Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 137 What kind of ball are we really going to play this time?

After receiving the offer of employment, Tsar Paul also felt bored in St. Petersburg.

He himself did not like to participate in those social activities. Although he would attend sometimes, he could not find his place in the balls and banquets. It would be better for him to train the army every day to make him happy both physically and mentally.

But he could not resist his two tall and strong sons-in-law, who invited their father-in-law to watch competitive sports.

"William, what are you going to do?"

"A new sport is finally taking shape. Your Majesty, you must go and see it. I have also invited my aunt."

"If this were an ordinary family, you would probably call me uncle. Is this a sport that you young people have researched before?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Frederick Ludwig added, "A five-on-five competition is good for cultivating team spirit. That's about it, Your Majesty."

Paul preferred William because of his kinship, but Frederick Ludwig was an honest man, and although his words were a little clumsy, what he said seemed more convincing.

"Then I will go tomorrow. You will all play in the game then, right?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, we will compete in the gymnasium. This weather is not suitable for outdoor competitions."

"Very good, very good, I will go tomorrow, you must behave well."

In St. Petersburg, they would have to wait until next year to return to their homes. Although a preliminary armistice agreement had been reached between France and Russia, it only stopped military operations and lifted the occupation of Württemberg and Baden. After all, these two countries were relatives of the Russian royal family.

If it comes to playing basketball, Solovyov actually carefully selects the players on both sides and uses a more accurate timing method, but the referees also need to be trained.

You need three referees, and they need to make fair calls.

As for Solovyov himself, he also needed to play in the game. Originally, he wanted to play as the shooting guard at the No. 2 position, but he did not expect to find so many tall and strong guys among the Guards officers.

"It seems unlikely that I just want to be a pitcher."

So he needed to practice his skills and review how basketball should be played, teaching everyone how to play, including all the rules.

In fact, it would be good if he could practice the "pick and roll" well. He happens to be on the same team with William, which is more conducive to the execution of this tactic.

The next day, Tsar Paul personally came to the new gymnasium of the Guards, and he was also accompanied by members of the royal family and many nobles from St. Petersburg, who also came here with their families.

According to the rules of the Rome Circuit, there should be four teams, namely red and white and blue and green. Four teams are the general configuration.

Now both sides chose their home and away jerseys, which is a Roman tradition, and William and Frederick Ludwig jumped the ball in midfield.

Solovyov was quite satisfied with having drawn the white jersey, while the opponent was now using the blue jersey.

It was obvious that William had the advantage during the jump ball. The members of the Württemberg family were all tall and strong. After he passed the ball to Solovyov, the game began.

According to convention, the referee was still Prince Peter, who had almost become a professional referee in St. Petersburg, especially when the event was big.

On the white team, Solovyov played point guard, while William was the center, and three officers from the 1st Battalion of the Putin Regiment came on the field. On the other side, the blue team included two brothers from Mecklenburg and three officers from the Guards Grenadiers. The substitutes for both teams were also officers from their respective units.

Obviously, the average height of the opponent is higher, which helps to expand the defensive area. Although the Guards are always selected soldiers, the Grenadiers of the Guards have the advantage in height. That is, William is the tallest one on the court, which can narrow the gap between the two sides.

The audience on the sidelines were cheering for the team they supported. This was the first time for Alexandra and Elena to attend an event after giving birth. After all, they were young and their bodies recovered quickly. Now they were cheering for their husbands separately, but they still sat together. After all, the two of them have always been close sisters.

When playing, Solovyov was quite careful and observed the positions of his players on the court. Faced with the defensive posture of these tall and strong guys, he had to call for William's cover, and then used his huge body to stop and divert a defender, and then made a layup after entering the penalty area.

However, after his layup slid around the rim, it slipped out of the rim, which caused unanimous sighs from the audience on the sidelines. The move looked beautiful, but he failed to succeed.

Then, the two Mecklenburg brothers protected the rebound. It was 1800, which was actually much earlier than the real invention of basketball in 1891. It was more perfect than Naismith’s invention. After all, this project was more perfect after its "premature birth", that is, the timing means were not so perfect.

However, the blue team's grenadiers were good at rebounding, but their shots were always off target.
Such boos made Solovyov want to laugh on the court. Although the two Mecklenburg brothers had no mistakes in their understanding of basketball, they chose tall and strong "big guys" who might not be able to shoot the damn ball on the court.

In the past few days, Solovyov also taught William how to defend under the basket. At least with his size, his shooting accuracy was not high to begin with, and it became even less accurate.

If you can't make the shot, you can't score, especially if you miss several shots in a row. I say, you people from Mecklenburg, why can't you think of a good solution?
The ball soon fell into William's hands. He saw Solovyov and Fyodor standing on both sides, and considering that Count Tolstoy ran faster, he threw the ball out.

After the ball fell into Fedor's hands, he dribbled quickly across the front court and scored a goal, which was the first score in basketball.

Later in the game, it was obvious that the white team had more methods, but the opponents were always tall and strong, and it would be troublesome if they did not launch a fast break and enter a positional battle.

