After the second quarter ended, both teams entered halftime.
Shintaro Midorima let out a deep breath and glanced at Miyamoto Tokima.
When he saw that Miyamoto Tokima looked completely relaxed, without the slightest trace of nerves, his expression changed faintly. Then he followed the others toward the locker room.
Inside Shūtoku's locker room, Masaaki Nakatani looked at Shintaro Midorima's condition and asked,
"Midorima..."
Before Masaaki Nakatani could finish, Shintaro Midorima interrupted him.
"Coach, I won't give up. This is no longer just a contest between me and Tokima..."
As he spoke, Shintaro Midorima raised his head, his gaze turning incredibly firm.
"It's also about my desire to win!"
Seeing this, Masaaki Nakatani said nothing more and turned to walk out.
The rest of Shūtoku High School did not speak either, giving Shintaro Midorima a quiet space to rest.
Meanwhile, inside Kirisaki Daiichi's locker room.
Satsuki Momoi looked at Miyamoto Tokima, who seemed completely at ease, and smiled.
"Looks like Tokima isn't nervous at all."
The corner of Miyamoto Tokima's mouth lifted as he smiled and said,
"Of course. Just look at who I am."
Satsuki Momoi covered her mouth and giggled, teasing him.
"Who are you? You're the [Magic Cube], aren't you?"
The moment he heard the title [Magic Cube], goosebumps rose all over Miyamoto Tokima's body.
"Don't say it out loud like that!"
Satsuki Momoi covered her mouth and laughed. Clearly, she had found Miyamoto Tokima's weak spot.
The Kirisaki Daiichi players in the locker room were chatting and laughing as well.
Clearly, none of them were worried that Miyamoto Tokima might lose.
The atmosphere was extremely relaxed.
...
Soon, the time for the third quarter arrived, and both teams returned to the court.
"Beep! The third quarter continues!"
The referee blew the whistle to resume the third quarter.
And the flow of the game remained the same.
Miyamoto Tokima and Shintaro Midorima still stood in each other's frontcourt, waiting for the pass.
Once again, the two entered a three-point contest.
They traded shot for shot all the way until the quarter was nearly over.
With four seconds left in the game clock for the quarter, the score had reached 201 to 201.
Both of their individual scores had passed one hundred.
They had set a new record for the national tournament in Japan.
With four seconds left, Miyamoto Tokima had the chance for the final attack.
And at that moment, Miyamoto Tokima's mischievous side surfaced.
The moment Miyamoto Tokima received the basketball, he quickly shot it.
After the basket went in, only 0.7 seconds remained.
The score became 204 to 201.
In other words, if Shintaro Midorima wanted to tie the score, he had to make a full-court three.
And it had to be an alley-oop.
Because catching the ball and then shooting would definitely be too late.
Miyamoto Tokima looked at his handiwork and flashed Shintaro Midorima a wicked smile.
"It's up to you now, Midori."
Shintaro Midorima pushed up his glasses, nodded, and returned to his own backcourt.
The inbounder also changed from Kiyoshi Miyaji to Kazunari Takao.
Seeing Shintaro Midorima's movement, no one from Kirisaki Daiichi chose to interfere.
In this match, the eight other players from Kirisaki Daiichi and Shūtoku High School had become spectators.
Standing on the baseline, Shintaro Midorima took a deep breath.
Because Miyamoto Tokima's three-point shots were extremely fast, Shintaro Midorima's own shooting rhythm had also been forced to change.
Taking quick three-pointers for such a long stretch, while also making sure not to miss, had placed a heavy drain on Shintaro Midorima's mental stamina.
But he had to make this shot.
So Shintaro Midorima focused his attention completely.
Crackle!!!
He entered the Zone once again.
After entering the Zone, Shintaro Midorima did not hesitate at all. He immediately lowered into a half-crouch and entered his shooting form.
After charging for two and a half seconds, Shintaro Midorima jumped.
At that same moment, Kazunari Takao passed the basketball, sending it precisely into Shintaro Midorima's hands.
The instant Shintaro Midorima's palm touched the basketball, he released it.
The basketball drew a towering arc through the air. Then, along with the final "beep" signaling the end of the quarter, it dropped into the hoop.
Swish!
Three-pointer good.
An alley-oop, full-court, buzzer-beating three.
The third quarter ended with the score at an astonishing 204 to 204.
After the shot, Miyamoto Tokima gave Shintaro Midorima a thumbs-up.
It had to be said, Shintaro Midorima's three-pointer was truly ridiculous.
After they came off the court, Shogo Haizaki asked,
"Tokima-san, if you keep going like this, won't it end in a tie?"
Miyamoto Tokima smiled and shook his head.
"Don't worry. There's no way it'll end in a tie."
Indeed, even though they were both shooting threes, Miyamoto Tokima could control the timing slightly and make the final shot at the buzzer.
After all, they had won the tip-off and earned the right to attack first.
As long as Miyamoto Tokima had possession in the final moments while the score was tied, he was confident he could hit a buzzer-beater.
Just like the end of the third quarter. As long as Miyamoto Tokima wanted to, Shintaro Midorima would not have a chance at the final shot.
Of course, that was under the condition that Shintaro Midorima did not miss a single shot.
By the fourth quarter, the two were still trading threes, sinking shot after shot.
On the surface, there seemed to be no problem. But those who understood Miyamoto Tokima and Shintaro Midorima had already noticed that something was wrong.
Off the court, Daiki Aomine said with certainty,
"Midorima has lost."
Kosuke Wakamatsu asked in confusion,
"Why?"
Over on Kaijō's side, Ryota Kise said with a serious expression,
"Midorimacchi's shots have started grazing the rim."
Indeed, on the court, Shintaro Midorima's shots had already begun to graze the rim, and it had happened three shots in a row.
Koji Kobori asked in confusion,
"What's wrong with grazing the rim? I do that all the time."
Ryota Kise shook his head seriously.
"Midorimacchi demands a lot from his own shots. Most of them go straight in cleanly, and they usually don't even touch the net."
"But now, Midorimacchi's shots have started grazing the rim. That means..."
Over on Tōō's side, Shoichi Imayoshi said,
"His mind has wavered."
Daiki Aomine nodded.
"That's right. Midorima's mind is starting to waver."
On the court, sweat kept falling from Shintaro Midorima's forehead, and even his normally calm expression now showed a faint trace of panic.
Three straight quarters of a three-point contest had already consumed a great deal of mental energy.
And on top of that, Miyamoto Tokima had kept scoring without missing a single shot. Under those circumstances, the mental pressure on Shintaro Midorima had grown even heavier.
...
...
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