Chapter 152 : Midorima's Masterclass
Several players nodded in agreement with what Alex said, especially those senpai who experienced the massacre last year. They knew the horror of Shutoku, especially their two big men under the paint. Once the point guard started to feed them the ball, even Kiyoshi would have a hard time stopping their post-up game. And that didn't count Midorima who still tried to heat up his engine.
"So, what should we do?" Hyuga asked.
"We will not make an excessive change. We have already done a good job with this strategy, so let's keep doing this for a while." Furihata took a quick glance at Kagami, trying to see his reaction. To his surprise, the red-haired boy didn't show any dissatisfaction at all. It seemed Riko and Alex managed to appease him when he was on the bench. "But to be on the safe side, Hyuga-kun, Kuroko-kun's defense is full of holes. I hope you can give a hand when it is necessary."
"Sure." Hyuga nodded before turning his head on Kuroko. "Just bait him to go in my direction. We can corner him on the wing side."
"Understood." Kuroko nodded his head, still with his default flat expression.
"Senpai, I will probably bother you with the same problem." Furihata smiled wryly. "I am not sure I can handle Midorima alone, so I will try to direct him into your spot. Do you mind?"
"Can you really force him to my spot, though? Would you be too far from me?"
After pondering for a moment, Furihata realized his error. "You are right. We are too far from you. But I can probably force him to drive forward. If I could do so, Mitobe-senpai, can you help me?"
The quiet senpai nodded as he replied shortly, "I don't know how much I can help, but if you are sure."
"Don't worry about it. As long as we could force him to take a two-point shoot, it was already a win in my book."
Alex smiled as she heard the interaction among her players. She was so lucky to have a team with players full of awareness like Hyuga and Furihata and knew what change was necessary to be made on the spot. This kind of player was always the coach's favorite, second to the hardworking one. Even though there were also idiots like Kagami, he could still be covered by his teammates. Overall, she was satisfied with this team.
"Well, since you know what to do, go and keep up your performance!"
"Yes, Alex-san!"
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A moment later, all the players from both teams came back to the court. However, the Seirin players were taken aback by the sudden murderous intent that was radiated from Shutoku's side.
"It seems they remember they have a revenge to complete." Hyuga chuckled darkly.
"Well, that's not my problem," Kiyoshi said. "You defeated them when I wasn't there, so they shouldn't target me."
A thick vein popped up on Hyuga's forehead. "Oh, don't you forget about Otsubo-san, Kiyoshi? Once he got the ball, you would suffer again like in the past."
"Well, at least I wouldn't be defeated by a first-year like you."
"HAH?!"
Furihata had a sweat drop as he saw his senpai bickering with each other on the court. Fortunately, it didn't last long as the referee blew his whistle, signaling the game was played again.
Takao dribbled the ball slowly, observing everything from his spot while trying to think of the best action to the next. He furrowed his brows when he saw Kuroko's full-of-hole defense as if it was inviting him to drive forward. At first, Takao thought it was just Kuroko being bad in defense. However, when he noticed Hyuga was a step closer to his direction, he knew what was Seirin's plan.
"You want to corner me to the wing, huh? Well, you miscalculate something here."
And right after that, Takao leaned his body forward, ready to break through the trap Seirin had already prepared. However, the moment Hyuga tried to help Kuroko defend him, Takao bounced the ball quickly between two Seirin players who guarded him.
"Nice pass, Takao!"
It was Miyaji who received the pass from the wing. This was the textbook play from Shutoku on how to break apart the opponent's defense. Miyaji as the perfect role player could set a screen, cutting from the sideline, slashing, creating space for his teammates, and even scoring by himself when the team needed him to be.
And seeing how rare it was for Miyaji to receive a pass from his teammates, Seirin mistook him as a passive player and underestimated him. This was their mistake, and Miyaji was ready to punish Seirin right on the spot.
"Damn! Kiyoshi, cover me!"
"I got it!"
Kiyoshi moved from his spot to cover up the spot Hyuga left before. Unfortunately, by doing so, he also left Mitobe alone with Kimura and Otsubo on the paint. And it was the worst matchup for Mitobe. He was a smart type of center who used his movement and technique to fight in the paint. Being sandwiched by two strength-type big men like Otsubo and Kimura was a nightmare for the quiet center.
