boyutpedia Chapter 160 Basketball Tournament (Part 2)
Chapter 160 Basketball Tournament (Part 2)
By 3 PM the following day, the Dawn City Multifunctional Gymnasium was packed. This gymnasium, with a maximum capacity of 2 spectators, could host various events. Simultaneously, broadcast trucks and large screens in various areas were broadcasting the highly anticipated match live. Key leaders from various departments of Dawn City, along with a large number of residents, came to watch. Yun Lan and the special forces members also came to cheer on Li Chenglong and his team. However, even more soldiers came to watch their commander's match.
Suddenly, the lights in the stadium dimmed, and Chu Kexin and Jiang Hui, dressed in formal attire, walked to the center of the stadium. The spotlights were all on them. Chu Kexin spoke first: "Welcome, leaders and residents of Dawn City, ladies and gentlemen, to this highly anticipated match. The opening ceremony will now begin." Then, Jiang Hui and Chu Kexin took turns providing commentary:
"First up is Wang Bing, wearing jersey number 1 for the Raptors. He's a level 6 speed-type ability user, a member of the Dawn City People's Congress, the captain of the Young Pioneers, and a teacher at the Dawn City Ability School. He's the starting point guard for the Raptors. Then the spotlight shines on the player tunnel, and Wang Bing jogs out of it. Cheers immediately erupt from the crowd, with many members of the Young Pioneers and the school coming to cheer him on."
Chu Kexin continued, "Next up is Comrade Zhao Rui, the starting shooting guard for the Raptors. He's a level 6 strength-type ability user and also the deputy commander of the Fourth Regiment of the Dawn Army. He's wearing jersey number 3 today. Then there's Dong Meng from the Special Forces, a level 5 strength-type ability user. He's the starting power forward for the Raptors, and he's wearing jersey number 10 today. Next up is Jiang Cheng from the Special Forces, a level 5 wind-type ability user. He's the starting center for the Raptors, and he's wearing jersey number 11."
姜辉接着说：“接下来的三位都是替补队员，身穿5号球衣的5级力量系异能者蔺如意同志和身穿6号球衣的6级力量系异能者刘栋梁同志，他们都是在城安部工作。下一位队员是特战队的5级火系异能者江大力，本次比赛他身穿8号球衣。”
Chu Kexin raised her voice: "Next, we would like to solemnly invite the star player of the Raptors, the city lord of Dawn City, the highest leader of the Dawn Army, and also the starting small forward wearing jersey number 42 in today's game, Comrade Li Chenglong!" The scene was immediately filled with enthusiastic applause and deafening cheers. Then, Li Chenglong waved his right hand and walked out of the player tunnel to greet all the audience.
战狼队的介绍相对简单一些，每介绍一位队员现场也都是响起了热烈的掌声，毕竟他们都是各个战斗团的团长。他们12个人分别是7级风系水系异能者吴刚、6级力量系异能者钱光明、6级土系力量系异能者郑爱国、6级风系异能者孙有才、6级火系异能者郝大海、6级水系异能者赵刚、6级速度系异能者杨学麟、6级水系异能者万大海、6级金系异能者郑勇、6级土系异能者齐国安、6级力量系异能者刘建业、6级力量系异能者杨虎。
其实破晓军不算特战队的话，除了这些6级异能者以外，还有6级的速度水系双重异能者王有胜、6级速度型异能者董天放、6级速度型异能者马奇、6级水系异能者宋铁、6级力量系异能者朱前、6级水系异能者梁鸿、6级木系异能者李念、7级冰系异能者魏兰心等人，这些异能者就是破晓军的各个战斗团的中坚力量。
Erica had previously told Li Chenglong that level 6 was a critical hurdle for superhumans; once they broke through level 6, their combat power would increase significantly, but advancing from level 6 to level 7 was extremely difficult. The next biggest hurdle for superhumans was level 9. According to Erica, 80% of the superhumans on their planet Meral were stuck at level 9.
After all the team members arrived, Jiang Hui and Chu Kexin said into the microphone in unison, "Please all stand up, face the Chinese national flag, and sing the Chinese national anthem." After the Chinese national anthem was sung, the two said in unison, "Please sing the Dawn City anthem." After the song ended and everyone was seated, the two teams began warming up on the sidelines. Li Chenglong and Wu Gang each gathered their teams together and discussed tactics.
