Champion, please stay!

Chapter 25. A Crazy 'Debut'!
Yi Shui pulled Yad and Thabeet up, his bottom a little sore from the fall, but it didn't matter; he was incredibly excited.

The new skill proved effective immediately upon deployment! And the user experience is fantastic!

He didn't have a subjective feeling about improved awareness of intercepting balls in the air, but he could directly feel the improvement in 'jumping power'!
He sprinted and jumped, feeling that he used just the right amount of force. He had enough momentum and maintained good balance after jumping, allowing him to accurately reach for the ball that Alexander was swatting down...

If you can learn this jumping and power generation technique, it will definitely improve your ability to attack the basket!
He just didn't know how he managed to exert that kind of force again on the spot.

But this is only the first time I've used it. Maybe I'll remember the feeling after using it more often? Even if I don't remember, there are still ways. We must believe in the power of technology!
There will be a live broadcast tonight, and the club will also record the official competition. We can definitely find close-ups, analyze the movements, and imitate them – that's one way to do it.

On the other hand, Alexander was far from happy.

In terms of current popularity in the East League, Yi Shui is the most popular, averaging more than 20 shots per game in the warm-up matches, which is too impressive. Of course, the main reason is the "prodigal son returns" label.

But in terms of ability, apart from Husky fans, most basketball fans in the Big East Conference believe that Alexander is stronger than any Husky player. Last season, he averaged 16.7 points per game in the Third Madness, leading his team to the Sweet Sixteen. As a 203cm white small forward, despite his completely different playing style, he has been dubbed the 'next Bird'.

In college basketball, Larry Bird was undoubtedly the undisputed number one superstar. Even if you had never heard of a college player before, as long as you knew he was associated with Bird, you would immediately assume that he was at least very good in college.

Alexander's nationwide fame is far greater than Yi Shui's.

Alexander came tonight to increase his exposure by stepping on Yi Shui, but the other side actually blocked him right away, and twice in a row!
He became a stepping stone!

The mountaineering team continued their attack, and Alexander kept demanding the ball for one-on-one play, determined to get back at Alexander!
Robinson was once again thoroughly cleaned up.

Hill Climbers shooting guard Alex Roof is renowned, averaging 2.6 three-pointers per game with a 41% shooting percentage last season. When power forward Butler pulls out to set a screen, even if Yad knows it might be a fake, he still has to follow.

As expected, Butler suddenly turned and cut towards the inside halfway through his run, and center Smally, who had moved to the left 45-degree angle, rushed towards the inside, once again keeping Thabeet tied on the left sideline.

Just like in the previous round, Yi Shui saw a bunch of people inside and outside the left sideline of the three-second zone, so he left Roof open and rushed into the paint. He didn't believe that Alexander could pass the ball to the left sideline through a bunch of people.

However, the mountaineering team timed their off-ball movement better this time than in the previous round, causing Yi Shui to retreat a little slower than in the previous round. Also, Ruff's position was at the left bottom corner this time, and Alexander saw Yi Shui's retreat movement!
When Yi Shui reached the left side of the three-second zone, he judged that it would be difficult to interfere with the ball in time, and that jumping up would almost certainly result in him becoming a background figure. However, his instincts overcame his reason. Regardless of the consequences, when he saw Alexander jump, he lunged at Alexander without any hesitation...

Originally, Yi Shui definitely wouldn't have been able to block this shot. He was under immense pressure, his jump point was closer to the basket, and he jumped half a beat too early.

But when he saw Yi Shui rushing over, the image of being blocked repeatedly in the previous round flashed through Alexander's mind, and he subconsciously changed his dunk to a layup... Yi Shui's outstretched hand, which swept past under the rim, hit the ball that Alexander had just raised after a small loop!

"Snapped"

The ball was slapped out of bounds on the right by Yi Shui and hit a spectator on the sidelines.

But instead of crying out in pain, the spectator caught the ball as it bounced away, jumped up, and cheered and screamed.

The scene erupted again!

In the last round, not only did the mountaineering team think it was just an accident, that Yi Shui was lucky to block Alexander, but the Husky team players and fans at the scene also thought it was just good luck.

Unexpectedly, another one came from Yishui immediately!
The director is a professional; he immediately posted a statistic—3 blocks in 45 seconds, a new record for blocks in the first minute of the game for the Big East League!
Even Emeka Okafor, the all-time leader in blocks in the Big East, has never achieved this. Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning, who played one more year than Okafor and hold the top two spots on the all-time blocks list, have also never done it!

Alexander, one of the parties involved, was stunned. Looking at Yi Shui, who was high-fiving and hugging his teammates, he couldn't believe that he had been blocked again!
He's really become a stepping stone for this 'prodigal son who's turned over a new leaf'!
Yi Shui noticed Alexander's gaze, turned around and said loudly, "Sorry, Joe, there's air traffic control over Storrs tonight!"

...

Alexander belongs to the elite class, fundamentally different from the middle-class and lower-class Americans who received a "happy education." Growing up abroad with his father, a high-ranking executive in a multinational corporation, he became extremely 'shrewd,' adept at manipulating situations and exploiting his surroundings for personal gain. He was also skilled at cultivating relationships, often letting people take advantage of him without even realizing it. Normally, he was very calm, but at this moment, his composure snapped… Live on American cable sports channel! Almost a national broadcast! In a game like this, after being blocked three times in a row at the start, who could remain calm?
The mountaineering team continued their attack, and Alexander, ignoring the coach's shouts from the sidelines, called for the ball and drove straight to the basket... only to be stopped by Thabeet.

