Chapter 125: Dad, I’ll Score
Zack patted Shuzo Nijimura on the shoulder and offered an encouraging reminder.
“Go for it. Use your changes of direction as much as possible—make him shift his center of gravity.”
Shuzo Nijimura nodded seriously.
“Thanks for the advice.”
Zack gave a small smile.
“Just make sure you don’t step onto the court and end up not scoring at all.”
...
The game continued.
The Black Emperor Dragon Team had possession.
When he saw the substitution, Dicky Anthony’s expression changed noticeably.
‘They subbed someone in? Is this guy even stronger than the last one?’
The thought made his face darken. Zack’s drives had already pushed him to his limits. If this replacement was even stronger, the pressure would be enormous.
But once the Black Emperor Dragon Team started their offense, Dicky Anthony’s thoughts shifted.
‘Why… is he weaker than the last guy…?’
Although Shuzo Nijimura blew past him with a wide, aggressive change of direction, Dicky Anthony could clearly feel it—Shuzo Nijimura wasn’t as strong as Zack.
He didn’t understand the Black Emperor Dragon Team’s intentions, but he wasn’t about to let this opportunity slip. This was a chance to close the score gap.
On the next possession, Dicky Anthony called for the ball. The moment it reached his hands, he didn’t hesitate at all and immediately unleashed [Venomous Fang].
His height of over two meters, combined with his wingspan and vertical leap, left Shuzo Nijimura completely outmatched.
Shuzo Nijimura could only watch as Dicky Anthony released the shot.
All he could do was pray that it wouldn’t go in.
Unfortunately, the ball dropped cleanly through the hoop.
Shuzo Nijimura let out a quiet sigh.
‘That kind of physical talent… it’s terrifying.’
Next possession.
Nash Gold delivered the ball to Shuzo Nijimura.
The instant he caught it, the feel of the ball in his hands was exceptionally good.
‘Huh? This touch…’
That perfect sensation made Shuzo Nijimura lose himself for a moment. Almost unconsciously, he rose up for a jump shot.
Only after leaving the ground did he realize something was wrong. This wasn’t a middle school game back in Japan.
This was a street court in the United States.
By the time he snapped back to reality, the ball had already been swatted away by Dicky Anthony.
Dicky Anthony couldn’t understand what Shuzo Nijimura had been thinking—how could he dare pull up for a jump shot while completely ignoring him?
In truth, it wasn’t entirely Shuzo Nijimura’s fault. Nash Gold’s pass had been far too comfortable.
For a brief moment, Shuzo Nijimura thought he was back at Teikō, thought the ball he caught had been passed by Seijuro Akashi…
Miyamoto Tokima froze slightly when he saw this. He couldn’t understand what Shuzo Nijimura had been thinking with that shot.
Facing a power forward who was a full head taller, with a wingspan far beyond his own, and he still dared to pull up?
In fact, Nash Gold’s ability to deliver passes like that owed a great deal to Coach Victor and the Miyamoto family’s training equipment.
It was the combination of the two that had drastically improved Nash Gold’s passing ability.
Possession changed.
The Venomous Snakes clearly realized that Shuzo Nijimura couldn’t defend Dicky Anthony.
As soon as they crossed half court, Titus Monroe passed the ball straight to Dicky Anthony.
Dicky Anthony lived up to expectations, completely ignoring Shuzo Nijimura’s defense and immediately using [Venomous Fang].
Shuzo Nijimura had no answer at all for Dicky Anthony’s [Venomous Fang].
Even when he jumped with everything he had, he was still a full hand’s length away from contesting the shot.
With no other choice, Shuzo Nijimura abandoned the contest and prepared to focus on offense.
But his hopes were quickly dashed.
Even on the offensive end, dealing with Dicky Anthony’s defense was extremely difficult.
He needed to chain together multiple large, sharp changes of direction just to break into the paint.
And once inside, Shuzo Nijimura couldn’t take a jump shot at all.
The talent Dicky Anthony possessed was simply too overwhelming.
From behind, Dicky Anthony could snatch the ball away with a chase-down block.
Left with no alternative, Shuzo Nijimura drove deeper into the paint—but waiting there was another defensive anchor: Kit Barry.
Ever since Shuzo Nijimura had broken through Dicky Anthony once to score, Kit Barry had been prepared, constantly ready to help on defense.
Against Kit Barry’s help defense, Shuzo Nijimura could still get past him.
But the time it took was enough for Dicky Anthony to recover and get back into position.
With no other option, Shuzo Nijimura passed the ball to Jason Silver, who finished the play.
After several scores like this, Kit Barry realized this wasn’t the right approach and stopped helping off Shuzo Nijimura.
All defensive responsibility fell entirely on Dicky Anthony.
But did that make things better?
No. It only made them worse.
Because Dicky Anthony noticed something—Shuzo Nijimura’s shooting release wasn’t fast.
So he gave ground, leaving Shuzo Nijimura space to shoot.
This took away Shuzo Nijimura’s ability to use big changes of direction to shift his center of gravity and explode past him.
Yet whenever Shuzo Nijimura tried to shoot, Dicky Anthony would immediately rush forward and swat the ball away.
The difference in height and wingspan was simply too great. Shuzo Nijimura posed no real threat to him.
Just like that, Shuzo Nijimura was completely sealed off on offense by Dicky Anthony, and then repeatedly punished on defense by [Venomous Fang].
A subtle change crept into Shuzo Nijimura’s mindset.
In front of Dicky Anthony, he couldn’t see even the slightest bit of hope.
Just as his mental state was on the verge of collapsing, he caught sight of his father in the stands out of the corner of his eye.
When he saw the encouraging look in his father’s eyes, his composure immediately returned.
Just as Miyamoto Tokima was about to stop giving Shuzo Nijimura offensive opportunities, Shuzo Nijimura spoke up.
“Tokima, one shot.”
Miyamoto Tokima turned around in confusion and met Shuzo Nijimura’s resolute gaze.
“One shot. If this one doesn’t go in, I won’t ask for the ball again.”
Seeing how determined he was, Miyamoto Tokima nodded and handed him the next offensive possession.
Shuzo Nijimura took the ball and faced Dicky Anthony head-on.
Knowing Shuzo Nijimura’s level, Dicky Anthony smiled faintly and offered a reminder.
“You won’t get past me. Instead of forcing it yourself, you should pass to your teammates and let them attack.”
Shuzo Nijimura paid no attention to his words.
He stared at the opponent he had never been able to break through, took a deep breath, and slowly closed his eyes.
‘Dad… I will score.’
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