Chapter 132: No Basketball Without Passion (Part II)

Tang Song received the pass from the perimeter and immediately faced a double-team from the Xinjiang Youth team the moment he caught the ball with his back to the basket.

The first quarter was nearing its end. While the Fujian Youth team had kept their lineup unchanged, the Xinjiang Youth team was constantly adjusting. To compensate for their lack of height, Wang Lei had to instruct his players to be aggressive with their defensive contact. Fortunately, while Tang Song of the Fujian Youth team possessed immense physical strength and solid footwork, his free-throw shooting was only marginally better than that of Alexander Ro, the European youth player the Xinjiang squad had previously defeated.

The Fujian Youth team struggled to find their offensive rhythm, but their defense proved equally stifling for the Xinjiang Youth team.

Although the Xinjiang offense had improved slightly after Wang Lei subbed in Sun Dexun, the effect was short-lived. Once Tang Song tightened his protection of the paint, Sun Dexun’s drives lost their potency. Even when Sun managed to collapse the defense and kick the ball out to the perimeter, the Xinjiang Youth team found no easy opportunities; their opponents' defensive rotations were far too swift, a level of defensive execution that surpassed that of most professional teams.

At the end of the first quarter, the score stood at 19-15 in favor of the Fujian Youth team. This low score was a testament to the poor shooting percentage of both sides, and the lackluster display had already begun to draw jeers from the spectators.

Turgun, who had played the entire quarter, sat slumped on the bench, panting heavily. Compared to every previous game, this match was the first time he had truly encountered such formidable resistance. As the team’s perennial top scorer, Turgun had managed only four field goal attempts all quarter, missing every single one and scoring his four points solely from the free-throw line. Such a performance was hardly worthy of his reputation.

The Fujian Youth team’s defense on Turgun was all-encompassing. He was shadowed by a dedicated defender during his cuts, met with help-side defense on screens, and given zero space during rotations. Sometimes, they didn't even hesitate to hack at the ball. The intensity of their defense was clearly visible in the scratches and bruises marring Turgun's fair skin.

In the second quarter, both teams utilized their rotation squads, though Xinjiang kept Cai Aihong and Sun Dexun on the floor.

The Fujian second unit continued their aggressive defensive tactics. Their offense, however, was chaotic—a "spray and pray" approach—relying on the occasional lucky shot or forcing inside contact to draw fouls. Wang Lei and the Xinjiang Youth team were not concerned by this, but the opponent's defense continued to make things extremely difficult for them.

Cai Aihong played with great intensity after subbing in for the second quarter. Sun Dexun’s drives created excellent shooting pockets for him, and Cai, who usually struggled with physical contact, maintained his shooting rhythm well despite the heavy defensive pressure. Although his shooting percentage was lower than in previous games, he helped the Xinjiang Youth team tie and then overtake the lead within the first three minutes of the second quarter.

Wang Lei’s old captain, Yue Minghua, was well aware of the shortcomings in his bench, but he had no better options and was forced to bring Tang Song and the other starters back in early. After all, the youth team had been assembled in a rush, leaving no time to carefully refine the depth of the roster.

Wang Lei also began subbing his starters back in, but he kept Turgun on the bench. This wasn't due to a lack of trust; rather, the physical exertion in the first quarter had been immense, and the intense physical nature of the game was draining Turgun’s stamina much faster than usual.

With the starters back on the floor, the Fujian Youth team regained the advantage through Tang Song’s interior dominance. Cai Aihong picked up his second personal foul while defending Tang, but Wang Lei kept him in the game.

Turgun sat on the sidelines, furrowing his brow. His teammates had always taken care of him, and his coach had always shown him great trust, but now he found himself unable to help his team. It made him anxious; he didn't want to sit on the sidelines as a mere spectator.

"I used to worry that you’d be too overexcited when you hit the court, but in this game, I need you to be excited. I don't just mean physically, but mentally as well. You need to leverage your strengths. What are your strengths? They are speed, agility, precise shooting, and versatile passing."

Wang Lei walked over to Turgun and spoke to him.

Wang Lei’s words weren't a magical incantation, but they resonated with Turgun. He was a talented and intelligent kid, but years of isolation had made him somewhat obsessive. Sometimes this obsession worked in his favor, but other times it trapped him in a cycle of circular thinking. Right now, Turgun was fixated on trying to crush his opponent head-on. While that seemed heroic, it prevented him from playing his true game. Wang Lei wanted him to break out of that rigid mindset and use his advantages to play "heroic" basketball in a smarter way.

"Coach, I know what to do."

"Good, I believe in you. Just make the game exciting. It’s too dull right now—look, some of the fans are already leaving. Go on, and use your performance to make them stay."

With Turgun back on the floor, replacing a fatigued Sun Dexun, he brought a new dynamic to the offense.

Facing tight man-to-man defense, Turgun stopped relying solely on speed to drive. He began incorporating more directional changes and varying the tempo.

During the pre-game training, Yue Minghua had emphasized the need to lock down Turgun and ensure he didn't get going. The Fujian players had taken this to heart, but after the first quarter, they had grown somewhat complacent, as Turgun had shown nothing particularly special.

Using his tempo shifts, Turgun brought the ball across mid-court quickly. Seeing the defenders hadn't yet settled, he dished the ball to Cai Aihong on the wing and immediately cut toward him.

The Fujian defender shifted to cover, but as Turgun took the hand-off back from Cai, he immediately went into a shooting motion, drawing the defender to lunge at him.

With his hands held high, Turgun deftly pulled the ball back, then extended his arms to the right, feinting a drive.

The defender, having been fooled, turned to follow him. But to the surprise of everyone—including the fans—the quick movement was just another pump fake. Turgun pulled the ball back once more, set his feet, and released a soft shot.

The ball traced a beautiful arc and swished through the net. Turgun’s rapid-fire sequence of moves had been breathtaking. The flashy play even fooled the spectators, and as the ball dropped through the hoop, the previously bored crowd erupted into cheers. That play had been truly unexpected.