The Golden Age of Basketball

"Shui Zhong Team's center, Sunny Gan, blocked Reggie Miller of Riverside High School's layup from behind! He sprinted from the backcourt all the way to catch up!"

The TV station replayed Gan Guoyang's block in slow motion, and the commentator's usually flat voice suddenly became dramatic.

It wasn't just the CBS live broadcasters who were amazed; the Los Angeles fans at the Great Western Forum were also taken by surprise.

Miller had made a steal near the three-point line (the floor wasn't changed), and there was no one ahead in the frontcourt, while Guoyang was at that time in the paint.

But by the time Miller took the ball up to the basket, Guoyang had already sprinted like a leopard to catch up and blocked the shot from behind.

The somewhat loose, subdued atmosphere in the stadium became somewhat lively because of this play.

For Los Angeles fans used to high-level college basketball and NBA games, the level of this high school competition was indeed a bit poor.

The pace was slow, the players were short, and a zone defense made the offense and defense look sluggish. Additionally, a team comprised almost entirely of Chinese people wasn't very appealing visually.

The reason why so many people came to the Forum to watch the game was, first, because the game was of great significance, involving a rivalry between Southern and Northern California; second, because the tickets were cheap, many were complimentary tickets given to various schools and organizations by the event committee.

Sports fans seek speed, strength, and explosiveness, enjoying the accelerated heartbeat and hormone release that comes with confrontation.

A basketball game with strong technical and tactical elements is certainly a pleasure to watch, but it ultimately doesn't match the thrill of raw power.

This is why the NBA broadcast contract was only 88 million, baseball was on the decline, while the NFL could sign a contract worth 2.1 billion.

But Gan Guoyang's long-distance block was like a stone thrown into a calm pond, beginning to ripple outward gradually.

From fans to players, everyone gradually became excited.

The ball was blocked out of bounds, and possession remained with Riverbank Polytechnic High School.

They played a clever baseline inbound play, and Reggie Miller caught the ball at the corner and scored a long shot after receiving it.

Two points were still obtained. After scoring, he pointed at Guoyang, "I still got it! Your block was useless!"

Miller actually dared to provoke Guoyang openly, instantly igniting Guoyang's competitiveness.

In the last game, Guoyang had been left a little frazzled by Quentin Stephenson, so this time, he was more restrained with his words.

Now that Miller had opened this door of death, the battle wouldn't cease until victory was decided.

Guoyang signaled to Chen Xing with a look, and the two executed a pick and roll at the top.

Guoyang rolled to the basket, Chen Xing tossed the ball into the air, Guoyang caught it in mid-jump, landed and dribbled inside, easily shoving aside Riverside's center, and slammed a two-handed dunk!

The sequence was smooth and continuous; Guoyang's impact, the White interior players of Riverside High School simply couldn't withstand.

The leopard began to extend its claws.

"That's a dunk. I heard even your sister can dunk, but you can't, right?"

Guoyang knew a bit about Reggie Miller's story with his great sister.

This would be one of the themes of their "friendly exchanges" tonight.

Miller hated it when people talked about his sister, as if he had to live in her shadow his entire life.

He remembered one time when he scored 39 points in a game and excitedly asked his sister, "How many points did you score in your game," ready to brag afterwards.

But Cheryl said, "I scored 105 points," and Miller was devastated.

Now Cheryl sat courtside; she had already finished the CIF California State Championship for girls, leading Riverbank Polytechnic to an effortless victory.

This year, she would graduate from high school, having led her team to 132 wins and 2 losses over four years. Many colleges had offered her scholarships, and she could go to any school she wanted for study and basketball.

Even the national team was calling for her, this woman who could dunk in games was considered possibly the greatest female basketball player in America's history.

And her poor brother was being humiliated by a Chinese center from Northern California, with yellow skin and black hair.

Miller tried to drive to the basket in offense, directly challenging Guoyang.

But how could his slender body possibly take advantage, as he got blocked again!

This block, Guoyang slapped the ball directly into Franklin's hands.

