Champion, please stay!

Chapter 58, Section 57: First Big Prize Win, Cheers Grow!
With nine minutes left, an unwilling Curry made a final push... He played for a few minutes before being substituted, during which he went 1-for-4. In the few minutes before and after the timeout, he only managed 2-for-8. The Wildcats had the strength of an elite team because of him, but they also collapsed because of his declining performance.

However, Curry's poor performance was not the reason McGillop replaced him.

This summer, after the seniors graduate, their strength will definitely plummet. With Curry on the team, taking the league's top spot is not a problem, but whether they can still perform well enough in the All-Round Championship to make it into the Madness 3 is hard to say. Even if they do make it, they are unlikely to go that far.

It's almost certain that this is Curry's first and only appearance in the Elite Eight. McGillop hoped Curry could play for a few more minutes, but Curry was playing too hard and was almost exhausted, which could easily lead to injury.

After Curry was substituted, it took two more possessions before Calhoun substituted Yi Shui on the other side. He couldn't miss such an opportunity, otherwise he, as the coach, would feel guilty for many years.

The match ended at 9:52 PM.

In 33 minutes of play, Curry scored 41 points, making 15 of 32 field goals, including 6 of 15 three-pointers, and 5 of 5 free throws, breaking his personal scoring record in March Madness. However, he was unable to create another miracle like when he defeated Michael Beasley.

出场36分钟，35投19中，其中三分球12中5，加上10中8的罚球，易水狂轰51分！
The Huskies defeated the Wildcats 98-85, a 13-point advantage, to advance to the final four!
After the final whistle blew, the reporters, who had been unable to contain themselves, rushed into the stadium. However, this time they surrounded not only Husky team stars such as Yi Shui, Thabeet, and Yad, but also Curry, who scored 40+ points for the second time!
This was the first time Curry had been surrounded by so many reporters after a game, with even the live broadcast cameras seemingly rolling over his face. It was the first time he had become the focus of attention in such a game... but Curry couldn't feel happy at that moment.

Because he's the loser!

However, looking at that guy on the other side who was even more outstanding than a power forward... judging solely from tonight's match, he was convinced that this guy made it to the final four.

...

The post-match celebrations were exceptionally noisy tonight, and Yi Shui and his teammates didn't return to the hotel until after midnight.

He claimed the mission reward, and his score eventually surpassed Curry's, widening the gap. Objective 1 was completed, and he gained 1 point of long-range shooting talent. Combined with the 1 point he had previously gained, his long-range shooting talent increased to +2.

His long-range shooting hasn't reached its full potential yet, but it should still be useful for now. As his talent improves and his training progresses, his skills should also improve.

The most direct reward is the bonus for reaching the semi-finals – +1 to flexibility! It's now at 94!
Previously, the 'Functional Repair and Transformation' had not been able to restore his original maximum agility of 94, but he managed to get it back through missions!
But in two days he'll be 'developing' again... He turned on his computer to browse the news and see how others were praising him.

He saw that the elementary school student had finally become famous, a result of years of hard work finally paying off!
He led his team to a 34-game winning streak and into the elite quarterfinals, defeating strong teams one after another. At the time, he didn't attract much attention for various reasons, but now people have seen it all, and some media outlets have even compared him to Rose and Mayo.

Furthermore, Curry set a terrifying record—making a total of 25 three-pointers in the first four rounds, raising Glen Rice's record held for many years by 5!
Moreover, his 25 three-pointers made in a single Magic Madness game would rank second on the all-time Magic Madness three-point shooting leaderboard!
The first place still belongs to Glen Rice. In the 1988-1989 season, he led the University of Michigan Wolverines to the NCAA championship, making a total of 27 three-pointers in 6 games.

Of course, the focus of discussion among the media and fans is still the Yi River!

51 points in a single game!
Yi Shui broke the Husky team's single-game scoring record, and also broke the single-game scoring record in the 29-year history of the Big East League!
This is the first time a player in the Big East League has scored 50+ points in a single game!

雷-阿伦94-95赛季的单场40分、艾弗森95-96赛季的单场40分、汉密尔顿98-99赛季的单场43分、本-戈登03-04赛季的单场44分、哈兰高迪在本赛季的单场42分……都是大东联盟曾经最顶级的得分表现。

After tonight, all these performances will be relegated to 'second tier'!
Across the entire NCAA, a 51-point game is a remarkable achievement. In recent years, only Karen Clark of St. Peter's College in the Atlantic City Athletic League has scored 60 points in a single game during the 04-05 season, which is higher than that.

Karl-Heinz Clark was a remarkable player. Standing at only 175 cm tall and weighing just 70 kg, he looked like an ordinary passerby on the street. However, he won the scoring title for the Division I team three times during his four years of college, averaging 25.9 points per game for four seasons. He only lost to Adam Morrison, who averaged 28.1 points per game, in his senior year of 2005-06.

Leading the team back to the final four and scoring like crazy... Yi Shui's popularity has reached a new level.

However, he had mixed feelings after seeing Curry's interview clip.

