Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog

Jilin City's basketball court was one of its most prized possessions. With this thought, the government spent a lot of money on its creation, and they even took the time to create two separate courts in one gymnasium.

Through this, the players from the North and South could play simultaneously during the basketball leagues. One court was larger than the other, and it was usually reserved for the 'bigger' games and the 'greater' teams.

"On the main court, we'll have the Yin Yang Knights vs. Chuntian Rams!"

The crowd erupted into cheers at the mention of the Knights. Most of the supporters whose schools weren't playing yet, decided to watch their game.

"And on the subsidiary court, we'll have the Shizi Dogs vs. the Daxue Dolphins!"

After the announcement, the players went to their respective courts, ready for the first games of the league.

As expected, most of the audience stayed in the main court to witness the Knights' game, so when the Shizi Dogs arrived at the subsidiary court and saw that it was nearly empty, they weren't surprised anymore.

Fortunately, some of the Dolphins' supporters came, and their cheerleading team enthusiastically took the front seats. So, the court wasn't entirely empty.

However, as Kun stared at their side of the bleachers, he let out a disappointed sigh.

"I wonder what that feels like," he said. Then, he glanced beside him to look at the current condition of their supporters.

There was a mysterious girl wearing an all-black outfit who seemed to want to be buried underneath the ground.

Then, there was Shang who was busy flirting with one of the cheerleaders from the Dolphins. It didn't seem like it was going well though.

A couple of first-year students who were probably excited to attend their very first game also attended, unaware of the Shizi Dogs' 'loser-like' reputation.

Meanwhile, Lina was on the side of the bench, and she felt Chuyi staring at her. Kai also noticed this and stepped in front of her, causing Daxue Dolphin's captain to shake his head in disappointment.

The strange old man was also by the bench, scrolling through his phone without a care about the world.

However, as the referee and the professional scorers arrived at their table, he quickly coaxed them over.

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"You have something to say, Coach P?" Chuyi asked.

"Well, you know," the old man said in a bored tone. "I'm saying this just to show face, but I'm sure you already know what I want to say."

"Just play the same as usual. You've beaten Shizi before. We don't have to worry about anything. If they're still the same as before, then we should only focus on Yuze. I heard from other schools that we should look out for Ding Zeren, but he's still a first-year, so he hasn't fully grown into his skills just yet."

"Shang's not playing this year while Kun's still not at his complete state even though he's already in his last year of playing. Jet's just there to fill in for the team, while that other guy just seems to have good basic skills."

"And that guy?" Chuyi asked, gesturing to the tall, long-haired guy who was currently talking with Lina.

"Have you heard anything about him?"

"Nothing significant on the court," Coach P smirked.

"I just heard he was a good-for-nothing kid who transferred to a lot of schools when he was in Junior Secondary School. Now, he's playing in Shizi High to cause trouble. It's probably the only school that accepted him, too—aside from Sunshine Arts, of course. But I heard he got kicked out of that one too."

"Got it," Chuyi asked.

"You already know what to do, Chuyi. Lead your team to victory," he said as final words.

Meanwhile, on Shizi High's bench, Lina looked at the players with a determined look.

"During the last Winter Cup, we were unfortunately eliminated after four games. We didn't get to fulfill our goals of making it into the semi-finals; however, I believe that this year would be different."

"We have trained hard for the last few weeks for this tournament. I can say that we have improved a lot, but we are still lacking in many ways. However, that doesn't mean we don't have the chance to beat our opponents."

"Especially these Dolphins," she muttered.

"We may not have a lot of people supporting us, but doesn't that take away some of the pressure?"

The players all nodded in determination. A small smile emerged from Kai's face as he observed Lina's determined expression.

"Now, let's show those Dolphins what we're made of!"

The team huddled together and placed their hands together, and then Lina led their chant.

"Shizi Dogs—let's go!"

The starting players lined up in front of their benches with determined looks, with Yuze looking the most serious.

The Dolphins appeared a bit more relaxed, probably from being in the top ten last Winter Cup. Nonetheless, Yuze was determined to wipe the relaxed looks on their faces.

As expected, the committee didn't even bother giving this particular game a commentator.

So, without any fancy introductions, the team made its way to the court.

The first five players of the Shizi Dogs were Yuze, Kun, Jet, Zeren, and Jinping.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins included Chuyi, Bolin, Runchu, Jade, and Shanlong.

Yuze took his position at the center, facing Jade, a player who was the same height as Kai. From the looks of it, Jade looked pretty intimidated by Yuze.

Coach P nodded to himself. He never expected Jade to be able to get the ball from Yuze anyway. The jump ball was something they just had to give away. At the end of the day, they aleady knew that Yuze's skills were one of the best in the South schools, even rivaling those at Feng Arts High.

Nonetheless, he made an unwise choice to join a team like Shizi.

"What a shame, really," Coach P muttered as he glanced at Yuze.

As the whistle sounded, Yuze jumped high into the air, giving it his all. However, Jade only did a half jump, signifying his loss for the particular jump. Yuze frowned in confusion, already feeling suspicious since the Dolphins seemed to not be taking the game seriously.

As Yuze passed to Kun, he felt even stranger when he saw three players guarding him—Jade, Shanlong, and Runchu.

Kun was perplexed, but he quickly made his way to their side of the court for an easy shot. However, it seemed like the Dolphins were anticipating their duo play as Chuyi jumped high in the air to block Kun's shot.

Kai's eyebrows raised in surprise. Chuyi, for someone with a trashy personality, actually seemed to be a decent player.

Nonetheless, Zeren saved the play by retrieving the ball and shooting it with ease.

Coach P's eyes narrowed in suspicion. It seemed like this first-year student was actually better than what other people had told him. Nonetheless, he trusted that Chuyi would be able to stop him before it got too late.

The other members turned to their coach as if asking if they would continue with their strategy of having three people guard Yuze.

Coach P nodded, so they had no choice but to comply.

The game continued, and their strategy seemed to be working against them. Zeren, Jinping, Jet, and Kun proved that they weren't dispensable players of the team and that they were worth guarding.

It was also a testament that their rigorous training regimen had paid off.

Kai also noticed this. Compared to their game with the Feng Foxes, where the players obviously struggled, it seemed like they were more at ease during today's game.

Nonetheless, it wasn't like the Shizi Dogs were doing exceptionally well against the Dolphins. In fact, their skill set seemed to be on equal grounds with each other. So, when one scored, the other also managed to score.

So, five minutes in, the two were at similar scores.

17-15, in favor of Shizi High.

Coach P stood from his seat when Jinping managed to land another lay-up, feeling a bit strange now that he saw how the current players of Shizi High played.

They didn't seem completely different. However, they were more cohesive than before. Their plays were executed well, and it seemed like Yuze was not the only player of their team anymore.

"What's happening?" Coach P muttered, wondering if he had made a mistake with the strategy he implemented.

But then again, he never made a mistake against a team like Shizi High!

Kun made a pass to Zeren, and the first-year student made it into the hoop once again.

19-15.

Kai nodded in acknowledgment. As much as he found Zeren annoying and childish, he also couldn't deny his improvement over the past week. Even Jinping had improved a lot in his ball-handling skills, which contributed a lot to their team dynamics.

"Coach," some of the players on the bench said to their coach, feeling worried about the four-point gap.

Chuyi, too, clicked his tongue as he found it hard to navigate the team with their current strategy.

So, having had enough, Coach P turned to the professional scorer's table and showed a 'T' sign.

"Time Out!"