Miyagi's pass in the previous possession had been ineffective, so this time the ball went to Nango. He dribbled toward the wing, signaling for Rukawa Kaede to set a screen.
But Rukawa was already one step ahead.
As Nango approached, Horiuchida prepared to switch—but at that exact moment, Rukawa suddenly cut hard toward the basket.
Seeing the opening, Nango immediately lobbed the ball up.
Rukawa could have pulled up for a jumper, but he didn't. He hadn't yet faced Morishige Hiroshi in this long game—and now, the opportunity finally came.
After observing for so long, Rukawa already knew: directly clashing with Morishige was unwise. Skill would decide this battle.
He lowered his body, burst forward, and jumped from outside the restricted area, aiming to glide past Morishige in the air for a soft, banking layup.
A perfect idea—
But he still underestimated Morishige Hiroshi's sheer size.
As Rukawa tried to glide past, his left shoulder slammed into Morishige's massive body. His upper body visibly halted in mid-air, the ball wobbling in his right hand. In the end, he could only toss it up weakly.
Kiyota raised an eyebrow. "Eh? Isn't that a foul?"
Coach Takato remained stern. "Morishige was standing his ground. No downward motion."
Maki glanced at the referee. "He probably considers that normal contact. If so, the game is only going to get rougher from here."
With Morishige leaving the rim to challenge Rukawa, Meihou's interior defense relied solely on Kawashima. Nango boxed him out tightly, allowing Sakuragi to grab the offensive rebound with ease.
But the moment Sakuragi went back up—
Smack!
Morishige lunged back into the paint and got a fingertip on the ball.
"Damn it!"
Sakuragi tried to chase the ball, but Morishige boxed him out, blocking his path entirely.
Rukawa retrieved the loose ball and fired a mid-range jumper. Morishige reacted instantly, raising one thick arm.
Smack!
He didn't block it, but the pressure was enough—the ball rimmed out.
Hikoichi wiped cold sweat from his forehead. "R-Rukawa Kaede actually missed from that distance?"
Uozumi folded his arms. "Morishige's pressure is insane."
Sendo leaned his cheek on his palm, speaking casually, "And he's still getting warmed up."
In the first half, Morishige had held back to avoid foul trouble.
Now, with four fouls still to give—and with the referee's "leniency"—he finally unleashed his natural defensive instincts.
After disrupting Rukawa's shot, Morishige snagged the rebound over all three Shohoku players.
"Tch!"
"Damn… that fatty!"
Frustration grew on Rukawa's and Sakuragi's faces. Based on this single possession alone, Morishige had already seized control of the entire paint.
Horiuchida clenched his fists. "Nice one, Morishige!"
Morishige grinned, and Kawashima patted his shoulder. "Keep it up!"
Hayama energized the team, "We can't rely only on Morishige! Move! This is where we start catching up!"
"Roar!"
"It's all on you, Morishige!"
Their morale spiked, relieving Coach Murai—though with the score still behind, he remained standing.
"Coach… should I go in now?"
Akagi couldn't hold back anymore. He had rested long enough—too long—especially after seeing Morishige's dominance.
Coach Anzai didn't want to send Akagi in yet, but he lacked a strong reason to delay. "…Go warm up first."
Meihou's next possession began.
Hayama again called for a pick-and-roll with Morishige, wanting to see if Shohoku still planned to leave him alone.
Just like earlier, Sakuragi and Miyagi doubled Morishige, leaving Hayama wide open.
This ticked him off.
"Heh… do they really think I'm that useless?"
But he didn't force a shot to prove anything. Instead, he drove inside for a closer look.
Immediately, Mitsui and Rukawa collapsed into the paint.
Hayama hesitated—then kicked the ball out to Horiuchida.
Shohoku's defense was scattered. The Meihou perimeter had plenty of space.
Horiuchida received the ball and fired a three-pointer—but the result was disastrous.
It didn't even touch the rim.
"Air ball?!"
Shohoku exchanged surprised glances.
Was Meihou's perimeter really this weak?
Morishige was furious—he had fought through the double team for a rebound, only for his own teammate to provide such a… "decisive" outcome.
Hayama gritted his teeth but comforted him, "Don't mind it. Next time, aim first."
Horiuchida blushed and nodded. "…Sorry."
Even though everyone knew it was an accident, an air ball at this moment was undeniably a blow to morale.
Meanwhile, Nango glanced at Akagi warming up.
This lineup won't last much longer.
They needed to widen the lead before Akagi returned.
If Akagi knew Nango was internally treating him like a "burden," he might cry on the spot. But right now, all Akagi thought was:
Nango! Hold on until I get back!
After a quick series of passes, the ball returned to Nango.
Rukawa's previous cut had created good spacing, so Nango once again moved toward the right wing to see what Rukawa might do this time.
But Horiuchida, desperate to redeem himself, glued himself to Rukawa. There was no room for a cut.
So Rukawa set a solid screen.
It drew Horiuchida's attention, but Kawashima remained unmoved. He knew he couldn't keep up with Nango's first step, so he guarded the three-point line's interior, waiting for Morishige's help.
But that also meant—
Nango had a free three-pointer.
He hadn't taken many until now.
But with their lead needing to grow before Akagi re-entered—
He no longer held back.
Kawashima stepped up, but the gap was too big to bother Nango.
Nango rose.
Released.
Splash.
The shot dropped cleanly.
Shohoku extended the lead to 57–45.
Coach Murai slapped his thigh in frustration, but he didn't adjust the defensive scheme. After all, Nango rarely shot threes.
His frustration only grew because…
That shot went in.
And he would soon regret not adjusting his defense on Nango.