Seiho counterattacked and scored again.
Their basketball was very simple.
Just using excellent overall defense to force opponent turnovers, and scoring on the counterattack during the transition from the opponent's mistake.
No eye-catching scenes.
But precisely this kind of ordinary yet stable scoring was what every team wanted to possess.
You can't expect players to make those "fairy goals" (miracle shots) every game, every possession.
Stable scoring, solid defense.
This is the most orthodox way to win in basketball.
Seiho in the first quarter didn't provide many memorable points.
They didn't even have a dunk performance.
But just like that, boiling the frog in warm water, they pulled open a 10-point gap.
24:14!
This was the score of the first quarter.
Seiho played to their regular scoring efficiency, but the opponent's average scoring efficiency was fully 8 points lower than usual.
"Kuroko, is he really Yuuto?" Taiga Kagami asked this question again.
Yuuto's stats in the first quarter weren't bad.
Although only 4 points and 2 assists on offense, he harvested 2 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks on defense.
This stat trend looked like it was heading for a 5x5.
Such a player couldn't be called bad in any era; on the contrary, very outstanding.
But it was far from what Kagami expected in his heart.
Yuuto completely lacked that intense talent impact Kise gave him.
The opponent looked just like Louis Koo's looks—"ordinary." (Note: Irony, Louis Koo is very handsome but famously described as 'ordinary looking' in a meme).
Others had similar questions.
If Yuuto was only at this level, Seirin didn't seem to need to worry so much?
"Captain... no, Yuuto's basketball style has always been like this. He is considered the other extreme of Aomine-kun—not known for flashiness, advocating victory-above-all utilitarian basketball."
"However, this is only relative to the Generation of Miracles. To most players, Yuuto's style is already flashy and attractive enough."
Hearing this, the others understood even less. "Then what is he doing now?"
"When determined that the victory is already in the bag, Yuuto won't waste precious stamina."
"In other words, he assumed Seiho won the game from the start?"
Riko Aida bit her finger, having no idea where Yuuto's confidence came from.
But such an opponent was scary because he was truly controlling the game.
Very likely, in the next round against Seiho, they wouldn't even know how they lost.
Seeing this, Kuroko revealed some intelligence about Yuuto to them.
"Yuuto has a unique ability, praised as being able to evolve infinitely on the court."
"Infinite evolution? For real?"
"Should be true. I saw someone mention it in a magazine before."
Several people focused their gazes on Kuroko.
"The term 'infinite evolution' might not be accurate enough, but it's close." Kuroko organized his language before speaking. "Yuuto can constantly find his own weaknesses and then correct them."
"Weakness? Correction?" Taiga Kagami murmured these two words.
"Correct. Even if his defense is broken just once, he will quickly find the root cause and correct it in time."
"In other words, he won't make the same mistake twice?"
"It's not just that simple. His correction targets the current game and opponent. Once Yuuto's ability no longer activates..."
"It means he has completely controlled the game and doesn't need to correct himself anymore?"
Junpei Hyuga sucked in a breath of cold air.
Such ability, silent and soundless.
If not for hearing Kuroko say it personally, they wouldn't have known so many things were happening on the court.
Looking back at this game now.
Kuromori's main force, Laya Larmin—from the third minute of the first quarter, he couldn't break into the free-throw line to score a single two-pointer.
At first, they just thought Seiho's overall defense was too strong; after all, it was the team known as Tokyo's Strongest Wall.
Now it seemed the result wasn't just as simple as it appeared on the surface.
Yuuto spent only 3 minutes to completely seal Laya Larmin's efficiency.
His current state was exactly in the most suitable form to deal with Kuromori.
Thinking that Kuromori's people still didn't realize they were already in the abyss of despair, Seirin's people felt a chill in their hearts.
Second quarter continued.
Laya Larmin gradually realized it was hard to break through Seiho's flanks; the opponent's blockade of the flanks made him feel difficulty breathing.
He could only force a three-pointer against Tomoki Tsugawa, but Tsugawa gave sufficient interference, almost sticking his hand on the opponent's face.
With a CLANG, the basketball hit the rim and bounced off, protected by Tsutomu Iwamura.
Transition opportunity. Yuuto received a pass, and in the crowd, used a long-distance bounce pass to assist the cutting Ryuhei Kasuga for a layup.
This assist of his was simply the art of spatial deconstruction.
Still that pass that looked simple but was extremely difficult to execute in practice.
Kuromori's entire defense was declared broken with this pass.
Couldn't score on this end, couldn't defend on that end.
Kuromori's team gradually became impatient; after all, this wasn't an ordinary National Tournament game.
This was a derby in their eyes.
Seiho had always been the opponent they couldn't afford to lose to.
In the following game, Kuromori launched a fierce attack, Laya Larmin hoping to regain his dominance.
But a few minutes later, the local commentator recounted the humiliating experience of this mixed-blood player.
"5 attempted drives, 3 direct steals, 2 frontal blocks."
"Kuromori's Ace Laya Larmin was completely frozen by the Lion King!"
"Stunning defensive dominance! Yuuto and his Seiho have dominated the court!"
The game began to become one-sided.
This frog, Kuromori, was boiled cooked before half-time.
Yuuto didn't hold the ball much in this game.
He didn't even look like Seiho's Ace; there were more scenes of him on the defensive end than the offensive end.
But when the second quarter finished and they looked at the stats...
They discovered this genius from Okukozome, without making a sound, had already scored 16 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 blocks, and 6 steals in the half.
A half-time 5x5!
His game looked so ordinary, yet the stats were so earth-shattering.
...
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