Zhong Shijie went on a shooting spree from the perimeter, but because Furen Middle School couldn't secure rebounds for second-chance opportunities, their scoring efficiency was extremely low.
Zhong Shijie scored 25 points, while Furen Middle School only managed 56 points. Zhong Shijie's points accounted for nearly half of Furen Middle School's total, but it made no difference to the overall outcome.
On Shanghai Nanmo Middle School's side, Da Yao, in his debut appearance, dominated the paint, shooting 12 of 16 from the field and 4 of 6 from the free-throw line, racking up a game-high 28 points, 20 rebounds, and 8 blocks, nearly achieving the historic feat of a 30+20+10 triple-double…
With this single game, Yao Ming became the brightest star on the East Zone court this year!
Even Zhang Wenqi, the former scoring leader for Nanmo Middle School who contributed 18 points and 6 rebounds, and Liu Wei, the core player for Nanmo Middle School who dished out 14 assists, were overshadowed by Da Yao's brilliance.
The final score was 70:56. In the closing moments, Nanmo Middle School intentionally substituted Yao Ming and Liu Wei, easing up to prevent Furen Middle School from suffering a defeat by more than twenty points…
Even so, Da Yao, Zhang Wenqi, and Liu Wei had given Zhong Shijie a brutal lesson!
Zhong Shijie had initially thought that players like Hu Weidong were rare in all of China… But in the first game of the group stage, he encountered at least two experts on par with Old Hu… This significantly impacted Zhong Shijie's confidence.
What was even more dire was that Furen Middle School's opponent in the afternoon was Weifang No. 1 High School… If nothing unexpected happened, Zhong Shijie would encounter another one this afternoon…
After the game against Nanmo Middle School concluded, Furen Middle School, having lost so badly and feeling disgraced, headed straight back to their hotel to rest, led by their coach… It was unclear if they were going back to analyze the game or to recover their energy…
In any case, their decision not to stay and watch the match between Zhuji Middle School and Weifang No. 1 High School was their biggest loss.
The last game of the morning was Zhuji Middle School vs. Weifang No. 1 High School.
Zhang Yide remained seated on the coach's bench, having long decided to stick with his "win by default" strategy, ready to see how far He Ximeng could lead this year's Zhuji basketball team.
Would it be a first-round exit in the East Zone? A top-four finish in the East Zone? Or would they break through the East Zone and reach the stage of the national finals…
With authorization from Grandpa San, He Ximeng skillfully put forth the starting lineup for this game.
Center: Yan Hui, Power Forward: Zhang Zhenpeng, Small Forward: Wang Xian, Shooting Guard: Tang Chenfeng, Point Guard: Chen Feng.
Yes, didn't Gong Xiaobin "mistakenly identify" Zhang Zhenpeng as Zhuji's ace? He Ximeng decided to go with it, planning to trick Weifang No. 1 High School with a strategy akin to Tian Ji's horse race…
Zhang Zhenpeng, who had been preparing to come off the bench, was suddenly "heavily relied upon" and felt invigorated, eager to compete with Gong Xiaobin…
He Ximeng didn't have grand expectations for the competition. As long as the starting lineup, led by Yan Hui and Zhang Zhenpeng, could hold their own against Gong Xiaobin and prevent Zhuji Middle School from falling behind, He Ximeng was confident that he could establish a winning foundation with the reserve lineup during the rotation…
When the game began, Gong Xiaobin, as expected, unleashed his full offensive power from the start. Utilizing his skilled footwork, Gong Xiaobin had Zhang Zhenpeng spinning around under the basket.
Weifang No. 1 High School steadily increased their score, while Zhuji Middle School had no good way to contain Gong Xiaobin.
But fortunately, Yan Hui's offense was steady from the beginning. After Zhang Zhenpeng drew Gong Xiaobin away, Yan Hui repeatedly took on Weifang No. 1 High School's center in one-on-one matchups under the basket and scored successfully!
Gong Xiaobin's defensive ability was actually quite good, but he couldn't withstand the play from Zhuji Middle School. Chen Feng, under He Ximeng's "secret orders," used Zhang Zhenpeng as a decoy. Each time it looked like he was about to pass to Zhang Zhenpeng, he was actually creating an opportunity for Yan Hui… He Ximeng often employed this tactic when he was on the court!
This was because Zhang Zhenpeng had a flamboyant style of play and was good at drawing attention!
While Yan Hui had a low-key style and preferred to quietly accumulate points.
As a result, throughout the game, most spectators remembered Zhang Zhenpeng's one-handed dunks and his flying put-back dunks… It gave the impression that Zhang Zhenpeng had scored many points and contributed significantly. In reality, Yan Hui, who quietly feasted under the basket and executed post-ups, scored more points.
These two contrasting styles of play could lead to disharmony within a team if not handled properly. However, under He Ximeng's coordination, they became the perfect partners.
Even though one of the partners was actually dissatisfied with his role.
"Kid, are you really your team's core player?"
"Yes, of course! Do you think I'm lying?"
"Then why does your point guard always pass to number 33 and not to you?"
"You're locking me down so tightly, how am I supposed to get the ball and score?"
"Oh, really! So it's my fault now?"
"If you've got the guts, let me go! You go defend Yan Hui, and I'll crush your team…"
While battling for position, Gong Xiaobin couldn't help but taunt Zhang Zhenpeng.
When it came to verbal sparring, Zhang Zhenpeng had never backed down from anyone. He immediately launched into a counter-attack. In any case, as long as he could draw Gong Xiaobin away for Yan Hui, Zhang Zhenpeng considered it a contribution to the team…
He Ximeng had promised Zhang Zhenpeng that he would get a chance to go head-to-head with Gong Xiaobin, just not at the beginning of the game.
On the defensive end, Zhang Zhenpeng tried his best to keep up with Gong Xiaobin's footwork, attempting to defend him one-on-one. Zhang Zhenpeng found it quite challenging… Gong Xiaobin's sharp offensive skills gave Zhang Zhenpeng a feeling of facing Liu Yudong.
However, fortunately, his teammates' defense was strong. Apart from Gong Xiaobin, Weifang No. 1 High School didn't have a stable second scoring option. This meant that Weifang No. 1 High School was gradually falling into He Ximeng's tactical strategy.
"I'll let you be arrogant for a while longer… I'll have you and Old Liu sit out later…" Zhang Zhenpeng silently encouraged himself amidst Gong Xiaobin's pressure.
Gong Xiaobin also tried to involve his teammates in scoring while he was on offense. But he found that Zhuji Middle School defended his teammates very tightly. Gong Xiaobin attributed this to it being the opening period and assumed the situation would gradually improve as the game progressed, not giving it enough attention.
Yan Hui and Zhang Zhenpeng, working together, stretched the court on both sides and used offense as defense, successfully withstanding Gong Xiaobin's strong attack in the early stages.
Seeing that the two were playing quite well, He Ximeng maintained the tempo and did not make any personnel adjustments. The two teams were essentially tied by the end of the first quarter.
Only then did He Ximeng initiate adjustments, substituting Yan Hui and Zhang Zhenpeng to rest.
On Weifang No. 1 High School's side, assuming that Zhuji Middle School had withdrawn their main players, they also quickly substituted Gong Xiaobin to rest during this period.
Little did they know, He Ximeng, rubbing his hands together, brought in the reserve lineup consisting of Qin Rui, Feng Chen, Huangfu Yanlin, and Ming Hanfei…