"Brook reminds me of Kevin Durant. I've never played against Durant, but we were in the same year. I used to follow his games and stats a lot when I was a freshman. He was so good that he shouldn't exist in college basketball... No, Brook is even more outrageous than Durant!"
Brook is stronger, has more experience, and has a very mature playing style. I think he should have gone to the NBA after his freshman year, so he wouldn't have lost interest in the game because the opponents were too weak and wasted his time on women's bellies..."

Being praised, especially by an opponent, is naturally something to be happy about for Yi Shui as an athlete.

But isn't this going a bit too far in provoking hatred? He doesn't know if the elementary school student did it on purpose or unintentionally.

The Mad Third Division Finals, while not as high-profile as the final, still garnered an off-the-charts level of attention. That guy who loves to drink bathwater will definitely hear this. Well... it doesn't seem like such a big deal.
Making friends with future superstars is nothing compared to being their rivals—Yi Shui deeply understood this from Curry. However, it seems this elementary school student has some strange misunderstanding about him?

He became obsessed with women because he thought his opponents were too weak and the matches were boring? Yes! That's exactly what happened to him!
That perfectly describes his high-class image!
Indeed, your opponent is the one who understands you best!
...

After the second round, the Husky coaching staff dawdled and refused to leave. The morning after the regional finals, the players were still sleepy when they were pulled onto a bus and fled from Auburn Hills as if their lives depended on it, flying directly to Indianapolis.

Our official statement is: We can't wait to go to the city where the finals are held to familiarize ourselves with the environment.

As for the fact that there are still two games left in the regional stage of the competition, and the Pacers' home arena, Conseco Arena, is under renovation and there is no place for them to train, that doesn't matter!
The Husky team manager rented a private basketball club near the hotel last night for the players to train.

On the nights of the 29th and 30th, Yi Shui followed the coaching staff to watch the live broadcast of the games. Unfortunately, the other two elite teams in their Great East League, the Cardinals and the Mountain Climbers, were defeated by the powerhouses.

Tar Heels and Bruins both advanced to the semifinals.

After the Bruins defeated the Mountaineers, the schedule for the finals is out: April 2nd, Huskies vs. Pine Eagles, a clash between the 'strongest twin towers' and the strongest team; April 3rd, Tar Heels vs. Bruins, a 'battle of the century' between UCLA and North Carolina.

When Yi Shui heard the host describe their team, he thought it must be referring to Yad and Thabeet, definitely!
But the TV station didn't even give him a chance to console himself, posting photos of two pairs of twin towers together—yes, two pairs—himself and Yad, labeled the strongest offensive twin towers; and him and Thabeet, labeled the strongest defensive twin towers.

(╯‵ ′)╯︵┻━┻

Even if one of the Twin Towers has nothing to do with him, that would be fine!
Back in his room, while browsing the news on Yad's laptop, Yi Shui saw a strange image.

Alexander dominated the screen after announcing to the live broadcast that he would participate in this year's draft!

His 50+ vs 40+ battle with Langbiku might not even generate as much news as Alexander's loss!

Yad, who was browsing the news with him, wasn't surprised at all: "I heard that his dad is a shareholder of Sparrow Coffee, and apparently the person in charge in your Asian region. He probably used his family's influence. The NCAA can't do anything about it."

"I knew you could throw money around to elect a president, but I never thought you could do it in a talent show?"

"There is still a difference. When it comes to electing a president, as long as the big capitalists support him, even a pig can become president. But in the NBA draft, you still need to have the ability. Alexander led his team to the quarterfinals on his own. Otherwise, no matter how much you promote him, he won't be able to make it."

"Capable, intelligent, and rich—I can't afford to mess with them..."

Alexander announced his intention to enter this year's NBA draft, and through various statements and media hype, he has become a popular candidate for the draft.

In the Yi River region, the poor but handsome man has no choice but to rise to the top through his own abilities...

The day after the regional finals ended, on the afternoon of March 31, the NCAA officially announced that Yi Shui had been named Naismith's Player of the Year!
This award is selected by the National Collegiate Coaching Association (NCCA). Each year, the judges consist of 600 people, including current head coaches from all Division I schools, head coaches from lower divisions who are eligible to vote, and some retired coaches.

Yi Shui received 209 votes, defeating Tyler Hansbrough (181 votes) and Kevin Love (141 votes).

Yi Shui won the award very narrowly. Media commentators said that if Love hadn't taken away most of the votes, Brook might not have won against Hansbrough.

College coaches have always had a bias towards white big men, who often beat out players who perform better to win the award. But this year, Love also performed exceptionally well, giving coaches another option when selecting 'white big men,' thus splitting the votes... Yi Shui fished out the fisherman and benefited!
Yi Shui felt that this award was much more prestigious than the 'All-Round Benchmark Award' named after Da O. It wasn't that he knew much about these awards, but rather that when he received the award notification, the system notification also came!
“你荣获2007-2008赛季奈史密斯年度最佳球员奖，根据你因身高急速变化带来的强烈需求，奖励指定为：随机身体素质点2个，恭喜获得力量+1、弹跳+1，你的力量由86提升至87、弹跳由91提升至92，你的综合身体素质由91提升至92。”

Winning this big prize also brought him other things.

During the NCAA Final Four roundtable discussion on TNT Sports this afternoon, the host posed a question to the invited former college stars and retired NBA legends: If you had the first pick, would you choose Mayo, Beasley, or Yi?

(End of this chapter)