He Ximeng pondered for a moment and said, "These four newcomers this year are not weak! And their average height is almost 1.95 meters... So, if we divide them into two groups by grade, the senior group won't have much of a problem, but the sophomore group will be at a disadvantage... How about this, Yan Hui and I will lead the teams separately! Yan Hui, you take Feng Chen, Tang Chenfeng, and Chen Feng as one group, and I'll take Qin Rui, Ming Hanfei, and Wang Xian as another."
"Okay, no problem! Then let's have a taste of this year's newcomers!"
With that, Yan Hui called Feng Chen, Tang Chenfeng, and Chen Feng over, urging them to warm up quickly and prepare to spar with the newcomer group.
Third Master himself, a rare sight, stepped down to officiate.
It was 4-on-4, half-court, with the first to five points winning!
Before the game started, He Ximeng offered advice to Yan Hui's team: "Zhang Zhenpeng, Huangfu Yanlin, and Fu Xinyuan all prefer to attack the basket for points... So, the best defensive strategy is a zone defense. When any one of them has the ball and drives, all four players should shrink the defense simultaneously, giving them as little opportunity for direct layups as possible... Force them to take mid-to-long range jump shots... At the same time, pay attention to rebounding! Although Zhu Ningzhen doesn't have the ability to initiate offense with the ball himself, his nose for rebounds is quite keen..."
After receiving He Ximeng's tactical guidance, Yan Hui's team successfully defended the newcomers' offense on their first possession.
Zhang Zhenpeng received a pass from Huangfu Yanlin in the left low post and attempted a post-up against Feng Chen. Immediately, Yan Hui from the right side rotated over, double-teaming Zhang Zhenpeng with Feng Chen!
Zhang Zhenpeng tried to pass directly to the open Zhu Ningzhen on the right, but Tang Chenfeng, rotating from the baseline, intercepted the pass, and possession changed hands.
Tang Chenfeng passed the ball to Chen Feng outside the three-point line, letting Chen Feng orchestrate the offense.
In a half-court game, there were typically three common tactics.
The first was to pound the ball inside to the big men. The second was for perimeter players to drive for layups or kick out passes. The third was for perimeter players to take shots off the dribble.
Yan Hui's team's core was in the paint, so Chen Feng immediately looked for Yan Hui at the edge of the key and lobbed a pass to him.
Yan Hui went to work with his back to the basket against Zhu Ningzhen, intending to force a score.
Huangfu Yanlin, who was originally guarding Chen Feng, rotated in to help Zhu Ningzhen on Yan Hui, forcing Yan Hui to pass the ball back out to Chen Feng.
Chen Feng received the pass unmarked and had an open three-point shot, but he didn't take it. Instead, he faked, jab-stepped at Huangfu Yanlin, and then drove into the paint with the ball!
Zhu Ningzhen shuffled over to defend Chen Feng's drive, and Chen Feng seized the opportunity to pass again to Yan Hui in the middle!
Facing the undersized Huangfu Yanlin, Yan Hui went straight up for a high-post shot off the glass!
Score: 1-0, Yan Hui's team scored first.
Tang Chenfeng inbounded the ball from mid-court and passed it to Chen Feng again.
Chen Feng attempted the same play, trying to pass to Yan Hui, but Zhang Zhenpeng suddenly emerged from behind Yan Hui and stripped the ball while Yan Hui was still securing it... What followed was a scramble for the ball on the floor.
In the end, Fu Xinyuan emerged victorious from the chaos, securing possession and immediately pulling out to the three-point line.
Zhang Zhenpeng stationed himself at the edge of the paint, posting up Feng Chen, and signaled for the ball!
After the previous few exchanges between the newcomers, Zhang Zhenpeng had distinguished himself, establishing a degree of authority among the four, becoming the leader of the freshmen.
Therefore, when Zhang Zhenpeng signaled for the ball, Fu Xinyuan did not hesitate. He feigned a pass to Huangfu Yanlin on the wing, but instead executed a clean bounce pass to Zhang Zhenpeng.
Zhang Zhenpeng knew that Yan Hui and the others wouldn't give him an easy one-on-one opportunity against Feng Chen, and a double-team would come quickly. Therefore, the moment he caught the ball, he began his move!
Zhang Zhenpeng faked a drive to the right, but instead leaned into Feng Chen and used a spin move to his left into the paint.
Yan Hui aggressively shuffled over from the left to defend. Zhang Zhenpeng showed no fear, took a jump step, made contact with Yan Hui, and then executed a right-handed hook shot off the glass!
Yan Hui was 2.06 meters tall and weighed 99 kilograms.
Zhang Zhenpeng was 1.95 meters tall and weighed 95 kilograms.
In comparison, Zhang Zhenpeng was at a disadvantage in both height and weight against Yan Hui. However, during the physical confrontation, Zhang Zhenpeng only suffered a slight setback... So slight, in fact, that it barely affected his shot.
The ball bounced off the glass and into the basket. Zhang Zhenpeng helped the newcomer team tie the score.
Score: 1-1!
"Go, big brother!"
When He Ximeng was not involved, Zhang Tian'ai was very supportive of her older brother, Zhang Zhenpeng.
Upon hearing Zhang Tian'ai's encouraging shouts, Zhang Zhenpeng even waved his fist at her... It was evident that Zhang Zhenpeng felt no pressure facing the upperclassmen; his mindset was relaxed and confident!
"This guy... he's a bit arrogant, but his talent is truly outstanding..."
The better Zhang Zhenpeng performed on the court, the more effective the team's reinforcement was, and the happier He Ximeng felt...