As the current center of Teiko, the responsibility of winning the tip-off naturally fell on Murasakibara Atsushi.
The center for Sanno was #10, Nakakin Dai!
Compared to Murasakibara Atsushi's height, Nakakin Dai appeared somewhat short.
Nakakin Dai stood by the center line, looking up at Murasakibara Atsushi, who was nearly ten centimeters taller.
This guy is a first-year?!
He was a third-year, after all, and the tallest in the entire school.
What did this guy eat to grow so tall? Fertilizer?
Sometimes, the tip-off was already decided before it even began.
Nakakin Dai had already given up in his heart.
The spectators on the sidelines laughed at the height difference.
“Look! Is that guy really a first-year? He's so tall!”
“Did you see the guy opposite? His face turned green!”
“Basketball is a sport that relies on talent, and height is really important.”
“Right! Just like how pretty girls always have the advantage.”
“Huh? Where are the pretty girls? Tell me! Where are the pretty girls?”
“Eh? Another one went crazy, he knows how to find keywords!”
On the court, the referee tossed the ball up with a whistle.
Murasakibara Atsushi saw the ball rise and immediately jumped.
Nakakin Dai next to him did the same.
The two jumped even faster than the ball, which was only at their chest.
Then, they both realized that they were still rising, but the ball couldn't keep up with their speed!
What’s going on?
Immediately, they realized the ball was already starting to fall!
How is that possible?!
The referee, after tossing the ball, quickly took a few steps back. Seeing the height the ball reached, his expression froze.
Damn it!
He forgot he wasn't supposed to catch this ball. He tossed it too low!
Murasakibara Atsushi: This is low? It’s way too low, damn it!
Nakakin Dai: Low is good! Low is good!
At this moment, Nakakin Dai, whose physical attributes were weaker, showed his advantage.
The ball was right in front of him!
He could reach it with his hand!
Murasakibara Atsushi was still rising...
“Slap!”
Nakakin Dai immediately slapped the ball toward Koga Takuhai.
Koga Takuhai reached out to catch the ball, a little disbelief in his eyes.
This stroke of unbelievable luck had landed on him.
He was already prepared to defend. Now he was expected to attack?
For a moment, he couldn’t adjust. What should he do?
Genyu Hisho saw the outcome and took a deep look at the referee.
This guy wasn’t deliberately doing this, was he?
This height was truly unexpected.
Did he used to be a referee for elementary school kids?
Seeing the result differ from their expectations, the people in the stands were speechless.
“Damn! That guy is so tall but still lost the tip-off. Looks like he’s just not strong enough!”
“Are you blind? Can’t you see it’s the referee’s fault? He tossed it so low, it’s obvious he’s letting Sanno off easy!”
“What’s wrong with a low toss? The height wasn’t illegal. If you can’t do it, don’t blame others!”
“Teiko has such a clear advantage, yet they didn’t win the tip-off. If Sanno takes the first possession, Teiko is in danger!”
“Under the same conditions, it can only be said that Sanno has been through the battles and has more experience. Teiko is different. They are just a bunch of greenhouse flowers!”
A simple tip-off made many people have higher expectations for Sanno.
On the court, Murasakibara Atsushi lost the ball, but he was still a bit dissatisfied. He felt like he had been cheated out of winning it.
Seeing Nakakin Dai run towards the paint to set up his position, he immediately followed.
He stood beside Nakakin Dai, using one arm to hold him back, and turned to look at Koga Takuhai, who was holding the ball.
Nakakin Dai felt a massive force constantly pushing him towards the perimeter. He barely managed to stabilize himself, using all his strength.
Koga Takuhai held the ball, searching for scoring opportunities for his teammates.
As a point guard, he needed to observe his teammates more, find those with the best chances of scoring, and pass the ball to them.
First, Koga Takuhai eliminated Nakakin Dai!
Even though it was Nakakin Dai who scored earlier, everyone knew what happened.
In this situation, he was at a complete disadvantage in the paint.
Unless there was no other option, he wouldn’t pass the ball inside for Nakakin Dai to fight for it.
Soon, Nakakin Dai saw an opportunity. Jiryu Reo was waving at him.
He had originally been leaning towards Hayama Kotaro.
Jiryu Reo’s opponent was Midorima Shintarou, a guy taller than him!
This was an unexpected pass. Even if it got lost, it wouldn’t be a pity, right?
Koga Takuhai thought to himself and then passed the ball to Jiryu Reo.
If Nakakin Dai knew what Koga Takuhai was thinking, he would definitely say, "You’re a little disrespecting my hard work!"
Jiryu Reo got the ball and gave Midorima Shintarou a mischievous smile, then immediately jumped!
Midorima Shintarou saw that he was directly going for a shot and immediately jumped up to block him.
But he saw the distance between them growing!
As the distance increased, even with his height advantage, he couldn’t stop the shot!
Jiryu Reo released the ball, and it followed a perfect parabolic arc towards the basket.
“Swish!”
Perfectly accurate!
Nothing but net!
Three points!
“That fadeaway shot was amazing!”
Aomine Daiki was beaming.
“That wasn’t a fadeaway! I still don’t know what it is! But it definitely isn’t a fadeaway. There’s a difference!”
Midorima Shintarou looked serious.