The moment Yuan Zhangyang left the court, the evenly matched game was immediately broken.
This was the gap in the team's heritage and the gap in squad depth.
Yuan Zhangyang was not weak, and in this year's Zhejiang division, he should also be among the top-tier point guards. However, among Changxing Middle School's 12 players, only Yuan Zhangyang's strength could be ranked among the provincial first-tier players. Zhuji Middle School, on the other hand, had at least three such players… and the true strength of He Ximeng and Zhang Zhenpeng likely far exceeded the standards of "top Chinese high school basketball players."
After barely resisting for three quarters, Changxing Middle School collapsed like a defeated army… The head coach voluntarily benched the entire starting lineup, conceding the match.
For the entire fourth quarter, Yuan Zhangyang sat on the bench, his expression dejected.
He Ximeng did not play again in the fourth quarter, and even Yan Hui and Zhang Zhenpeng only played for two or three minutes.
He Ximeng focused on giving Zhu Ningzhen, Huangfu Yanlin, and Fu Xinyuan, three first-year prodigies, more experience in the national competition.
As for Zhang Zhenpeng, He Ximeng did not treat him as a first-year freshman at all, but rather as the team's third core player.
81:62, Zhuji Middle School defeated the new force Changxing Middle School by nearly 20 points. Their sharp offensive ability put immense pressure on other opponents in the stands!
He Ximeng recorded a game-high 8 assists in this match, but only scored 8 points! With 8 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals, his stats seemed modest and meager compared to Zhuji's other two core players.
Yan Hui scored the second-highest 18 points for the team, along with 10 rebounds and 5 blocks.
Zhang Zhenpeng scored a team-high 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks, becoming famous overnight!
All teams were inquiring about information regarding Zhuji Middle School's number 23, and when they learned that Zhang Zhenpeng was still a first-year freshman, the level of shock was even more intense…
In fact, He Ximeng had instructed Zhang Zhenpeng to be low-key before the game, but it was completely ineffective.
Zhang Zhenpeng, after promising to be well-behaved off the court, immediately disregarded it once he stepped onto the court, going all out without any understanding of what "low-key" meant…
He Ximeng had mixed feelings of love and hate towards Zhang Zhenpeng. Although he was not "obedient" and did not follow He Ximeng's "low-key" strategy, he played desperately on the court and provided tangible support to the team.
Third Grandpa even praised Zhang Zhenpeng's performance in this game. What else could He Ximeng say? He could only control Zhang Zhenpeng's output by managing his playing time in subsequent games… to prevent him from overexerting himself and incurring unnecessary injuries.
This was only the first game of the group stage, what was the rush?
Changxing Middle School's Yuan Zhangyang scored a game-high 27 points, but it was to no avail. Being dominated by Zhuji Middle School had a significant psychological impact on him.
The morning matches concluded with the game between Zhuji Middle School and Changxing Middle School.
The first match: 78:62, Hangzhou No. 4 High School defeated Tiantai Middle School.
The second match: 69:68, Ou Hai Middle School snatched victory from Jinyun Middle School.
The third match: 81:62, Zhuji Middle School defeated Changxing Middle School.
All six teams returned to the hotel for a meal, followed by a two-hour rest. The competition would resume at 2 PM.
While eating together at the middle school, Cui Tianci brought the latest match results from Group A.
Huipu Middle School played first in Group A and defeated Qingxi Middle School by a large margin, 80:59.
Ningbo No. 4 High School played second in Group A and easily defeated Yunhe Middle School, 77:66.
Caota Middle School played third in Group A and narrowly defeated Tianjia Bing Middle School, 72:68.
The first match of the afternoon was Zhuji Middle School vs. Jinyun Middle School.
Jinyun Middle School had narrowly lost to Ou Hai Middle School by one point in the morning match. This game against Zhuji Middle School was essentially their do-or-die match. If they lost, they would essentially be out of contention for the next round. 138 Reading Network.
Therefore, Jinyun Middle School displayed a strong desire to win from the very beginning of the game.
Jinyun Middle School's ace player, shooting guard Fu Zaifeng, immediately entered his strongest mode upon taking the court, continuously attacking Zhuji Middle School's basket with mid-range jump shots.
Since Fu Zaifeng did not directly drive to the basket, Yan Hui could only stand by and watch from the paint. Tang Chenfeng, lacking Fu Zaifeng's height and leaping ability, could not adequately contest Fu Zaifeng's jump shots even if he kept up with his pace, as Fu Zaifeng's pull-up jumper was too quick for him to block.
Thus, from the start of the game, Jinyun Middle School, playing as the visitors, took control of the court.
Seeing that the situation was not good, He Ximeng on the sidelines initiated substitutions early.
He Ximeng replaced Tang Chenfeng with Zhang Zhenpeng and had Wang Xian play shooting guard to contain Fu Zaifeng!
Tang Chenfeng was offensively strong but defensively weak, his best skill being outside three-pointers.
Wang Xian was defensively strong but offensively weak, excelling at individual defense.
This adjustment yielded immediate results…