The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 26 Confidence
The team arrived at the Kayzal Stadium ahead of schedule. This old sports building, built in 1924, shone with a pink glow in the afternoon sun.

This place holds the glorious history of San Francisco basketball. Bill Russell made his debut in 1953 wearing the University of San Francisco jersey at Keizaor Arena. After defeating his opponent, Russell was lifted up by the crowd to celebrate the victory like a hero.

Bill Russell scored 23 points and blocked 13 shots in the game, defeating the 10th ranked University of California and their supposedly best West Coast player, McKinnie. Before this, the University of San Francisco was virtually unknown in the country and had never even made it to the national championships.

That night, the 4000-seat Kezal Stadium was packed to capacity, possibly holding more than 5000 people.

Meanwhile, more than 1000 people lined up outside the stadium in the cold December Pacific winds, and hundreds climbed the walls of the stadium and the surrounding trees, trying to see the game inside through the large glass windows.

Many more people were stuck in traffic and didn't even have a chance to get close to the stadium.

From 1954 to 1956, Russell led the University of San Francisco to a 60-game winning streak and two NCAA championships, a quarter of which were won at Keizaor Arena.

Although the atmosphere at the Kayzal Stadium this afternoon wasn't as crazy as it was more than 20 years ago, the scene was still just as intense and left the Waterbell team players feeling weak in the knees and extremely nervous.

In Gan Guohui's words, "I felt like the whole Chinatown had come out to help." All 4000 seats were packed by 2:30 p.m., and even the aisles were full of people, all with yellow skin and black hair.

Students from both schools came to watch the game, wearing matching T-shirts to cheer for their respective schools.

The Lihua High School Tigers wore white jerseys with gold and black tiger stripes. They looked well-trained and were warming up in an orderly manner on the field.

The jerseys of Beiqiao Middle School are red with black trim. Red symbolizes the fiery sun and also represents time, while black represents water, which matches the team name, Water Clock.

Just before the match started, Bielman gathered the players together. He didn't have much to say to this ragtag team that had only trained together for a week.

He knew that the most important thing at this time was to relax, not be tense, and to give the players confidence. So, he changed his usual irritability and calmly told the players to play well and show their style.

"Defense, remember, you must defend well. With a strong defense, we have everything we need."

Berman repeatedly emphasized defense, knowing that as long as the others held the line and Gan Guoyang held off the attack, there was hope of victory.

But in his heart, he was cursing, thinking that the school was too hasty. Why did they have to play against Lihua Middle School after only a week of forming a team?
The school and foundation were indeed a bit anxious, mainly due to various considerations. The first reason was that Lihua Middle School had already issued a challenge to Beiqiao Middle School after learning that the school had formed a basketball team.

Leaders of the Straits Self-Reliance Foundation behind Lihua called Huang Shaohua more than once, asking him when the two teams would play against each other. Huang Shaohua tried to postpone it, but the other party said that Beiqiao Middle School was afraid of the match, which made him very annoyed.

Another reason is that it's August now, and the basketball and volleyball season for high schools and universities hasn't started yet, so venues are easier to rent.

Once October and later, when various sports leagues for high schools and universities begin, this venue will be impossible to rent.

Let's have a warm-up match right at the start of the semester, so both sides can test each other out and see who comes out on top.

Winning is great, but losing is just a lesson learned; it's not a big deal.

The game attracted so much attention and buzz that the entire Chinatown turned out and the stadium was packed.

The newspaper also sent reporters to the scene, armed with pens and cameras, ready to document this civil war among the Chinese.

The matchup was partly due to the hype surrounding the clash between two Chinese-American teams, and partly due to the curiosity surrounding Gan Guoyang's reputation.

Everyone wanted to know if this big guy, who quickly rose to fame on the streets, would still be as formidable in official matches.

The masses love to create gods, but they also love to see gods fall. Among the audience, there are those who expect Gan Guoyang to perform well, and naturally there are those who want to see him make a fool of himself.

All of this is immense pressure. For the new Water Bell team, having such a big match in their first game is not a good thing.

People can break down psychologically under immense pressure. If they suffer a crushing defeat in their first battle in front of so many people, it may take them a long time to recover from the psychological trauma.

Berman was very worried about this. The only thing that reassured him was that Gan Guoyang looked normal. When he walked onto the court, he even patted everyone on the butt.

"Cheer up, I'm here for you."

"Stay alert and keep an eye on things."

"Don't daydream, concentrate."

His words eased the players' tension, and Chen Xing's hands were trembling slightly when he came on the court.

Was Gan Guoyang not nervous at all?

Obviously not. He was also very nervous, as this was his first official game in his basketball career.

Being in front of so many spectators, including family, friends, and neighbors, is a completely different experience from a regular competition.

However, while the others were trembling with nervousness and their legs were weak, Gan Guoyang was unusually excited despite his nervousness.

As the match drew closer, the noise from the stadium grew louder, his heart pounded, and his blood surged.

The referee read out the rules of the game, the players from both sides shook hands, and the center forwards stood in the center circle for the jump ball.