Right before Kiyoshi could intercept Miyaji, the small forward tossed the ball in the air, and even though Mitobe tried his best, he couldn't stop Shutoku's big men from wreaking havoc under his nose.
"NICE PASS, MIYAJI!"
Kimura jumped as Otsubo box-outed Mitobe, giving his teammates space to execute the ball. A second later, the power forward caught the ball in the air before slamming it down hard with both hands on the rim.
*BAAAAMM!!*
Another aleyoop-dunk! Before, it was Takao to Otsubo. And now, it was Miyaji to Kimura. This was Shutoku's playing style before they had Midorima on the team. They would always try to bully their opponent under the paint. It only changed this year because Midorima had a high percentage of three-point shooting and they were willing to bet on him. That didn't mean their old style wouldn't work again, though.
"Nice dunk, you brute!"
"Hey, don't call me brute! Just say it if you envy my muscle!" The two protagonists in the last play joked and laughed around leisurely. However, they were scolded a second later by Otsubo who was already back for defense.
"Idiot! Go back! Be ready for the fastbreak! Miyaji, keep your eyes on the wing!"
Furihata who tried to sneak from the wing side clicked his tongue in annoyance. It seemed the quick fastbreak before couldn't be used again this time. However, they still had the Princeton System that was successful before, so he wasn't in a hurry.
"Phantom. Here."
Kuroko gave the ball to Furihata directly before fading away with the background like usual. Furihata waited patiently for his teammates to be ready for their position before he started moving again. He asked Mitobe once again to come forward from the paint, and right when the quiet senpai arrived at the high post, Furihata passed the ball and started to run again.
"Don't think the same play could work twice, Bastard! Takao, move your ass out there!"
"Got it!"
Midorima gritted his teeth, following Furihata's movement pretty closely. He also asked Takao to be ready whenever Kuroko stepped up out of nowhere to disturb his defense. However, unlike before when Furihata ran away in the opposite direction to give Mitobe space to organize, this time, he ran straight in Mitobe's direction, startling Kimura who was guarding the center.
"Senpai, here!"
Having played with each other in the same strategy for the last couple of days, Mitobe knew what Furihata wanted. He handed the ball to the point guard and set a screen immediately, blocking Midorima and Kimura from chasing down his teammates.
"Goddamnit! Captain!"
"I got it!"
Otsubo reacted quickly, moving from his spot on the paint to stop Furihata. There was a sense of déjà vu here as this was the exact same play as Shutoku did before. And just like a cruel joke, Furihata slides the ball to Kiyoshi who was free in the paint area before he was intercepted by Otsubo.
"Nice pass, Furihata-kun!"
Kiyoshi grabbed the ball, ready to jump. However, the moment he took off, a shadow suddenly covered his sight as a giant hand appeared from behind, snatching the ball out of his possession.
"Just like I say, don't think you can do it that easy, Seirin!"
*SLAP!*
"What?!" Kiyoshi widened his eyes in shock, not expecting the ball to be stripped forcefully like that. The moment he landed on the ground, he turned around just to see Midorima who just blocked his attempt had been running forward and left him behind.
"Senpai, here!"
"Got it!"
Miyaji who won the rebound passed the ball to Midorima on the half-line court. Without hesitation, the green-haired boy stopped right on his spot, and even though it was still far away from the three-point line, he pulled up a three-point shoot from the middle.
*SPLASH!*
The ball went hollowly into the net, adding another three points for Shutoku.
"YOSSHAA!"
"Nice shoot, Midorima!"
"Good defense!"
Furihata just shook his head helplessly as he saw Shutoku players celebrating happily with each other. The last play was the solo show of Midorima's ability both in defense and offense. The moment he was blocked by Mitobe's screen, he gave up chasing down Furihata and turned his attention to the Seirin players who were the most likely to receive the pass, Kiyoshi on the paint.
His decision was proven to be successful as he blocked the dunk attempt from Kiyoshi. Right before all the Seirin players realized what happened, he had already initiated the fastbreak, pulling up his signature half-court line shoot to add three more points for Shutoku.