Three professional referees were also stretching on the sidelines, ready for action. Five minutes later, with the sound of a whistle, the starting lineups of the two teams stood on opposite sides, exchanged friendly handshakes, and then took their places. Jiang Cheng and Liu Jianye stood in the center, ready for the jump ball. At the start of the jump ball, Jiang Cheng was no match for Liu Jianye in terms of either level or type of ability, and given Liu Jianye's height of 205 centimeters, Liu Jianye naturally won the ball.
Liu Jianye immediately passed the ball to Zheng Aiguo, who then accelerated up the court. Liu Jianye set a screen, and Zheng Aiguo used the screen to pull up for a mid-range jumper, which swished through the net, giving the Wolf Warriors a 2-point lead. Wang Bing dribbled up the court but was met with tight defense from Zheng Aiguo. During his advance, Zheng Aiguo stole the ball, immediately launching a fast break and finishing with a powerful two-handed dunk, putting the Wolf Warriors up 4-0 against the Raptors.
This time, Li Chenglong came on to receive the ball. He quickly advanced the ball to the frontcourt and passed it to Jiang Cheng, who was calling for the ball inside. Jiang Cheng tried to back down Liu Jianye twice but couldn't get past him, so he had to pass to Zhao Rui in the corner. Zhao Rui took a three-point jump shot, but missed. Liu Jianye grabbed the rebound and immediately passed it to Wu Gang, who had rushed forward. Wu Gang easily made a layup, scoring two more points.
Wang Bing advanced past half-court, Jiang Cheng set a screen and then fast-break, Wang Bing instantly passed to the sprinting Jiang Cheng, who easily dunked, finally scoring for the Raptors. However, before they could even get into position, Zheng Aiguo quickly advanced and passed to Zhao Gang at the 45-degree angle. Zhao Rui immediately rushed over to help defend, but bumped into Zhao Gang's cylinder. Zhao Gang fell to the ground, and the ball swished through the net. The referee's whistle blew simultaneously, giving Zhao Gang a 3+1 opportunity, which he calmly converted. The Wolf Warriors are now leading 10-2.
Li Chenglong quickly inbounded the ball, and Wang Bing dribbled up the court before passing it directly to Dong Meng at the left 45-degree angle. Dong Meng calmly sank a three-pointer. However, Hao Dahai, who was matched up against Dong Meng, was equally formidable, forcefully scoring despite Dong Meng's defense, adding another two points. Li Chenglong dribbled up the court, and Wang Bing broke through, then passed to Zhao Rui in the corner. Zhao Rui attempted a three-pointer, but missed again. Seeing Zhao Rui's frustration, Li Chenglong immediately said, "It's okay, this is just the beginning, take it slow."
With six minutes remaining, a timeout was called, and Li Chenglong and his teammates quickly sat down to rest. The score at that point was Raptors 10-23 Wolf Warriors. Zhao Rui had already missed all four of his three-point attempts in the first half of the quarter and committed two turnovers, a truly poor performance. During the timeout, Li Chenglong didn't substitute Zhao Rui. Instead, he had Liu Dongliang, a strength-based ability user, replace Wang Bing to increase physicality, and Lin Ruyi replaced Dong Meng. Li Chenglong then moved to power forward, Lin Ruyi to shooting guard, and Zhao Rui to small forward.
The substitutions did have some effect, significantly improving the Raptors' ability to maintain their full-court press. Li Chenglong, playing power forward, had a significant advantage against Hao Dahai. In the latter part of the first quarter, Li Chenglong frequently hit difficult mid-range shots and hook shots, completely dominating Hao Dahai. At the end of the first quarter, the score was 30-35, with the Raptors trailing by 5 points.
The second quarter began with the rotation period. Since Li Chenglong's Raptors only had eight players, some would inevitably have to play for extended periods, and Li Chenglong had already decided to play the entire game. Wu Gang, on the other hand, had moved to a 12-man rotation, aiming to give everyone playing time and utilizing fouls and their own energy to wear down Li Chenglong's players. Meanwhile, the score remained close, and at halftime, the Raptors trailed 64-75, a deficit of 11 points.
Li Chenglong scored 25 of the 60 points, while Wu Gang scored 22. During halftime, Yun Lan and Li Xue came to the locker room to encourage Li Chenglong and his team.
