Swish!
Shintaro Midorima's shot dropped cleanly through the net.
After scoring, the Shūtoku players immediately ran back on defense.
Ryota Kise muttered in frustration,
"I just remembered Midorima's shooting, and then I forgot about it again right away. That was careless of me."
Yukio Kasamatsu patted Kise on the shoulder.
"Don't get discouraged. We'll get it back."
Kise nodded and ran toward the frontcourt.
Possession changed.
Kasamatsu dribbled the ball past half court. This time, he didn't pass immediately.
Instead, he observed the situation on the court.
He noticed something unusual.
Whenever Kaijō's players were positioned outside the three-point line, Shūtoku's defense became extremely tight.
But once Kaijō players moved into the paint, Shūtoku's defense suddenly loosened.
It seemed… deliberate.
Their focus was clearly on defending the perimeter.
Just as Kasamatsu was still thinking about it, Kazunari Takao immediately pressed up on him.
Kasamatsu's suspicion seemed confirmed.
Shūtoku was trying to stop them from shooting threes.
However, the situation was urgent, and Kasamatsu didn't have time to think further.
Instead, he focused on avoiding Takao's steal attempt.
After shaking him off, Kasamatsu immediately passed the ball.
Kise caught the pass and drove straight into the paint.
As he attacked the basket, Taisuke Otsubo stepped up to help defend.
Kise used another quick drive to get past him and finished the shot.
Two points.
Possession changed again.
This time, Kise directly applied full-court defense on Shintaro Midorima.
On the sidelines, Masaaki Nakatani finally nodded.
"So you're using full-court defense. Just as expected."
Seeing this, Otsubo stopped running to the frontcourt and instead began setting screens for Midorima in the backcourt.
Kise assumed the ball would go to Midorima and quickly moved to avoid the screens.
But after dodging one screen, another immediately appeared.
Kise had no choice but to dodge again.
But when he finally got through them, he realized something.
Takao hadn't passed the ball.
Instead, he brought the ball up to the frontcourt himself.
Kise took a small breath and asked in confusion,
"Midorima, aren't they giving you this possession?"
Midorima glanced at him briefly but said nothing, casually walking toward the frontcourt.
Throughout the game, Midorima only ran at full speed when he knew he would receive the ball.
The rest of the time, he strolled around the court as if he were out for a walk.
Kaijō's coach seemed to notice this as well.
Suddenly, his eyes widened.
"Timeout!"
The referee blew the whistle.
"Timeout requested by Kaijō High!"
The Kaijō players walked off the court looking confused, except for Kasamatsu, who seemed to be thinking about something.
On the Shūtoku side, Midorima glanced at Genta Takeuchi before slowly walking off the court.
Masaaki Nakatani lazily looked at Takeuchi and said calmly,
"So you noticed."
After Shūtoku's players sat down, Takao asked first,
"Did Kaijō figure out our plan?"
Otsubo took a sip of water.
"Most likely. They're a strong team, and their coach is experienced."
Takao asked,
"So what do we do next? Keep using it?"
Nakatani looked at Midorima.
"What do you think, Midorima?"
Midorima took a sip of water and answered calmly,
"No need."
"That tactic was only meant to make winning easier."
"Since they've figured it out, there's no reason to keep using it."
Nakatani thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Alright. We'll play normally from now on. Strengthen the perimeter defense."
"If Kise drives into the paint, just leave him."
"After all, two points are still one point less than three."
The Shūtoku players shouted together,
"Yes!"
...
On the Kaijō side.
Genta Takeuchi spoke to the team.
"Kise, stop forcing so many drives. Work with your teammates and conserve your stamina."
Kise asked in confusion,
"Why?"
Takeuchi closed his eyes briefly before explaining,
"Shūtoku's tactic is meant to drain your stamina. Haven't you noticed you're already breathing heavily? The game has only been going for a few minutes!"
Only then did Kise realize he was actually panting.
Takeuchi said angrily,
"Midorima hasn't even been running much. He hasn't even broken a sweat, yet you're already close to exhaustion!"
"If this continues, you'll run out of energy before the first quarter even ends!"
Only now did Kise fully understand Shūtoku's strategy.
They were using a matchup strategy.
If Kise had to leave the court due to exhaustion, then during the time he was off the court, no one would be able to stop Midorima.
Even if they double-teamed him, the other Shūtoku players would be left completely open.
After giving a few more instructions, the team returned to the court.
As they stepped back onto the floor, Kise walked over to Midorima with a grin.
"Midorima, that tactic of yours was pretty clever. I almost fell for it."
Midorima pushed up his glasses and replied calmly,
"That tactic only works on you."
"After all, your stamina is the weakest among us."
(This isn't something the author made up. In the original story, Ryota Kise is famous for having the smallest stamina bar. He uses the most power-ups but has the least stamina.)
Kise scratched his head awkwardly.
"Midorima really knows how to hurt someone with words."
Midorima didn't say anything else and turned around, preparing to receive the ball.
From this moment on, Midorima would truly begin to exert his full strength.
Kise shook his head helplessly and followed him to defend.
The game resumed.
After learning that the previous tactic had been abandoned, Takao immediately passed the ball to Midorima.
Midorima caught the ball at half court.
Facing Kise's defense, he made no extra moves at all.
He simply jumped straight up and pulled up for a shot.
Kise immediately jumped to contest.
But...
He couldn't reach it.
Kise could only watch as the ball dropped through the hoop.
"Seriously… Midorima has gotten so much stronger. It's one thing that he's jumping higher now, but even his release point is higher."
Kise shook his head helplessly and prepared for the next offensive possession.
In the following possessions, Kise stopped playing isolation.
Instead, he started coordinating with his teammates.
Surprisingly, their teamwork worked very well, and they scored several baskets in a row.
But their defense was far from ideal.
Because Midorima's shooting was simply outrageous.
Kise tried every method he could think of, but he still couldn't stop Midorima.
The first quarter ended with Midorima sinking one last shot.
Score: 32–22.
...