Champion, please stay!

Chapter 38. Having such a 'neighbor' is truly a curse!

"...Congratulations on receiving the reward: 5 hours of mid-range shooting training card, 5 hours of three-point shooting training card."

"...Congratulations on receiving the following rewards: 1 hour shooting training card, 2 hours rebounding training card, and 1 hour interception training card."

"Task: Resilience."

Just one day after a crushing defeat, you led your team to a resurgence, withstood doubts and pressure, and defeated the formidable Black Panther team. Congratulations on receiving the reward: Random Physical Attribute Points, already used... Congratulations on receiving Physical Attribute Points: Agility +1, your Agility has increased from 91 to 92.

As soon as the final whistle blew, the system notification appeared. He knew before the match that the reward was flexibility, so he quickly opened it and was almost moved to tears. He had finally regained 1 point of flexibility.

On the 1st, after reaching the optimal height of 198 cm for a tall guard, the system prompted him that if he continued to grow taller, he would lose speed and agility. Of course, growing taller also has many advantages, such as making his shots harder to defend, and the fact that he currently weighs only 91 kg, but now has a weight limit of up to 4 kg that he can increase.

However, Clark told him that even if it wouldn't affect mobility or the impact of muscle strength changes on technique and fundamentals, he didn't recommend gaining seven or eight pounds in two weeks like last time.

Since your initial weight was less than 200 pounds (about 90-91 kg), and you have now reached 200 pounds, you need to consider the impact on your cardiopulmonary function. Therefore, it is recommended that you take a longer time to gain weight, calculate your daily calorie expenditure, maintain your metabolism, and slightly increase your protein and calorie intake.

Yi Shui naturally accepted the professional's advice. Indeed, the system only said that it would not affect movement and flexibility, but not the impact on muscle memory and physical strength. With increased weight and basal metabolism, physical exertion would naturally increase.

Turning off the system, Yi Shui looked at his excitedly celebrating teammates and felt their resilience!
After playing the Cardinals, they were heavily criticized by the media, especially by the biggest local critic, the Sperm Whale, who said they were only on par with the Golden Eagles and Blue Devils, just a team in the lower half of the Big East Conference. It would be a lie to say they had no self-doubt at all; even he had doubts about his own team's strength.

But tonight, by working together, they defeated the formidable Black Panthers on the road, dispelling any doubts they had about their own abilities!
They are indeed not as strong as they thought after achieving a 6-game winning streak, but they are definitely not weak!
However, after regaining his confidence, Yi Shui felt even more frustrated when he looked back at the game against the Cardinals.

Based on head-to-head experience, the Cardinals, with Terrence Williams and Earl Clark, are not much stronger than the Panthers, who have Blair, Benjamin, and Sam Young; they should be in the same tier.

If they had maintained the same low-key and cautious attitude and played with patience and composure as they did tonight, and were playing at home, they would have had a chance to win. After all, they had upset their opponents in the warm-up matches when their offensive and defensive systems were still incomplete.

If it were before the match against the Amazing Team, losing one or two games wouldn't have bothered Yi Shui too much. At that time, he didn't even need the Sperm Whale Report to criticize them so harshly; he himself felt that they were at most a team competing for a spot in the lower half of the bracket.

But now they've broken into the top four, and after defeating the Panthers tonight, they've even overtaken the Cardinals, who were just defeated by the Warriors, to reclaim third place in the league.

He... already has ambitions!
They currently have a record of 9 wins and 3 losses, with 6 games remaining in the regional stage. The Amazings, on the other hand, have a record of 11 wins and 1 loss. If they don't lose to the Cardinals, they can hope that the Amazings lose another game. If they win all their remaining games, they can overtake the Amazings based on their head-to-head record.

But the record difference is two games, and even as arch-rivals, he doesn't think the Amazings can lose two of their last six games.

Indeed, as the Sperm Whale Report stated, they were able to defeat the Exclamation Team because they countered them. The Exclamation Team, with Hibbert in his prime as a senior, is in a class of its own in the league!
...

Meanwhile, on the other side of the river, people were distressed because they had basically lost their hope of winning first place.

After watching Yi Shui score the winning goal, Donnie Walsh returned to his hotel and scrolled through the news, feeling even more depressed.

He knew that his boss, who always acted on a whim when running the team, had no ideas that were completely useless.

Other teams are no longer hiding their interest in Yishui, so what's the point of suppressing Yishui's limelight at this point?

Tonight, after being criticized by the New York Times and thrashed by the Cardinals, the Huskies rallied just one day later and defeated the powerful Black Panthers. Yi Shui's shooting wasn't great, but his defense and rebounding were still solid. Moreover, despite missing all four of his three-point attempts, he made a decisive shot at the crucial moment and hit the game-winning three-pointer.