After the start of the second half, both team captains made adjustments to their starting lineups. Liu Dongliang replaced Wang Bing as the starting point guard, while Wu Gang substituted Hao Dahai with Qian Guangming, a 190cm tall level 6 strength-type ability user. Although Qian Guangming's shooting ability was much worse than Hao Dahai's, his physical strength at the power forward position was much stronger.
During halftime, the publicity department's art troupe sent out cheerleaders to perform a dance, drawing cheers from the audience. With the referee's whistle, the game officially began. After Jiang Cheng passed the ball to Liu Dongliang, he began setting screens for Liu Dongliang, allowing him to smoothly advance past half-court. Then, Li Chenglong rounded the screen to receive the ball and, using Dong Meng's second screen, passed it to Jiang Cheng, who had already cut to the basket. Jiang Cheng easily dunked the ball for a score.
On the defensive end, they double-teamed Zheng Aiguo, the ball handler, making it difficult for him to pass the ball and preventing Wu Gang from getting it. For Zhao Gang and Qian Guangming, they allowed them to shoot, but whenever Wu Gang got the ball, Dong Meng would come to help defend. This tactic worked well at the start, with Zhao Gang, Wu Gang, and Zheng Aiguo frequently missing shots. Li Chenglong, on the other hand, used high-quality screens and pick-and-rolls to score repeatedly. By the official timeout in the third quarter, the score was 88-90.
At this critical moment, Li Chenglong made a decisive move, replacing Liu Dongliang with the energetic Wang Bing, and then replacing Zhao Rui with Lin Ruyi and Jiang Dali with Jiang Cheng. Bringing on Wang Bing was to change tactics and increase the team's offensive power, while replacing Zhao Rui and Jiang Cheng was to allow them to recover their stamina and prepare for the fourth quarter. At the same time, Li Chenglong and Dong Meng changed their positions, with Dong Meng playing the third quarter and Li Chenglong playing the fourth.
While playing the power forward position (3) gives me some advantage against Wu Gang, it's nowhere near as significant as playing the power forward position (4). At 4, I completely dominate whoever I face, unless Wu Gang's team double-teams me, but even then, my team has the sharpshooter Dong Meng on the outside.
After the break, Wu Gang indeed changed the tactics. He unexpectedly took over the point guard position, Zheng Aiguo moved to the shooting guard position, and the inside lineup consisted of two of the tallest strength-type ability users forming a twin-tower formation. The small forward position was filled by the fastest player, Yang Xuelin. This backcourt lineup of Wu Gang and Zheng Aiguo significantly improved in terms of speed of movement, ball handling, and defense.
On the Raptors' side, Wang Bing, a level 6 speed-type ability user, could keep up with Wu Gang, but Lin Ruyi, being a lower level and a single-attribute ability user, struggled to defend Zheng Aiguo. Wu Gang and Zheng Aiguo repeatedly scored through teamwork. Meanwhile, Li Chenglong also put immense pressure on the Wolf Warriors' interior defense, composed of two strength-type ability users. He exploited their slow speed, constantly attacking the paint to score or draw fouls, or driving and dishing to Dong Meng, the high-scoring artilleryman, on the outside.
The score remained close, with the Raptors taking the lead for the first time at the end of the third quarter, with the score at 108-105.
The fourth quarter remained intense. Three players on Wu Gang's team had fouled out, while Jiang Dali on Li Chenglong's team had also fouled out with six fouls, and Wang Bing and Liu Dongliang both had five. The high foul count for these two point guards was mainly due to Wu Gang's presence at point guard in the second half; they simply couldn't match up against him, sometimes having to resort to fouls to stop him from scoring. However, the more fouls you accumulate, the more careful you need to be with your movements later, as the opposing team will definitely exploit this weakness and launch a relentless attack on your position.
With five minutes remaining in the game, the referee suddenly blew his whistle, indicating that Liu Dongliang had committed a foul by pulling an opponent. Liu Dongliang fouled out, giving Wu Gang two free throws. Wu Gang calmly made the free throws, tying the score at 135. Li Chenglong signaled a substitution, and Wang Bing entered the game. The Raptors' final lineup now consisted of Wang Bing (5 fouls), Zhao Rui (4 fouls), Li Chenglong (3 fouls), Dong Meng (4 fouls), and Jiang Cheng (4 fouls). Meanwhile, Wu Gang's team had more players available, so the starters didn't have much foul trouble.