Chapter Sixty: A Resounding Victory

The second quarter began, and the serve belonged to Lingnan High School.

Luo Zhan carried the ball past the half-court and reached the three-point line. While the players from Qingshui No. 1 High were still finding their rhythm, he took the initiative and launched a three-pointer. Unexpectedly, the basketball traced a beautiful arc and landed cleanly in the net.

Yet the players from Qingshui No. 1 High seemed unconcerned.

They quickly inbounded the ball, with Lin Nan dribbling past half-court and handing it off to Zhao Zhongshi. As the Gorilla Coach had predicted, Lingnan High sent Yao Kejin out from the paint to defend him.

Zhao Zhongshi’s expression was calm, his rhythm unchanged. He drove in for a layup, but found the opening mid-break and hooked the ball toward the basket.

Yao Kejin stuck closely to him, carefully watching his movements. At the exact moment Zhao Zhongshi released the ball, Yao Kejin leaped—yet he was just shy of the height needed. The basketball floated past his fingertips, banked off the glass, and dropped in.

Yao Kejin was visibly frustrated, but he’d done everything he could.

Now it was Lingnan High’s turn to attack. Luo Zhan once again chose a three-pointer, perhaps hoping to catch up quickly on points. This time, his touch—or luck—wasn’t as sharp as before; the ball bounced out to the perimeter, where Lin Nan snatched it.

Lin Nan brought the ball up, but this time he didn’t pass to Zhao Zhongshi, having noticed Lingnan’s center, Lu Xiang, had come out to defend. Seeing this, Zhao Zhongshi smartly positioned himself where he could launch at any moment, forcing Lingnan’s defense to stay wary even without the ball.

Lin Nan dribbled twice, then drove toward the basket. Immediately, two defenders closed in on him. Lin Nan, thinking ahead, passed the ball to Jiu Wu in the paint. Jiu Wu took two strides, powered into the lane, and banked the shot in.

This game found Lin Nan acting more as a point guard than a shooting guard. With his reputation already established, he no longer needed to pad his stats just to maintain his ranking.

Currently, he ranked second, but there was still a significant gap between him and Wang Shiying, the top scorer. It was clear Wang Shiying was the absolute core of his team, scoring at least thirty points every game, with several games reaching fifty.

Now, with Zhao Zhongshi joining the team and bringing such a strong scoring ability, Lin Nan was willing to play a supporting role and offer more opportunities to others.

Up to this point, Lin Nan hadn’t scored a single point.

He continued to pass, always finding whoever was open. Zhu Bo and Luo Si ran actively, making two or three shots each. Seeing their shooting percentage was less than ideal, Lin Nan finally took the ball himself, executed a steady jump shot, and scored, regaining control of the game’s rhythm.

Lingnan High was already showing signs of exhaustion, just as they had when facing Qingshui No. 1 High for the first time.

With their tallest perimeter player, Lu Xiang, out defending, Jiu Wu’s dominance in the paint grew stronger. Lu Xiang’s somewhat clumsy movements weren’t ideal for containing the agile Zhao Zhongshi, and at the slightest lapse, Zhao Zhongshi would execute a miraculous hook shot, banking it in.

Lin Nan and his teammates made sure to assign defenders to cover Lingnan’s threats, leaving nothing to chance.

With Lin Nan, Jiu Wu, and Zhao Zhongshi all firing on all cylinders, Lingnan High simply couldn’t contain everyone. They were forced to scramble across the court, draining their stamina.

Lin Nan and his teammates played unselfishly, leaving Lingnan High with no room for a counterattack.

Thus, Li Changlin didn’t bother deploying any targeted tactics for his players. There were too many scoring threats on the opposing side; he didn’t know how to use his available players to completely neutralize Qingshui No. 1 High.

All he could do was encourage them and let them perform as best they could.

After all, basketball is a game of scoring. If all five players are just average and there’s no reliable scoring threat, it’s impossible to devise targeted strategies for the team.

Whether it’s a single core or a dual core, that core must possess scoring abilities beyond those of the typical player.

Like Lin Nan, outstanding in every aspect, and Zhao Zhongshi with his incredible hook shot.

Compared to Lingnan’s flustered reaction, the leading Qingshui No. 1 High played with ease.

They even let each substitute take turns on the court to experience the thrill of playing.

Even so, the outcome was a resounding victory for Qingshui No. 1 High.

When Lu Ming announced through the microphone, “Let’s congratulate Qingshui No. 1 High on their victory today,” the players and coaches were all elated. After more than a month of extra training, they finally avenged their previous defeat.

Lin Nan was all smiles, relieved to no longer taste the bitterness of defeat—a feeling he truly disliked.