Thabeet made adjustments to his defense this time. Yi Shui blocked three shots in two possessions. Regardless of whether it was luck or skill, he knew that Yi Shui's collapse defense was at its maximum. He confidently entrusted close-range help defense to Yi Shui, and held firm under the basket regardless of the attacks from the two opposing forwards.

During his college years, Thabeet certainly looked like the 'next Mutombo,' possessing both defensive ability and basketball IQ.

Price's efforts to stop Alexander's drive were not in vain; he secured the defensive rebound.

In the transition between offense and defense, Price beckoned to Yad for a screen.

Yi Shui attempted to use Robinson's off-ball screens to enhance his drives and create space for shots, but Roof's positioning was excellent, preventing Yi Shui from creating mismatches. However, Alexander ignored whether his teammates were marking Yi Shui and directly closed in on him...

Seeing that Yi Shui was drawing a double team without the ball, Robinson immediately cut down the court. Price decisively stopped the pick-and-roll and distributed the ball to the appropriate position.

Robinson received the ball in the corner and took a three-pointer... The direction was right, but unfortunately, he used a little too much force, and the shot bounced high off the left side of the rim.

As Yad pulled to the free-throw line, he turned and rushed into the paint, but Butler, who had anticipated the ball's trajectory, blocked him. Just as Butler reached for the rebound while Yad was blocking him, the blue and white number 13 jersey came into view.

It's the Yi River again!

He was momentarily stunned when he was double-teamed off the ball, but when he saw Price pass the ball to Robinson, he immediately rushed towards the paint. He didn't care if his teammates scored and he ran for nothing... His efforts paid off!
Yad's aggressive pressing was blocked, but it wasn't entirely ineffective; he limited the opposing power forward's rebounding attempts!
Yi Shui got the ball first, turned and faked a shot, Alexander who was chasing after him flew up, Yi Shui took a step to the baseline, and made a layup... and it went in!
The Harry Gamper Arena is in a frenzy! Yi Shui, Yi Shui, and more Yi Shui! Every shot since the start of the game has been dedicated to Yi Shui!

Moreover, Yi Shui was very different from usual. After 10 warm-up games, whether it was fans who watched the live broadcast, fans who watched the games in person, or fans who only read the game reports, their impression of him was that he was a shooting maniac, especially three-pointers. He would take at least 5 shots in a game, 8 was normal, and 10 was not too many.

Tonight, Yi Shui made a spectacular block, and even grabbed an offensive rebound amidst a bunch of frontcourt players, scoring on a second-chance opportunity!

He seemed to transform into a behemoth under the basket... but he's a bit too short, even Big Ben isn't that short...

With such a poor record last season, the Husky players didn't have much confidence before the game against their opponent who had made it to the Sweet Sixteen.

But now, it's 4-0 at the start! Although the score difference isn't big, Yi Shui's strong performance has boosted the team's morale!
In the following time, the Husky team, playing on their home turf, completely suppressed the visiting mountaineering team.

Yi Shui's consecutive blocks not only affected Alexander, but also made opposing players hesitant to cut in, causing them to try to play faster or make unnecessary moves like Alexander did in the second possession. This greatly reduced the pressure on Thabeet and significantly improved his rim protection efficiency!
However, the biggest factor affecting the mountaineering team's offense was Alexander's loss of composure. He would grab the ball and swing it recklessly, trying to save face. Eventually, the mountaineering team's head coach, Bob Hudgens, yelled at Marazú not to pass the ball to Alexander.

On offense, Yi Shui faced increasingly tight defense, disrupting the opponent's attack. Naturally, he became a target of the opponent's focused fire when he attacked. Realizing this, he adjusted his offensive focus to moving and creating more offensive space for his teammates, while concentrating on defense and rebounding...

The Husky team's advantage gradually widened. After halftime, the Mountain team showed signs of gaining momentum, but after Yi Shui double-teamed Alexander and completed a steal and fast break dunk, Alexander's mentality collapsed again. As the team's strongest player and usually the most composed player, his collapse directly dragged the entire team down...

At 8:55 p.m., the final whistle blew.

The score was 73-63, which didn't really matter to the fans at the stadium. With 5 minutes left, the opposing team surrendered and substituted their starters. At that time, the score difference was 18 points. In the last few minutes, both teams fielded only reserve lineups, and the opposing team narrowed the gap to 8 points.

The fans' attention was all on Yi Shui, and they cheered wildly!
The big screen displayed Yi Shui's stats for tonight: 5 of 11 shots made, a much lower number of attempts than in the previous warm-up games, including 1 of 4 three-pointers. Both his attempts and field goal percentages were significantly lower than usual. Including 3 of 3 free throws, he only scored 14 points... but he also had 11 rebounds, 8 blocks, 3 assists, and 3 steals, nearly a triple-double!

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I'll write a bit more tonight. I borrowed a colleague's NS2 after get off work yesterday and started playing Zelda again. I lost track of time while playing and didn't wake up until 10 pm today. I quickly wrote a chapter.

No gaming today. I'll have lunch, take a nap, and then start writing!
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(End of this chapter)