And this was also the beginning of Midorima's masterclass. After that, the shooting guard took over the game, bullying everyone who was in front of him.
"Takao, here!"
*Splash!*
"YOSSHAA!"
"Nice three, Midorima! Keep it up!"
"Defense! Keep following him!"
"Kimura-senpai, don't let your opponent take a shoot! Force him to pass!"
"Miyaji-senpai, switch with me!"
*Clank!*
"Yeah! Nice defense, Midorima!"
"Get the rebound!"
*Splash!*
"Ooh! This was your fourth three-pointer today! Nice!"
Furihata could only chuckle bitterly as he was the one who suffered the most against Midorima. No matter how he tried to pressure Midorima to drive forward like the plan he formed before, the shooting guard would just ignore him, using the height advantage to pull up a three right under his nose.
In the defense, Midorima's performance became more outrageous. Even though he couldn't keep up with Furihata's off-the-ball movement, he was able to read the game pretty well and commanded his teammates to force Seirin to take a bad shoot in all of their chances.
Even though he was not a commander type, Midorima still learned a lot from his time playing together with Akashi in Teiko, especially about how to take command and make his teammates listen to him. And this was the first time he showed off his talent as a leader for Shutoku.
"It starts to get boring, right?" Midorima suddenly spoke to Furihata while in a triple-threat position. It was Shutoku's turn, and the ball went to the shooting guard once again. "Come on, you cannot guard me. Bring up that bastard again."
Furihata snorted, knowing who was the bastard Midorima mentioned. However, he ignored the trash talk, his hand kept moving to bother his opponent. In a normal condition, he wouldn't let that trash talk slide. However, he had no leverage here.
What could he use to talk back here? That they win in the last game? He used it too much that it didn't have the effect anymore. Kagami blocked him in the last game? The red-haired boy was on the bench right now. Overall, even though he wanted to retort back, he had nothing to use here.
Instead of thinking of trash talk, Furihata hides one of his hands on the back, using it to give Mitobe a signal to support him. Even though Midorima was not a ball hogger like Aomine, the green-haired boy had his pride and wouldn't pass the ball that easily, especially when he was in a hot form like today.
However, Midorima noticed the support that came from the low post and snorted slightly. "Do you think I wouldn't be able to shoot in a double-team position? Let me show you something here."
Just right after that, he leaned his body backward, using Furihata's body as a pivot. Before Furihata could realize what happened, the shooting guard jumped backward, pulling up a tough fadeaway from his position, not giving Furihata and Mitobe any chance to stop him. This fadeaway really showed how disadvantaged Furihata was against Midorima, whether in height or even wingspan. No matter how Furihata jumped, he wouldn't be able to reach Midorima's release point.
*SPLASH!*
The ball went once again for Shutoku!
"Do you think you are the only one who get better here?" Midorima said calmly as he stared at the ball bouncing on the ground.
Furihata turned around at the bench with a helpless expression, knowing he couldn't stop the three-point waves from the green-haired boy. Fortunately, Alex was on the same page with him, as the blonde woman could be seen talking with Kagami on the bench.
And a moment later, the red-haired boy came together with Tsuchida, replacing Hyuga and Kiyoshi who had already played since the beginning. This was a good decision since they were outrebounded since the beginning. With the addition of those two, Alex hoped this would help the team grab the board more and cut off Shutoku's momentum.
As for stopping Midorima, she didn't need to say anything, as Kagami walked directly to the shooting guard with murderous intent.
"Don't think you can just do anything you want that easy, you bastard!"
"Huh, is that what I said to your teammates before? It seems you can only copy my word here. Are you trying to be like Kise?"
"Just wait, you bastard. I will stop you next time."
As the two aces from both teams stared at each other heatedly, everyone could see the tension rising on the court. The game would probably escalate quickly after this, and they all were ready for it.
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Author note :
If you want to support me more, you can visit my Patreon page on patreon(.)com/ZetaFaes
You can read this fanfiction up to chapter 172 on that page. Also, you can read my other fanfiction, Diamond no Ace: The Prince of Hitter up to chapter 33 too.
Thank you! :)
-Zeta Faes-