Chapter 21 - We dont need memories (1/2)

The opening ceremony went smoothly, and the information about the brackets was disclosed.

Tokiwadai only had one game today, so they headed to their locker room to discuss their first game's opponent.

Coach: ”Our opponent in Round 2 will be Kyosen Middle School, from what I have gathered about the team is that they are a balanced team, with a good offense and defense.”

The coach then explained about the information about Kyosen he had.

Shun had already decided how he is going to play when the coach told then about the National's schedule. He was going to play like a small forward should play; he was going to play offense rather than his usual supportive point guard style.

National's span for four days and every school had to play every day. The two games they had to play on Day 2 were going to be rough on the body, but what was even more worrying was that they had to play the semi-finals the next day.

So, Shun decided to switch his style to the offense. This way, the rest of the members could take it a little easy and reserve their stamina. Shun knew his body the best and knew that he could handle his current goal.

Shun turned towards Ishida with a serious face and said,

Shun: ”Ishida-senpai, I am going to play offensive the next game, so make sure to use me during the game any way you see fit.”

Ishida was a little surprised by what Shun said. Shun had already made sure that everybody knew that he wanted to play, point guard from day one he joined the basketball club. His playstyle was similar to a point guard as he made sure to pass the ball when another player could score.

So when Shun said that he was going to play offensively, Ishida was surprised, but after he thought why Shun would say that he concluded that he was trying to decrease the pressure of his teammates by making sure that there was another pure scorer on the court.

That thought bought a smile on his face.

Ishida: ”Ok, I will make sure to use you thoroughly, so look forward to it.”

Shun realized that Ishida had guessed his reasoning.

Shun: ”Yes, I will be waiting; let's show the audience, who is the boss.”

Shun and Ishida grinned at each other and looked forward to playing with the new dynamic.

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After the briefing, most of the members headed to see the Round 1 games while the others went to see what was on sale in the in-arena shops.

The schools that usually participated in Round 1 were either the ones that were making their first appearance in Nationals or the ones that had missed it for a few years.

The matches were quite fun to watch, unlike the professional games, middle school players made plenty mistakes, so it was fun for Shun to boo at them when they made a mistake, and at the same time, it was fun to cheer them on when the made a good play.

The first round ended, and now it was time for the second round to start. The seeded schools had entered the competition.

Tokiwadai had finished their warmup, and the coach had called them for the pre-game huddle.

Coach looked at the face of his players and put out a smile that showed how proud of them he was.

Coach: ”Tokiwadai had been the part of the National scene for many years, but whenever we get to the Nationals, I always say this to every Tokiwadai team on their first National game.