Franklin initiated a fast break, and Riverbank Polytechnic's defensive transition was quick.

Both teams started to tighten their defense and picked up the pace in their running.

After Miller got blocked, he immediately hustled back and used his long, slender arms to swat away Franklin's counterattack layup in mid-air!

But Gan Guoyang charged from behind, grabbed the loose ball, and leaped to slam it home.

Miller couldn't defend another player in time, so he simply reached out to push Gan Guoyang.

As a result, Gan Guoyang still managed to dunk the ball in the hoop, and Miller got called for a defensive foul.

2+1, Gan Guoyang stepped up to the free-throw line.

"Damn, he can't be moved."

Miller thought a light touch would disrupt his balance and cause Gan Guoyang to miss.

But Gan Guoyang kept his balance in the air, his strength and explosive power shocked Miller.

No wonder this Chinese team made it to the finals, no wonder before the game, many people were talking about this Ah Gan.

A strong fighting spirit ignited inside Miller; he wasn't Quentin Stephenson, facing a powerful opponent only made him want to take on the challenge, never to back down.

After making the additional free throw, Gan Guoyang taunted Miller by saying his push was as weak as a girl's—of course, not the kind of girl his sister is.

And Miller didn't blindly attempt to break through inside anymore but instead sought outside scoring opportunities through collaboration with his teammates.

Xu Xun was quite effective in guarding Kevin Johnson since they were of similar heights, and Xu could rely on his physical stamina to tangle with him.

But he was much less effective against Miller, who was nearly 2 meters tall and played with a shooting style from a distance, making it hard for Xu to interfere.

The Shui Zhong Team still used a zone defense, which gave Miller more opportunities to shoot from outside; he hit three mid-range shots in a row.

His shooting got hot, and after a made basket, he pointed at Gan Guoyang and shouted, "You can't make a single shot; you idiot!"

But Gan Guoyang immediately retaliated with a long-distance shot on offense, hitting back at Miller, "You look as ugly as a cockroach when you shoot; didn't your sister teach you how to do it properly?"

The tension was rising on both sides, and the language was getting increasingly intense.

Players who talked trash with Gan Guoyang before usually got put in their place after a few rounds.

But Miller was different; even if he was down in terms of the game and stats, he only grew more determined, brave enough to take shots and talk back.

Of course, Miller had also never encountered an opponent with such sharp play and words; several times he was on the verge of throwing a punch.

But seeing Gan Guoyang's physique and the strength he felt when clashing with him, he thought better of it; a gentleman uses his tongue, not his fists.

The scoring soared in the second quarter, from a 16:16 tie all the way to 41:43, with the Shui Zhong Team leading by 2 points at the end of the first half.

Near the end of the first half, during the last offense by Riverbank Polytechnic High School, Miller confronted Gan Guoyang's help defense and made an ultra-long-distance shot.

He shot from outside the three-point line, and if it weren't a high school game, that would have been a three-pointer.

"You were just a bit short, just a little short of blocking me! Are your hands not long enough, or are your feet too slow? Are you pitying me? Why didn't you block it? Why?"

After the shot, Miller unleashed a torrent of trash talk at Gan Guoyang, who wanted to respond with a basket but time was running out in the first half.

He tossed the ball single-handedly towards the frontcourt, a full-court heave that hit the rim but didn't go in.

The entire stadium sighed; it was such a pity that the ball didn't go in.

Even Miller was dumbfounded; Gan Guoyang's one-handed flick sent the ball flying so far, and it almost went in.

The guy's power and touch were terrifying.

Unable to make the miracle shot, Gan Guoyang then vented all his frustration on Miller.

While the other players and referees were preparing to leave the court, the two engaged in a passionate word war at mid-court.

In the end, referees and teammates had to pull them apart, each heading back to their locker rooms.

Clearly, Gan Guoyang was fired up as well, and the fans on-site were thrilled.

They were even more excited for the second half of the game.

Meanwhile, some unexpected changes were taking place both on and off the court.