definitely not be suppressed too much by their opponents.
But Uozumi Jun is different. This hot-tempered second-year student has only played for a short time. Although he has played in several major tournaments, his experience is definitely not as good as that of Mitsui Hisashi and others. In today's match, Uozumi will face Kawata Masashi and Nobe Masahiro.
One of these two is currently the strongest center in the country, and the other is one of the best power forwards in the country. In the eyes of Coach Tanaoka, it would be a tough battle for Yuzumi to face either of them. It is absolutely impossible to face two people at the same time.
Therefore, before the start of the second half of the game, Coach Takeo found Yuzumi, sat next to Yuzumi Jun, and began to instruct Yuzumi on how to play in the second half. At the same time, Coach Takeo also waved to Shinomiya Tano, indicating that the latter should sit over as well, as he had something to say to both of them.
"Uozumi, you should have some idea of the level of those two inside players from Akita Prefecture."
"That Nobe Masahiro, although he was suppressed by Nobe in the first half of the game, you should never underestimate the opponent's strength. As for Kawata Masashi, he is the strongest center in the country!"
"When we get on the court, your main job will be to defend Kawata Masashi and grab rebounds."
"That Kawata Masashi is very fast and has a long range. You have to know how to make choices when defending!"
When Coach Tanabe said this, Jun Uozumi couldn't help but interrupt him, saying that he didn't understand what Coach Tanabe meant.
"Coach, what's the trade-off?" Yuzumi Jun looked at Coach Tagoka with a puzzled look on his face, not understanding what was going on.
"You need to know which ball to defend and which ball not to defend!"
"If Masashi Kawata goes to the high post to set a screen or catch the ball and shoot, you must not follow him!"
"You need to stay under the basket and defend against opponents who break through with the pick-and-roll. Or, be wary of the power forward from Akita Prefecture, Masahiro Nobe!"
"As for the task of following up the defense, I'll leave it to you, Tian Ye!"
Coach Tanaka said this, looked at Shinomiya Tanaka, and continued:
"Masashi Kawata is very fast. If Uozumi follows up and defends like Takenori Akagi, he will be easily broken through by the opponent."
"In the second half, Kawata Masashi will still be the most important scoring source for Akita Prefecture. I don't want Akita Prefecture to play so easily."
"Tan Ye, if Kawata Masashi tries to pull Yuzumi out of the inside, you need to help Yuzumi fill this hole! You must not let the opponent's plan succeed!"
Coach Tanaoka glanced at the rest area in Akita Prefecture from afar with a smile in his eyes.
"So coach, what if the opponent doesn't move up and attacks under the basket?" Yuzumi Jun scratched the back of his head and asked.
His stupid question was immediately met with a cold stare from Coach Tagora.
"Idiot! The opponent is attacking under the basket, so of course you are the one defending!"
"Remember, never jump when defending. With your height and wingspan, just standing there and raising your arms high can give him enough pressure."
"Also, Kawata Masashi played the entire first half, so he must have consumed a lot of his energy."
"When you're playing against an opponent, use your body more! Don't use your brain! Play with your body!"
Coach Tanaoka seemed to think that he had not emphasized enough, so he added another sentence. However, his words "Don't use your brain" fell into Yuzumi's ears, making Yuzumi feel strange.
"Is the coach... scolding me?" Yuzumi Jun tilted his head and savored Coach Tagora's words, feeling something was not right.
After explaining the situation to Yuzumi and Shinomiya Tano, Coach Tanoka stood up and sat back in his seat. Coach Tanoka felt that everything was ready now. After the second half of the game started, the players should be able to bring the winning trophy to him soon!
The half-time break lasted a full twenty minutes. After the players from both teams had a good rest, they returned to the court.
"Um?"
"Zebei... didn't play?"
After the whistle sounded to start the second half, the players of both teams took their positions in the center circle, ready for the jump ball. At this time, Jinguji Budo suddenly found that the player defending him had changed. It was no longer Zebei Rongzhi, but Matsumoto Minoru who replaced Zebei. On the other hand, Mitsui Shou faced a new face.
At the same time, Shimono Shimota also found that the opponent standing in front of him had also changed. Nobe Masahiro was also substituted off the court, and the one he faced was also a stranger.
The ones who jumped the ball at the center line were Masashi Kawata and Jun Uozumi. At this time, Uozumi was staring at Masashi Kawata, with an expression as if he wanted to eat him up.
“Beep!!”
