Slam Dunk: Muguro

Chapter 404 30+ points triple-double in the first half
Under the disapproving gazes of his teammates, Taketori Taro shrugged, as if to say, "It's not my fault, it's your own fault for not seizing the opportunity."

The teammates dared not speak out in anger, and could only suppress their resentment and turn back to defend.

He didn't want to sit on the sidelines or be forced to transfer schools.

A year ago, the former captain of Jinbo University Affiliated School was forced to transfer schools because he said something bad about Taketori Taro.

His exact words: I thought he was here to assist me!

Soon, Kogure arrived at the front.

This time, instead of standing still and waiting for an opportunity as usual, he used his positioning skills.

Taketori Taro was caught off guard, and by the time he reacted, Kogure had already gained a two-body-length advantage.

Kogure's positioning skills amazed both the audience and his opponents.

It would be hard to find a second one in the entire high school league; even Mitsui is still somewhat lacking.

Kogure's positioning skills are not only reflected in his speed, but also in his grasp of rhythm and keen insight into the situation on the field, always appearing in the most suitable position.

In addition, let's not forget his athleticism, which is enough to give his positioning skills a significant advantage.

When Kogure had an opportunity, Miyagi immediately passed the ball.

Beyond the three-point line, Kogure made no adjustments and shot immediately after receiving the ball.

He leaped up, flicked his wrist slightly, and completed the entire movement in one smooth motion.

shuh~
The basketball traced a near-perfect parabola through the air before finally piercing the net, the white net swirling wildly.

Hua Hua Hua~
At that moment, the audience erupted in enthusiastic applause and cheers, thrilled by Kogure's brilliant performance.

Kogure smiled slightly, as if all of this was perfectly natural to him.

This is just a warm-up!
On the Shohoku bench, Coach Anzai wore a satisfied smile.

He knew very well how lucky the team was to have such an outstanding player.

Coach Anzai is a seasoned and shrewd man; how could he not see how capable Kogure truly is?

Even if Kogure leads a reserve team, they still have a chance to defeat top teams including Sannoh Kogyo and Hakata.

It's worth noting that in the Winter Tournament two years ago, Kogure's roster wasn't necessarily stronger than the current one.

The difference is that Kogure is much stronger now than he was back then.

Offense and defense reversed!

In this round, Taketori Taro seemed to have learned from his previous mistakes.

He no longer faced Kogure's defense head-on as before, but tried to get rid of Kogure's defense by using his teammates' screens.

His teammates began to create space for him in a tacit way, slowing down Kogure's pace.

However, Kogure seemed to be fully aware of Taketori Taro's intentions.

Relying on his superb positioning skills, no matter how Taketori Taro changed directions, he was unable to shake off Kogure's pursuit.

At this moment, the audience watched intently as the two star players engaged in a thrilling duel.

Kogure deliberately slowed down, giving Taketori Taro a moment to breathe.

Just as Jinbo was about to pass the ball, Kogure suddenly and quickly moved to the side, his outstretched right hand swiftly cutting off the passing lane.

slap~
With his exceptional reflexes, Kogure quickly made the steal.

The audience erupted in gasps of amazement, astonished by Kogure's reaction speed and defensive skills.

It was at this moment that Sakuragi rushed towards the frontcourt at top speed.

Fast break!

Kogure quickly charged forward with the ball, but Taketori Taro desperately tried to intercept him.

When Taketori Taro approached Kogure, he was shocked to find that the basketball in Kogure's hand was gone.

Bang~
Suddenly, a loud banging sound came from behind.

Taketori Taro turned around and saw Sakuragi hanging from the basket with one hand.

"Captain, that was a beautiful pass!"

Sakuragi landed on the ground and gave Kogure a thumbs-up from a distance.

Kogure remained noncommittal; this was simply his usual practice.

When it was Jinbo Dai's turn to attack, Kogure kept a close eye on Taketori Taro.

Taro Taketori's positioning skills are not good, which may be related to the fact that he rarely makes positioning moves.

"You haven't scored yet. Keep it up, I believe you'll score soon!"

While pursuing him, Kogure verbally provoked him.

Taro Taketori, feeling flustered, once again asked for the ball.

Unfortunately, even with all his efforts, he was still unable to break through Kogure's defense.

Instead, under Kogure's forceful pressure, he almost made another mistake.

With little time left to attack, Taketori Taro had no choice but to pass the ball to Taro again.

Another scapegoat has emerged, but he still has to keep an eye on the defensive shots.

Most high school students lack the ability to resist interference, and once they encounter defense when shooting, they often miss the shot.

bang~
Sure enough, the ball bounced off the rim.

Sakuragi chose to reciprocate by helping Kogure block for position, thus becoming a glorious blocking striker.

Kogure swiftly extended his arm and snatched the rebound.

Rebound +1!

Taketori Taro stood there, shaking his head helplessly.

He had to admit that Kogure's reputation was well-deserved; his defense was simply too strong, and breaking through such a defense would be extremely difficult.
This time, Jinbo University Affiliated High School quickly got back on defense; they didn't even have to fight for the offensive rebound.

"Sakuragi, you don't need to protect the rebounds. As soon as there's a fast break opportunity, rush to the frontcourt as fast as you can, understand?"