Brook, a genius under pressure, is even more amazing!

The Philadelphia-based WACU television network, which broadcast the game live in Pennsylvania, described Brook as a cold-blooded killer, just like Ray Allen.

WACU is a state television station under NBC (one of the three major television networks in North America), and its evaluations are highly regarded.

Donnie Walsh was glad that his boss hadn't been so foolish as to use his own TV station to overshadow Yi Shui. He just hoped that Yi Shui, like most players, would be 'simple' and not think so much.

He just heard that Yi Shui's GPA was over 3... How come the Husky team keeps producing players who are both good at playing and smart?
After much deliberation, he decided that he couldn't remain silent just because he was worried that the draft market in Yishui would rise too much and he wouldn't be able to get a pick. So many teams had already expressed their interest in Yishui. Although their TV station had a lot of influence, the draft market in Yishui was still improving even without them... He decided to just 'declare his love'!

By noon the next day, Yi Shui and the team returned to Connecticut. They parted ways at New Haven International Airport, and the yellow, white, and black team sped back to the Stanford campus.

Today is December 7th, and there are only a few days left before the start of the spring semester. The number of students on campus is already increasing.

When Yi Shui returned to his dormitory and browsed the news, he saw a clip of his neighbor's boss being interviewed by his own TV station. It was related to him: "I have high hopes for Brook. I noticed him when he was a freshman. I have watched him play many times. I hope that one day he can run in the holy land of basketball wearing our team's jersey."

After watching this interview, Yi Shui was filled with questions—what exactly was this rich second-generation boss doing? Was he seriously ill?
Then, while browsing other websites, he saw that because of Dolan's praise, his draft stock had actually dropped instead of rising... mainly because other media outlets were stirring things up. James Dolan, the Knicks owner, had far more influence than him, a junior in college.

For example, TNT Sports commentator Kenny Smith joked about Dolan: "I was really optimistic about Brook, but Dolan is also optimistic about him, so I started to question my judgment. Brook may not be as talented as I thought."

He hadn't felt anything when things weren't going well, but now, Yi Shui was having a headache having such a strange neighbor. He couldn't even imagine how many "funny" he would be forced to endure if Dolan really became his boss one day.

After putting away his luggage and having lunch with his two buddies, Yi Shui went to the Kangda Gymnasium, turning his 'grief and indignation' into strength to continue training!
...

The regional stage has already completed 12 rounds, with only 3 weeks left in the competition, so it's nearing its end.

On January 11th, the Huskies hosted Syracuse University.

After acquiring Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse University became the focus of the entire United States. However, the spotlight came and went quickly. Anthony won the championship in his freshman year, and after he left, the Oranges became mediocre again. In the past three seasons, they were crushed in the first round of the Third Madness twice, and last season they didn't even make it to the Third Madness.

However, thanks to Anthony, this university has become a coveted destination for many talented individuals. Last summer, they acquired two top talents: Dante Green, the 211cm tall center who was ranked 8th in the class of 07, and Jonny Flynn, the point guard who was ranked 20th. This inside-outside combination showed great immediate impact in their freshman season, both averaging 15+ points per game, and were considered for the best freshman award alongside Freeman from the Amazing Team.

Under their leadership, the team has achieved a record of 6 wins and 6 losses so far, and still has a chance to break into the ranks of the strong teams in the lower half of the Big East League.

However, tonight's game has further diminished the Orange team's hopes of breaking into the ranks of strong teams.

易水17分8板6助攻3盖帽、塔比特10分10板7盖帽、亚德23分10板……哈士奇队全程都打得专注稳健，以86比75力克橘子人队，拿下赛季第10场胜利！
接着，哈士奇队13号在新泽西州客场以71比59击败罗格斯大学红骑队、18号在主场以81比68击败隔壁纽约的圣约翰大学红色风暴队两支垫底级别的鱼腩，战绩提升到12胜3负！
Yi Shui scored 25 points and 16 points respectively. After so many games, he gradually mastered the changes in his playing style. If the opponent defends tightly, he will provide more support; if the defense is not so tight, he will increase his ball possession. Instead of just penetrating to attract double teams and passing the ball when the defense is tight, and running off-ball to receive the ball and shoot, he reduced the pressure on his teammates.

At this point, the Huskies have played against all 15 other teams in the league once.

The remaining three matches are all rematches against teams they have faced before.