When Solovyov controlled the ball and passed the frontcourt, he could feel that the opponent's defensive pressure was very heavy, as if they were wearing blue, and the team that dominated the basketball court appeared here.

He still wanted to call for a screen and make full use of the rules of the game, rushing into the penalty area to commit a foul. At least there was nothing wrong with Prince Peter being the referee, his calls were very accurate, and this kind of shooting foul was not a touch or a foul with your hands spread out, it was a normal use of the rules.

"Blue 5, blocking foul!"

Unfortunately, Solovyov's shot was too late and it was just an ordinary foul, so he failed to get the serve.

Of course he would not protest to Peter, that would be very ungentlemanly behavior.

He also pulled up the opposing player and expressed friendship to each other. In a simple and strong place like Russia, respecting the rules, respecting the opponent, and also respecting oneself.

There were also people on the sidelines explaining to the audience what kind of call this was.

But then Solovyov passed the ball to the inside, and William was fouled when he was making a layup, and this time he had to shoot a free throw. "Why didn't Mr. Major shoot there when he made a layup last time? Cousin William can do it this time?"

Ekaterina did have some doubts, and Maria nodded beside her.

"Your Highness, it's because Major Solovyov didn't complete his shot before committing a foul."

"That's right."

Then, William only made one of the two free throws.

After all, these people have just started to learn basketball, especially with the three-point line, and there are not many shooting trainings.

But William also has a way. He uses his height advantage to grab the rebound and then make a layup.

As for dunking, maybe it would be easier to do it when he asks his old father to help him lose 60 kilograms and he is younger.

Moreover, Solovyov had no idea about the quality of basketball rims in this era. Anyway, William was not in a hurry. When he asked for the ball in the paint, he just had to pass the ball to him.

He could just be a little lazy and pass the ball more often instead of scoring himself, which would be more conducive to winning the game.

However, both sides often missed shots. Solovyov himself often missed three of his four left-back shots. His playing posture was different from others and would attract attention.

Among the audience, there were many young girls waiting to get married. In addition to the two married princes, they were also more concerned about the unmarried young officers, especially the handsome Count Tolstoy. Although he was still young, he was very handsome and he scored the most points in the game today.

However, the young count was young and unruly, and he might not necessarily like these girls in Petersburg.

But it's also true that it helps him to be in the spotlight on the court.

However, the opponents will also find opportunities on the court, especially the Grenadiers, who are all tall and strong. After they occupy the advantage in the interior, they will try their best to commit fouls.

By the time William wanted to play, he had already accumulated many fouls and had to be substituted out to rest.

"What should we do, Misha? His Highness Wurtemberg is troubled by fouls. Why can't you set it so that he will be sent off after 6 or 10 fouls? The rule of 5 fouls is not very favorable to us. You just rushed in and made 2 fouls, but you didn't even get a serve."

"Because I haven't had time to shoot yet, and now it seems that I can't break through and score. Feijianka, if you can hold the ball, can you shoot like me when you rush over?"

"You always missed the shot before, it seems like you can't attack."

"But there are still people who can't pass the ball or defend."

"That's it, so what are you going to do?"

"The first half is over now, the score is 19 to 26, a difference of 7 points. I think the tactic should be to find an open space at the two 45-degree angles of the three-point line, and I will shoot there."

"You shot so many times before and only made one!"

"Fade away shots are still somewhat difficult, you should just watch me!"

"Well, I always believe you. After all, you are our battalion commander."

In the second half, after losing their tallest player, William, they could only let a substitute player, a lieutenant who was nearly two meters tall, to set a screen, but he first committed a moving screen foul.
“What the hell.”

It is very troublesome for the opponent to get the ball, after all, they have to defend it.

Solovyov made a gesture, which meant to increase the defensive intensity on the court and give them a full-court pressure defense.

He is the most suitable person to execute this kind of pressure-based defense, and then to defend closely throughout the court. There will always be opportunities, and he has not committed a single personal foul now, which is exactly how he should execute.

After all, what's more important on the basketball court is winning the game, not how many points you score.

After he committed two consecutive hand fouls, he had already figured out the opponent's ball control pattern before the number of defensive fouls was over. If he lost the ball at this time, he would only be intercepted.

Then Fedor passed the ball to Solovyov who was running at a 45-degree angle. No one had shot from this position outside the three-point line before. After all, no one had developed a stable outside shooting technique yet, including the person who initiated the competition here.

Then he really made a shot, and the ball went in, and the hunter officers on the sidelines were cheering.

After all, this guy went to the front line to fight and had always been a hunter. Later he joined the Guards, and he was quite accurate in shooting.

"Of course, his shooting is also very accurate. He is a 'sharp shooter'. He is like this at the shooting range too!"

In the subsequent games, no one dared to leave him alone outside, which gave others the opportunity to break through.

The White Team was able to win in the end thanks to this tactic.

After watching the game, the audience exclaimed that it was exciting. After all, such competitive games are relatively rare in St. Petersburg, but the rules are a bit confusing to explain.

"That can't be helped! After all, it's all new. This is the first handball match in Petersburg."

"It's thrown into the basket, so it should be 'basketball'."

(End of this chapter)