Kogure began to give Sakuragi pointers, saying that with Sakuragi's speed, only the point guard in the entire Jinbo University academy could keep up with him.

However, Jinbo also had to keep a close eye on Miyagi at all times.

"I understand!" Sakuragi wasn't afraid of being stupid; he understood that this was an opportunity Kogure was giving him.

If he can capitalize on a few fast break opportunities, his score will soon reach double digits.

The game continued, and it was clear to everyone that Shohoku was completely dominating Jinbo Dai Affiliated High School.

This can be seen from the score.

Jinbo Daisuke finally scored, but Taketori Taro still couldn't find the net.

Under Kogure's defense, Taketori Taro was either intercepted or blocked, and even threw up an airball.

In just ten minutes, Taketori Taro accumulated five mistakes and failed to score a single point.

Kogure could always easily predict Taketori Taro's every intention, causing Taketori Taro to return empty-handed.

Taro Taketori only managed 2 assists and 2 rebounds, but committed as many as 5 turnovers.

Both assists were from the "passing the buck" play. Although the "passing the buck" play's shooting percentage wasn't as high as usual, he still managed to make a shot sometimes.

Both rebounds were defensive rebounds, which I grabbed while my teammates were boxing out for them.

In contrast, Kogure scored in double digits in both points and assists, and even accumulated 8 rebounds.

This is mainly thanks to Sakuragi and Miyagi, who are always able to seize the opportunity for fast breaks.

Regardless of whether Shinbo Dai-san makes a shot or not, they will rush to the frontcourt immediately.

This is also why Kogure nearly got a triple-double in ten minutes!

With Kogure exerting his strength on both offense and defense, Taketori Taro was almost driven crazy.

What grudge could there be that warrants this?

What he didn't know was that Kogure hadn't gone all out yet.

For Kogure, this was merely a warm-up.

Beep~
The coach of Jinbo University called another timeout, and both teams began to leave the field.

When the timeout ended, Jinbo Dai's supporting lineup changed, further increasing their mobility and preventing Shohoku from easily launching fast breaks again.

Seeing this, Kogure began to increase the frequency of his singles matches.

In Shohoku's lineup, every player, including Sakuragi, has a mid-to-long-range shot.

Therefore, Shohoku's tactics still mainly consist of one star and four shooters.

In the one-star, four-radius system, Kogure was in his element and played with great ease.

Jinbo Daisuke was in a real bind; Taketori Taro was no match for Kogure at all.

Once they double-team or provide support, Kogure is always able to pass the ball out immediately.

No solution!

Jinbo Dai Affiliated High School was completely unable to contain Shohoku's offensive.

On the defensive end, Jinbo Dai Affiliated also struggled, committing a high number of turnovers.

When the first half ended, the Jinbo University affiliated players breathed a slight sigh of relief and then dragged their tired steps back to the bench.

On the other side, the Shohoku team looked relaxed.

In the first half, Shohoku team had a huge lead of 38 points.

This was achieved even with Shohoku fielding their reserve lineup.

If they field their strongest lineup, the point difference will be absolutely staggering.

Kogure's performance speaks for itself; he achieved a triple-double, and a 30+ point triple-double at that.

In addition, he had 6 steals and 3 blocks, most of which came from Taro Taketori.

If Kogure had stayed on the court in the second half, he would have put up some pretty crazy numbers.

Unfortunately, it's already garbage time.

Coach Anzai couldn't help but ask, "Kogure, will you be playing in the second half?"

He was testing Kogure, because it's hard for a normal person to resist the temptation of 'big data'.

If Kogure continues to play in the second half, his stats will definitely be phenomenal.

"No need, I never grind for points during downtime!"

Kogure remained expressionless, even letting out a lazy yawn, seemingly indifferent to the readily available massive data.

For him, this was just a low-intensity match, nothing more.

In short, he didn't like it!
He prefers to pad his stats against top teams because that's where the real value comes from.

There's no way he's a supercar owner; he wouldn't stoop so low as to become a taxi driver.

He didn't look down on taxis; he simply looked down on taxis that had changed hands three or four times.

Coach Anzai was very satisfied with Kogure's answer.

When the second half began, Kogure discovered that Dai Jinbo had substituted most of his main players off the field, with only Taro Taketori remaining.

It wasn't that the coach, Dai Jinbo, didn't want Taro Taketori to rest; rather, it was the result of Taro Taketori's strong insistence.

Therefore, the coach of Jinbo University had no choice but to agree.

In the second half, without Kogure's defense, Taketori Taro was like a tiger descending from the mountain, with his scoring, assists, and rebounds all skyrocketing.

Even so, it couldn't change the fact that Jinbo Dai Affiliated High School was completely outmatched by Shohoku's reserve team.

In the end, Shohoku defeated Jinbo University Affiliated High School by a large margin and successfully advanced to the national top eight.

In the post-match interview, Kogure directly attributed the victory to his teammates and coach.

Soon after, Aida Yayoi went to interview the Jinbo University Affiliated Hospital.

Her main target was Taketori Taro, and she asked him for his opinion on losing the match.

"The team lost, but I didn't! Check my stats if you don't believe me!"

Taro Taketori left behind these words, then turned and left with an air of nonchalance, as if this defeat was no big deal to him.

(End of this chapter)