The Golden Age of Basketball

The bus carrying the Shui Zhong Team players arrived at Fremont High School at six in the evening, slowly driving into the parking lot of the gym.

Due to traffic congestion, it had to be led by a police car clearing the way in front.

The incessant flashing of red and blue police lights, the black youths hanging on the chain-link fence yelling at the vehicles, and the faintly discernible chants coming from the gym all combined with the dark red twilight of Oakland to form a rather terrifying image—Shui Zhong Team seemed like new prisoners being delivered to a prison, awaiting the fate of being roughed up by the old inmates.

Most of the players showed signs of nervousness on their faces, with even the usually proud Franklin biting his lower lip, staring blankly at the Oakland youths outside the bus window.

Some people were hurling trash talk at Franklin, and although it wasn't very clear, it definitely wasn't anything nice.

Getting off the bus, without the barrier of the bus windows, the noisy clamor reached them, and upon entering the gym, the sound was amplified at least threefold.

While changing clothes in the locker room, everyone was silent. Beelman tried to rally the troops but didn't know what to say.

These guys dared to come here to play the game, already bringing tremendous courage, and he hadn't expected this match would turn into a duel between two cities.

It was no doubt that the media had fanned the flames, and without other sports to distract attention, the contest between two high school teams had somehow become the center of attention.

The players changed into their uniforms and went to warm up on the court, where the Fremont High School players had long been waiting in tight formation—their entire team was Black, each one tall and agile.

The fans in the stands ceaselessly spouted trash talk at Shui Zhong Team's players, due to the pre-game hype repeatedly blown out of proportion, making two teams, which had no grievances or hatred, suddenly become bitterly opposed.

This was a tremendous test of the players' mentality. Just before the game was going to start, Beelman gathered the players together, encouraging everyone to forget the environment and fully immerse themselves into the game.

He specifically asked Gan Guoyang, the team's backbone, "Gan, are you scared?"

Gan Guoyang shook his head and said, "I won't be afraid of enemies in front of me, because my eyes behold no foes. They won't disturb my peace of mind. I'm fully prepared, with no room for negotiation, baby. Unless you kill me before the game."

Xu Xun added, "That's what Bruce Lee said."

Beelman: "Fuck off with using celebrity quotes to show off."

Everyone laughed, and the atmosphere eased up a bit.

Stepping onto the court, the game was about to officially begin, Gan Guoyang and his opponent jumped for the ball.

The center from Fremont High School was as tall as Gan Guoyang, 6 foot 9, the first opponent of equal height Gan Guoyang had met in a game thus far.

During the jump ball, this center named Herbert forcefully collided with Gan Guoyang mid-air, managing to tap the ball first, and Fremont Tigers began their offense.

"I'll be watching you, Chinaman."

Gan Guoyang couldn't be bothered with such provocation; he found it unworthy to waste his breath on such uncultured talk.

The offense of Fremont High School started quickly, their key player was the small forward Henry Turner.

Turner received the ball close to the three-second area, and using back-to-basket footwork, bullied Franklin towards the inside—Franklin's main task tonight was to guard Turner.

Turner, with a better physique and skills in hand, used his body to get closer to the basket and, as Gan came over to help defend, passed the ball to a teammate on the left baseline, who caught it and made the mid-range shot.

Fremont High School scored the first point with a common tactic of cutting through the middle and passing to the baseline.

It was Shui Zhong Team's round. Chen Xing had gradually grown into a more reliable point guard.

However, tonight as he crossed half court dribbling, Gan Guoyang was still ready to receive the ball on the side.

Fremont really double-teamed Chen Xing, who passed the ball to Gan Guoyang.

Gan Guoyang received the ball at a high position, dribbled to adjust, and then sent it to Franklin, who was cutting along the baseline.

Franklin also attempted a baseline jump shot from a zero-degree angle, but it missed, eliciting a chorus of boos from the crowd.

Gan Guoyang couldn't grab the offensive rebound on this shot, and the Tiger Team launched a counterattack.

Employing a nearly identical strategy, Turner burst through the middle and passed the ball to a player on the baseline.

The player on the baseline either took a shot or opted to drive, while splitting the middle for a handoff was the most basic offensive play.

This time, the receiver chose to drive, but Gan Guoyang had already hastened back on defense and successfully disrupted the opponent's layup.

The Tiger Team's center grabbed the offensive rebound and tried to score over Gan Guoyang, but he traveled, turning the ball over to the Shui Zhong Team.

A collective sigh filled the venue, proving that this Number 11 Chinese player was definitely talented.

As the game unfolded, the audience realized that the Shui Zhong Team had found their footing, exchanging blows with the Tiger Team.

Although the Shui Zhong players were visibly shorter and slower, they had Number 11, who was excellent at defense and controlling the rebounds.

They played a tight zone defense, quickly falling back if an offensive play failed to regroup and denying the Tiger Team any fast-break opportunities.

Gan Guoyang, from the start, even gave up on offensive rebounds, frequently positioning himself at the high post to screen for teammates, create offensive space for Franklin, and to facilitate his quick transition back on defense.

This was the game strategy devised by Beelman beforehand; he knew they had to hold firm on defense given the disparity in strengths between the two sides.

The individual abilities of the Fremont High School players were indeed strong, each able to initiate offense on his own, but they grew impatient under the zone defense.

Eager to quickly overcome their opponents and end the qualifying match early, they appeared restless and overeager.

Several ill-advised shots and rough defensive fouls meant that although they dominated the game, the score remained close.

At Fremont High School's first timeout request, the score was 10:11, with the Tiger Team leading by just a single point.

Besides missing the starting shot, Franklin later scored three consecutive baskets, tallying 6 points. Gan Guoyang made one putback and hit two free throws; together, they amassed 10 points.

The others strived to do their job, defending with all their might. The team's zone defense, honed over two months of Beelman's training, was extremely effective.

Though physically weaker than the African Americans, the Chinese youngsters had sharp minds and united well, not overreaching themselves. The complex zone defense became exceptionally solid in their hands.

Having withstood the opponents' initial onslaught, the gloom of "Prison" and the students' noise were no longer issues.

Back on the court, Gan Guoyang made a block against the driving Henry-Turner, secured possession, and made a long pass to the frontcourt.

Franklin caught the ball, recognizing the opportunity had arrived, he sped up, charged, leaped, and dunked with both hands!

Shui Zhong Team 12:11, they had taken the lead!

No one expected that the Tiger Team's timeout would result in this outcome.

Not only did they fail to score, but they also conceded a counterattack and fell behind for the first time.

The Shui Zhong bench players stood at the sidelines, their cheers sounding rather piercing in the much quieter "Prison."

As they returned to the court, Franklin and Gan Guoyang high-fived; Franklin thought to himself, it's great being teammates with this guy.