However, the league's "rematch" opponents for the Huskies did not include high-profile games like the Amazing Team and the Golden Eagles, which are teams with which they have a history of conflict. This is the difference between the NCAA and the NBA. The NBA would love for two popular teams to play each other more often, while the NCAA prefers as few games as possible to increase the hype of each game. For example, North Carolina and Duke, UCLA and Stanford have only played each other once a season for many years.

It is directly related to the number of teams it has. The six top leagues of the NCAA have dozens of teams, and there are too many rivalries and high-profile matches. Scheduling one match per season is more conducive to concentrating resources and maximizing output.

On January 20th, the Huskies traveled to Joyce Arena in South Bend, Indiana, to play against the Notre Dame Irish Warriors.

Like the Amazing Team, the Warriors have returned from their break undefeated, currently holding the same record as the Huskies at 12 wins and 3 losses. The Warriors are ranked second in the league because they defeated the Huskies in a previous head-to-head matchup.

Sophomore small forward Harlan Godey averaged 24.4 points and 10.6 rebounds per game, ranking first in the league and among the top in the entire NCAA. Only a very few players in Division I, such as Stephen Curry and Michael Beasley, scored more than him.

In their last encounter, the Huskies were swept by Harlan Godey's 6-for-7 three-point shooting. Tonight, they are determined to get their revenge!
After the game started, the Husky team, led by Yi Shui, Thabeet, and Yad, put all their effort into both offense and defense... but they were still outmatched.

The nickname "Big Bird" is well-deserved. Despite being heavily guarded on three-pointers and drives to the basket, Harangodi excelled in mid-range shooting and playmaking, racking up 5 assists, 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 steals in the first half, leading the Warriors to a 41-33 lead over the Huskies at halftime.

However, this time the Huskies were not crushed like they were at home two months ago. After halftime, they launched a tenacious counterattack.

靠着塔比特9分钟3次大帽、易水迎着防守三分两连中、以及亚德的进攻篮板球冲抢，打到下半场9分11秒，哈士奇队打出了19比11的反扑浪潮，将比分追至52比52，逼平战士队！
Harangodi, who had been orchestrating the team's offense, had to step up and score against heavy defense.

Yi Shui also stepped forward and confronted the other party head-on.

Harangodi broke into the paint, used his strength to withstand the help defense, and made a floater; Yi Shui responded with a layup.
Harangodi used a step-back move to shake off the defender and hit a three-pointer. Yi Shui then directly hit a three-pointer over the opposing shooting guard Kyle McLean, who is only 193 cm tall.

Harangodi drew double teams with his one-on-one play, then assisted his teammates for easy layups, which took a lot of effort. Yi Shui, facing Harangodi switching onto the defense for a long-range shot, took a step back and used his speed to drive hard. His acceleration was unimpeded, easily tearing apart the opponent's defense and feeding Thabeet for an alley-oop dunk...

After a fierce battle between the two teams' strongest players, neither side gained an advantage, but Haalando's mentality was much worse than Yi Shui's.

Yi Shui: I can finally face this guy head-on!
Harangodi: His skills are worse than mine, his shooting is worse than mine, his passing is worse than mine... he's worse than me in everything, but just because he runs faster and jumps higher than me, he can beat me like this? This world is so unfair!

However, Haalando wasn't the only one with this idea. The more than 8,000 spectators at Joyce Arena also disapproved of Yi Shui's talent-based style of play. Their own star player was purely technical, so the fans naturally had a corresponding preference.

In addition, fans also felt sorry for Harlan Gaudi. He was selected to the All-American Second Team as a freshman, and by his sophomore year, he was already being called up for the All-American First Team and the Triple Crown. His draft expectations were not just lukewarm, but completely ignored! Only the Celtics showed some interest.

The guy who almost died sleeping on a woman's belly only started working hard again in his junior year of college. Before he even finished the regional stage of the competition, his local Pacers team revealed that they wanted to use a draft pick that might be in the lottery to select him!

But talent is a cruel thing...

With 15 minutes and 22 seconds left in the second half, every offensive play could only be carried out by Harlangodi in the half-court. His step-back mid-range shot was too short, and Yi Shui went around to Ryan Ayers, the 87th ranked power forward from the class of 05, who was rushing to the rebound, and stole the ball. He then scored on a fast break!

In the next possession, Harlan passed the ball to the wing, where McLean, who had been battered by Yi Shui all night, missed a three-pointer. Yi Shui once again relied on his speed advantage to grab the defensive rebound and passed the ball to Price during the fast break. Price caught the ball and took a step and made a floater.

The Huskies extended their lead to 5 points, 68-63! They secured a clear lead!

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(End of this chapter)