The center of Lihua High School is a player who is just over 1 meters tall, half a head shorter than Gan Guoyang. Gan Guoyang recently measured his height and found that he has grown more than an inch since he first arrived in the United States, reaching 6 feet 9 inches (206).

The contest for the ball was a foregone conclusion; Gan Guoyang passed the ball to Chen Xing, and the match began.

The decibel level at the scene instantly increased by at least 30%, and Chen Xing made a mistake on his first shot.

The pass was intercepted by the opponent, who launched a two-pronged counterattack. The pass was combined with a layup, resulting in the first point of the game.

Gan Guoyang chased relentlessly but couldn't catch up with his opponent, and served from the baseline. "Don't panic, just play as we usually do. I'll screen and support you."

Gan Guoyang passed the ball to Chen Xing and comforted him, telling him not to panic or be nervous.

On the sidelines, Berman paced back and forth with his arms crossed; it was a bad start.

Chen Xing dribbled well, but his small stature made him lack physical strength.

If even dribbling and organizing an offense is difficult, how can this game be played?

Lihua Middle School knew that Gan Guoyang was the core of Beiqiao, so they immediately launched a pincer attack on him.

Chen Xing hesitated when passing the ball, almost making a mistake, and finally passed the ball to Da Xiong.

Big Bear dribbled around the edge of the three-second zone twice, unsure of what to do, and was then dispossessed by his opponent.

Lihua Middle School launched another counterattack, and Berman shouted from the sidelines, "Get back on defense, run, run! You sons of bitches!"

Seeing that he was dispossessed twice at the start of the game, Berman couldn't keep up the act and started cursing from the sidelines.

This time, the defensive retreat was timely, and Gan Guoyang immediately got to the basket.

The opponent's number 5 point guard slowed down, but seeing that Chen Xing's defensive positioning was unstable, he immediately accelerated and broke through from the middle.

Before Beiqiao could get a foothold, Gan Guoyang jumped to block the opponent's layup, but number 5 faked a move and made a smooth behind-the-back pass to the opponent who followed up, scoring two points easily.

The students of Lihua Middle School cheered and shouted the school slogan, "Lihua, Lihua, standing tall in China!"

"It's okay. Just remember to take the chance when you have the opportunity. Don't hesitate. I'm here for you."

Gan Guoyang comforted Da Xiong for a few words. Everyone was very nervous at the beginning of the game. The continuous mistakes and being scored on caused their morale to plummet instantly.

Lihua Middle School is well-trained. Their players are not tall, but they all have buzz cuts and uniform hairstyles, and the whole team works together very skillfully.

"Gan, attack! Take down one of the opponents!"

Berman was directing from the sidelines; the team needed a goal to stabilize morale.

However, in the subsequent attack, Gan Guoyang did not call for the ball in the low post, but instead came out to screen and support Chen Xing.

Finally, Xu Xun got the ball, accelerated to the basket, and attempted a layup while holding the ball, but the ball missed under the pressure of multiple defenders.

His speed and skill are both lacking; you can tell he's no good the moment he makes a move.

At this moment, Gan Guoyang jumped up, gently tapped the ball, and then tapped it again, grabbing the offensive rebound in front of two Lihua Middle School players.

After receiving the ball, he pretended to attack to attract the defense, and then passed the ball back to Chen Xing, who dribbled past him and made a floater.

The ball bounced twice on the rim and was about to fall out when Gan Guoyang somehow squeezed under the basket, jumped up, and gently tapped the ball into the hoop.

With a successful putback, Beiqiao Middle School scored its first point, and the students, who had been silent for a short while, cheered.

"With me here, everyone can shoot with confidence, but remember to retreat quickly!"

Gan Guoyang returned to the backcourt and passed on his confidence and encouragement to every teammate on the court.

When the opponent's number 5 point guard tried to use the same trick of breaking through and passing, Gan Guoyang did not fall for it again.

He blocked his breakthrough and passing routes. When the ball was passed to another person who tried to catch it and shoot, Gan Guoyang turned around, jumped and blocked his shot.

With just a touch of his fingertip, the ball lost its forward momentum and fell straight down, where it was controlled by Gan Guoyang.

This time, when he passed the ball to Chen Xing, Chen Xing's hand was no longer shaking. He smoothly crossed the half-court line and began to organize an attack.

The other members of Beiqiao began to act more decisively, because Gan Guoyang, the inside man, would provide them with a constant supply of ammunition.

About five minutes into the first half, the score had become 8-6, with Beiqiao Middle School leading by 2 points.

As Xu Xun's counter-attack broke through and drew a foul from the opponent, the ball went dead, and Lihua Middle School called a timeout.

Gan Guoyang and his teammates walked off the court together, their tense mood completely gone.

"4 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 blocks, you did it, Forrest Gump."

Bellman watched Gan Guoyang sitting calmly on the bench, but only he knew what this guy had done in the first five minutes of the game.

It's not just about these numbers.

"Well done, Gan." Behrman patted Gan Guoyang on the shoulder.

Gan Guoyang glanced at Bellman and said calmly, "The match hasn't even started yet, Bobby."

(End of this chapter)