Zhao Zhongshi’s expression remained calm, but the faint curve of his lips betrayed his inner joy.

As the Qingshui No. 1 High team left the venue, the staff were well prepared this time. A reporter and a photographer immediately approached Lin Nan.

“After today’s win, how do you feel?”

Faced with the reporter’s question, Lin Nan was still a bit unaccustomed to such an environment.

But seeing Wang Jinsong and the others joking nearby, his nervousness vanished instantly.

“I feel really happy, because last time we played Lingnan High we lost, and today we finally got our revenge,” Lin Nan answered with a smile.

The reporter, a young lady, blushed as she looked at the confident boy before her—sunny, clean-cut, and standing at 178 centimeters.

Yet professionalism forced her to suppress the flush and ask again:

“Why didn’t you go all out scoring today like in previous games, but instead passed the ball more to your teammates?”

Lin Nan replied without hesitation, “Basketball is always a team sport. In the earlier games, my teammates might not have adapted to the competition yet, so I got more opportunities. Now everyone has grown, so we give chances to whoever has the hot hand.”

After Lin Nan finished, the reporter was about to ask more questions, but he cut her off.

“We need to hurry back to school for training, so goodbye, miss.”

With those words, Lin Nan returned to his team and left the arena, boarding the bus.

He left behind the infatuated reporter and the rare female viewers glued to their TVs.

“Oh my god, Lin Nan looks so handsome up close! So manly, and his voice is amazing!” came the swooning exclamation from a starstruck girl watching from her television.

...

On the bus, Wang Jinsong teased, “Lin Nan, you handled yourself pretty well just now.”

Lin Nan laughed, “I call it a natural aura of leadership.”

In the past, Wang Jinsong’s banter would have been, “Come off it, you think you’re…” But now, with Lin Nan as their outstanding teammate, he swallowed his retort.

Just as Wang Jinsong was pondering his reply, the Gorilla Coach, eyes on his phone, spoke up:

“All eight games are finished, the second round is over. Lingnan City’s top two—Qingshui No. 1 High and Lingnan High—advance to the next round.”

Cheers erupted inside the bus.

Then the Gorilla Coach continued, “The rules for the third round are out. It’s back to the brutal BO1 format from the first round.”

“One game decides everything—the loser is eliminated.”

In an instant, everyone’s expressions changed.

Lin Nan radiated confidence, Zhao Zhongshi was unreadable, while Jiu Wu, Luo Si, and Zhu Bo all looked more serious.

Wang Jinsong asked, puzzled, “Shouldn’t the games get longer as the tournament goes on?”

Everyone shared the same confusion.

The Gorilla Coach smiled, “Normally, yes, but the country is vast and the population huge.”

“Think about it—there are thirty-four provinces and several municipalities, with each province having at least seven or eight cities.”

“Now, the top two teams from each city have advanced, and next come the inter-city games.”

“Because of the distances and time involved, it’s impossible to have a round-robin format. The travel is too far, and everyone’s still high school students, so they chose the more ruthless BO1 format.”

The team quickly understood.

Indeed, for weekend basketball games, traveling to other cities and back was tiring. Once in a while was bearable, but doing it every week would be impossible.

The Gorilla Coach continued, “But this round’s BO1 has a new official twist—the home and away games will be decided by drawing lots.”

“If you’re away, you’ll go to the opponent’s city. If you’re home, you play in your own city—where your local fans can cheer you on!”

The word “fans” drew everyone’s gaze directly to Lin Nan. Their eyes brimmed with envy, as if to say: Seems like this guy already has quite a few fans!

The Gorilla Coach finished, “And we won’t just play teams from other cities in Jiangnan Province. We could face any high school from provinces and cities across South China.”

“With this brutal BO1 format, we’ll quickly determine the final winners from East, South, West, and North China—who will advance to the national semifinals!”

The Gorilla Coach’s voice grew louder, his tone more impassioned.

But in the ears of the basketball team, only four words echoed: National Semifinals!

...

Back at school, as soon as they got off the bus, the team saw Principal Zheng Zemin waiting for them at the gate.

It was already late December, the cold wind was blowing, and under the streetlight stood the elderly principal—a sight that moved everyone deeply.

Zheng Zemin had loved basketball for many years; his habit of playing every day at the sports plaza during summer made that clear.

Truthfully, it wasn’t until this year that Zheng Zemin once again felt the thrill of watching games after so long.

He was genuinely grateful to Shishuo Net for organizing this basketball league, letting older generations who loved basketball watch their country’s youth battle on the court.

That vitality, that spirit of perseverance and refusal to give up—they saw it shining in these high school players!