Halftime of the match.
42-33 current score.
"And halftime begins after an electrifying first half," Jerry began to say with his faithful microphone in hand, narrating to the spectators in the arena.
"You can say that again, Jerry; it was a first half full of baskets and fast offenses between both teams," Logan followed.
"For those who just arrived or missed the first half, let me tell you that you missed a great first half that ended with the Royals team being up by 9 points," Jerry said, looking directly at the scoreboard where the red numbers showed the situation.
"Clearly it is a great advantage on the part of the Royals, but let me tell you, Jerry, that if one player hadn't gone out in the first minutes of the 2nd quarter, the lead would have been much greater," Logan interrupted, sharing a knowing smile with Jerry, who quickly returned the smile, knowing exactly which player he was referring to.
"Certainly, Logan; Aaron Reed was quite a revelation in this tournament, especially because of the way he is playing the match so far." While he said that, the screens quickly began to show Aaron's data so far:
Aaron Reed (PF)
Points: 14
Blocks: 3
Steals: 1
Assists: 4
"A solid performance and well above someone who is barely between 14-15 years old," Logan finished saying into the microphone while the reactions of the spectators were also immediate.
"Wow, that kid is from another planet," Clark said to his friend with whom he had come to see the game. "It doesn't even look like he's playing seriously," his friend responded after such a brilliant performance by the Royals' number 15.
"I told you it was a good idea to come see this tournament," Clark changed the subject, giving him a look of self-sufficiency, knowing it had been his idea to come here to watch the games.
"I don't know what you're talking about," his friend answered brusquely, refusing to accept that his friend was right, knowing he would rub it in his face all week if he did.
"Whatever you say," was the last sarcastic comment Clark made to his friend while both stood up and headed outside to look for something to eat and smoke before the second half begins.
While both stood up, their discussion moved toward other topics like NBA games. "Are you going to watch the game tonight, Lakers against Suns?" Clark asked, remembering the most important game that was going to be tonight.
"Kobe vs. Nash, I wouldn't miss it for anything," his friend responded excitedly, finally remembering the match that was going to take place tonight.
"The usual place?" was Clark's next question, referring to the bar they used to frequent to watch the games and hang out after work.
"Don't even doubt it," his friend said with a smile while both continued discussing who would win and how many points Kobe would manage to make tonight in Phoenix.
On the other hand, in another area of the court, two scouts were discussing among themselves after seeing that first half of the game.
"He has improved," Phil said to his friend who was by his side with his eyes fixed on his notebook while writing frantically with his pen.
"In 그 practice he showed flashes, but I never thought he would explode in this way," Larry added, finally taking his eyes off his notebook.
They were the same Phil and Larry who had been present at the Christ the King selection tryouts months ago. If one paid attention to the notebook Larry carried between his legs, they could see a brief report he had made of Aaron Reed based on what he had seen so far:
Aaron Reed Evaluation
"An exceptional hybrid for the class of 2013. Plays the 4 and the 5 with equal efficiency. High basketball IQ (veteran mentality). Shows excellent passing vision from the high post and can protect the rim as a secondary defender."
Stars: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
This was the report he had written so far with everything he had seen and remembering the performance of the same boy months before.
"Three stars," Phil whistled softly, reading out of the corner of his eye the evaluation and preliminary report Larry had made about Aaron Reed.
"Not bad for a freshman," Phil said, slightly impressed.
"This is just my analysis being conservative," Larry said, giving Phil a serious look.
"Are you thinking of giving him 4 stars?" Phil asked curiously with a smile that said "You're joking, right," but seeing the serious expression on Larry's face, Phil's smile slowly disappeared from his face.
"5 stars!!" Phil couldn't help but shout with incredulity, believing his friend and rival had a screw loose.
"Because you're not seeing what he's doing on the court, right?" Larry asked with a twisted smile on his face at his friend's expression.
"Besides, he wouldn't be the only one; in Chicago, there seems to be someone just like him," Larry shared with Phil, remembering what a friend of his who was a scout for CSU had told him.
"Once he is in his third year, there's going to be a fight for him," Phil couldn't help but sigh, seeing also how throughout the stadium they weren't the only scouts present.
He recognized some who also worked for universities in New York and the surrounding areas, but he also saw others he didn't recognize but identified at first glance because they looked like they were writing in notebooks and taking notes quickly. And Phil didn't need to be a genius to know who they were writing their reports about and who was the objective of all those universities.