After a long whistle, the referee threw the ball into the air. Then, two shouts rang out almost at the same time. The next second, the basketball turned into a red light and quickly flew towards the Kanagawa Prefecture half.
On the jump ball, Yuzumi Jun used his height and wingspan to overpower Kawata Masashi and was the first to get the basketball. The basketball flew out and was caught by Fujima Kenji.
After winning the jump ball, Fujima directly dropped the ball and moved forward directly towards the top of the arc in Akita Prefecture's half.
At the same time, Mitsui Hisashi and Jinguji Budou were positioned at 45 degrees on both sides of the three-point line, forming a horn with Fujima. After entering the frontcourt, Uozumi Jun and Shinomiya Tano quickly sank into the inside and stood outside the paint area on both sides of the baseline.
As the Kanagawa players took their positions, the Akita players quickly adjusted their deployment according to Goro Domoto's requirements.
Kazunari Fukatsu was the only one defending at the top of the arc, while the other four players from Akita Prefecture retreated to the paint area, occupying the four corners of the paint area respectively, consolidating the defense under the basket and in the mid-range. Jinguji Takeshi and Mitsui Hisashi, who were outside the three-point line, were completely left open at this moment!
"What?!"
"Akita Prefecture has actually reduced its defense to mid-range? No longer wanting to defend from the outside?"
Akita Prefecture's defense obviously surprised everyone. Most of the spectators watching the game were from Kanagawa Prefecture, and they were quite familiar with the players of the Kanagawa Prefecture team.
Leaving the three-pointer open? If you watch a few more games of Kanagawa, you won't make such a stupid decision.
While the audience was discussing, Fujima Kenji had already made his choice. Kazunari Fukatsu was his old rival. The two were of similar build, but Fukatsu was a bit stronger in terms of strength. Fujima had no intention of forcing a breakthrough against Fukatsu. After all, Akita Prefecture's defense had already fed the Kanagawa team a meal!
"Huh!" A sound of breaking through the air was heard, and the basketball passed directly from Fujima Kenji's hand and fell into Mitsui Hisashi's hands.
Mitsui Shou got the ball and didn't hesitate at all. He threw the ball out directly.
Not surprisingly, Mitsui Shou can easily make 80+ out of 100 three-pointers in wide-open spaces during normal training.
"Swish!" After a slight sound, the basketball fell accurately into the net.
Mitsui Hisashi scored three points, officially opening the curtain of the second half of the game between Akita Prefecture and Kanagawa Prefecture.
"... .." Goro Domoto on the sidelines saw Mitsui Hisashi easily make a three-pointer, narrowed his eyes slightly, and clenched his hands into fists unconsciously.
How could he not understand something that even the audience could understand
But... ..is there a better way for Akita Prefecture today
While Kanagawa County is still unable to deal with Akita County's inside and outside connection, Akita County must seize this opportunity and attack fiercely. As for leaving the three-pointer open, this is also the only solution.
Instead of letting Jinguji Budou break into the mid-range shot to score, it is better to give Jinguji Budou enough shooting space from the beginning. If there is a chance for a three-pointer, Jinguji Budou will definitely choose a three-pointer!
If you keep missing three-pointers and run out of steam, your long-range shooting percentage won't be very good.
At that time, as long as Akita County can defend the rebounds, they will have a chance to turn defeat into victory relying on their inside and outside connections.
This is a huge gamble, and the stakes are the trophy of the Autumn National Games. Akita Prefecture's chances of winning are slim, but this is also the only possibility of victory that Goro Domoto has found for his team.
During the transition between offense and defense, Goro Domoto turned his head and looked at Sawakita Eiji and Nobe Masahiro who were sitting on the bench. Compared to the team's victory, he was more looking forward to his two players being able to get out of the haze.
In the stadium.
Akita Prefecture still maintained the previous offensive method. After Kazunari Fukatsu entered the frontcourt with the ball, he chose to call his teammates for a pick-and-roll. Their team's high-post pick-and-roll tactics is one of the team's strongest offensive means. After Zebei Rongzhi's halberd was broken by Jinguji Budou, the high-post pick-and-roll became their strongest offensive means!
"Hehe... Just as I expected!"
"Akita County is at its wit's end!"
When Coach Tanaoka saw Fukatsu calling for a pick-and-roll after entering the frontcourt, a faint smile appeared on his face. At the same time, in the middle of the court, Masashi Kawata in the paint received a signal from his teammates and moved up to prepare for a pick-and-roll. Shinomiya Tano, who was defending Akita's backup power forward, saw Kawata leave the paint and immediately followed him with a smile.
