Chapter 8

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3 seconds.

3 seconds after the referee had thrown the ball in the air was all it took for Yeji's team to score their first point.

Jumping as high as she could, Yuna was able to tip the ball in the air to Yeji who was behind her.

Before the opposing players could even react, Yeji explosively passed the ball forward to Ryujin who was already 2 steps away from the ring, allowing her an easy layup, earning the team a quick 2 points.

3 seconds. 

It all happened within 3 seconds, as the opposing team were left stunned and wondering what had just happened.

The crowd roared at the realization that they had just scored a point, although no one could really quite comprehend how.

"Nice pass, captain," Ryujin smirked as she ran back to get on defense.

Yeji nodded in acknowledgement, as she took on a defensive stance, a smile still on her face. 

It was only the first play of the game but Yeji couldn't hide her excitement. 

She was having too much fun being back on the court.

By the end of the first quarter, Yeji and her team were leading by a comfortable margin of 25 - 11, and by the end of 48 minutes of play, they won by a significant point difference.

The game ended with a final score of 88 – 34 as Yeji, Ryujin and Yuna dominated the entire match, more than doubling the score of their opponents. 

The three themselves outscored the entire opposing team, with Ryujin leading after an outstanding 28 points and 8 steals while Yuna had an incredibly impressive debut performance, scoring 25 points, grabbing 16 rebounds followed by blocking 4 shots.

However, this would not have been possible without Yeji at the helm of it all.

Although she only scored a mere 10 points, the surprise came from her 26 assists, a feat never before seen in college basketball debut history.

Throughout the entire match, it was simply obvious to the crowd that the opposing team had no chance from the very start.

From the beginning, Yeji's implementation of the small ball line-up proved to be too much to handle for the opposing players who were all incredibly tall, thus making them vulnerable to speed. 

To target this weakness offensively, Yeji had trained for them to play in a formation where everyone would stay outside of the three-point line, allowing a more open space inside for either Yeji or Ryujin who could easily out-speed the opponents to score. 

If they were to encounter an obstacle inside, for example the opposing players closing in on their dribble, they had the option to pass it out to anyone who stood outside of the three point line who now had more than enough space for a wide open shot, which they had practiced over and over again in the past week. And if the opponents were to adjust to guarding the three-point line, it allowed Yeji and Ryujin to get an easy lay-up. 

Once the opponents adjusted enough, Yeji had prepared another offensive play which involved her teammates cutting inside, allowing Yeji to pass to them for an easy bucket.

It was just as incredible of a performance on the defensive end. 

Yeji suggested before the match began that instead of going the usual 1-on-1 route for guarding, it would be better to use a zone defense where players guarded a specific area of their own instead of a single player. 

It proved to be a huge factor in their win. 

Yeji knew full well that tall players lacked the ability to knock down three pointers which was partially why she wanted Tzuyu, Doyeon and Yuna to be able to do so the other team wouldn't be able to exploit this weakness. 

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