And Shimoya Tano, who stepped out of the inside line for the first time in this game, instantly became the focus of the court.
"Shinomiya Tano! This guy went out with Kawata Masashi!"
"Are you finally stopping at nothing? After Jinguji Budo, Shinomiya Tano is also going to attack!"
When Shigong Tianye showed up, the whole venue immediately became lively. The cheers from the surroundings reached Kawata Masashi's ears, and he couldn't help but look back at Shigong Tianye who followed him. Not only was there no fear on that gorilla face, but he was grinning.
The audience cheered loudly, but it did not affect Kazunari Fukatsu on the field.
While Masashi Kawata was setting up a pick-and-roll, Kazunari Fukatsu quickly broke through in the direction of the pick-and-roll. Although Fujima tried to defend, he was still blocked by Masashi Kawata and was left at a distance by Fukatsu.
When Shinomiya Tano saw Fukatsu's breakthrough, Tong Kong shrank slightly, and he accurately predicted the direction of Fukatsu's breakthrough and blocked the opponent's path early on, not giving the opponent a chance to break through.
Now, there are only Yuzumi and Akita's backup power forward under the basket. Once Shinomiya is broken through, Yuzumi in the interior will face a two-on-one situation. Shinomiya does not think that Yuzumi can handle that kind of situation.
Kazunari Fukatsu, who completed the breakthrough, was obviously also afraid of Shinomiya Tano's defensive ability. After the breakthrough, he made a sudden stop and then passed the ball back to Masashi Kawata.
At the moment when Kazunari Fukatsu shot the basketball, Shinomiya Tano's figure quickly passed him and ran towards Kawata Masashi. The speed was so fast that Fukatsu could not see the other person's face clearly.
Almost at the same time when the basketball entered Masashi Kawata's hands, Shimoya Nozomi, who was defending in the mid-range, had already appeared in front of Masashi Kawata and took up his position to defend.
"Ohhhh!!! So fast! In a flash, it's in front of Kawada!"
"Go ahead, Shigong Tianye, show that ape man how powerful you are!"
Shinomiya Tano's attack caused a startling cheer from the stands. Seeing this scene, Domoto Goro on the sidelines broke out in cold sweat.
Shimono's leg strength is really terrifying. If there is someone in Kanagawa Prefecture who can block Akita's high-post pick-and-roll tactics, then the Shimono in front of them is probably the most likely person.
"This guy is really fast!"
"Faster than me, even faster than Zebei!"
Masashi Kawata's hole shrank slightly, but his body did not freeze in place. As Shinomiya Noda stepped forward, Masashi Kawata quickly raised the ball and prepared to shoot. Shinomiya Noda saw this and jumped up to block the shot. Masashi Kawata was also delighted when he saw this scene, and quickly dropped the ball to prepare for a breakthrough.
He didn't expect that the aggressive Sigong Tianye would be so easy to deceive
Looks so stupid!
"Huh!" However, at the moment when Kawata Masashi dropped the ball, Shinomiya Tano in mid-air chuckled and turned his head to look at Kawata. Kawata Masashi didn't know what Shinomiya Tano was so funny about, and was about to pass Shinomiya Tano, but a black shadow suddenly jumped out from the other side, from behind Kawata, and slapped the basketball.
"What?!" The basketball was intercepted, and Masashi Kawata's body stiffened. He quickly turned his head and saw Jinguji Takeshi easily caught the ball in his arms, quickly passed him, and rushed towards the frontcourt with the ball.
"You not only underestimated me, but also underestimated him!"
"Without Zebei Rongzhi interfering with his defense, his freedom has also increased."
"When it comes to defensive radius, this guy's is no smaller than mine!"
While Shinomiya Tano was speaking, Jinguji Takeshi had already crossed the center line with the ball. Although Kazunari Fukatsu was following closely behind Jinguji Takeshi, Takeshi didn't care at all whether Fukatsu was following behind him or not.
He wants to dunk, but can Kazunari Fukatsu, who is about 180cm tall, stop him
“Bang!”
Not long after, Takeshi Jinguji broke into the basket and scored a dunk. Although Kazunari Fukatsu, who was following behind him, jumped up and tried hard to defend, even though he jumped with all his strength, he could only reach the top of Takeshi's elbow.
The gap is really too big!
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