"Worried?" Larry couldn't help but laugh seeing how Phil deflated seeing how Aaron Reed was starting to make a name for himself in high school basketball.
"Not at all; we Huskies have the capital to attract great talent," Phil said with self-sufficiency, proud of his school's team.
"Seriously?" Larry asked again. "Even to compete with Kansas, Duke, or North Carolina?" he finished saying, causing Phil's proud countenance to waver slightly upon hearing three of the current great powers of college basketball.
"And you? Don't you have any aspirations for him?" Phil asked, this time directing the questions toward his friend who was calmly waiting for the game to resume.
"I know Fairfield doesn't have the reputation to attract him," Larry said, slightly disappointed, knowing for a fact that a prospect with Aaron Reed's potential wouldn't choose Fairfield as a first option.
"For the moment, I only came to evaluate Maurice," he decided to end the conversation quickly and concentrate on the player for whom he was present here.
But what Phil didn't know, and Larry kept to himself, is that he was negotiating a new job opportunity with a better team than Fairfield, but it was better not to mention it, knowing that a rumor like that could spoil the deal.
Leaving their discussion, both like the rest of the spectators paid attention again to the court as halftime had come to an end and the game was about to enter the 3rd quarter of the game.
Coming out through the arena tunnel, both teams quickly took their positions under the insistence of the referee. Without saying any word, the referee quickly handed the ball to Maurice, knowing the possession was for the Royals, and bringing the whistle to his mouth, he blew it to indicate the game.
Without losing any second, Maurice made a pass toward Dominykas, who quickly returned it to him so the team would deploy toward the Vikings' side of the court. Quickly Maurice reaches the perimeter of the hoop and with a quick dribble barely gets past Sidney to be able to penetrate the paint and jump with the goal of getting a dunk.
Unfortunately, he was quickly blocked by Brooks, who was attentive to Maurice's movements to jump at the right moment and block the shot, to then pass the ball quickly to Jeff to organize the play.
Faced with that performance, Larry could do nothing but shake his head in a sign of exasperation and disappointment. "He sticks to the ball too much," Phil said, giving his verdict.
"I know," was the only thing Larry could say, knowing firsthand Maurice's problems.
"Are you still thinking of offering him a scholarship?" Phil asked, already knowing the answer. "Despite the fact that he is problematic?" Phil continued asking, knowing firsthand the history Maurice had.
"You know Fairfield is not exactly a competitive school," Larry said with regret. "Players like Maurice, with talent but lack of discipline, are the best the team can aspire to," Larry finished explaining without turning his head at any moment, concentrating completely on the game.
While both discussed, the match continued developing quickly; at that moment the Vikings team was in possession of the ball while they quickly played a continuous pick and roll, heading rapidly toward the Royals' hoop.
In the process, the ball was quickly received by Jeff who, with great speed, performed a euro-step trying to cut toward the interior of the basket while trying to go through the player in front of him, who was Maurice.
Maurice, without thinking much, quickly followed Jeff's movements, causing both to collide with each other, but not before Jeff released the ball causing it to enter the basket and the referee blew his whistle clearly indicating a foul.
"2+1," everyone thought upon hearing the referee's whistle and how he granted a free throw to the Vikings team, while Maurice quickly headed toward the referee, exasperated.
"It wasn't a foul!!" he said in a deep voice, controlling himself as much as he could with the veins in his neck bulging in a sign of anger.
"Yes it was," said one of the Vikings players, standing up to Maurice, who was in no mood for that.
"Get out of here, useless," he said, brusquely pushing the player in front of him, causing him to move back a few steps to then, with the same fury as Maurice, push him back.
Thus provoking a discussion and clear signs of a fight that, before it could intensify, both were pushed by their respective teams, separating them before the matter escalated further.
"Let go of me," Maurice barked, taking his teammates' hands off him, having already calmed down a bit, and even more so upon seeing the glaring look Coach Arbitello was directing in his direction.
"I screwed up," Maurice thought, seeing how the coach was practically throwing daggers at him with his eyes.
Seeing that the situation had calmed down, the referee simply threw warnings to each of the players on the court to then pass the ball to Jeff to take his free throw, which he scored without any setback.
After that, it was the Royals' turn to inbound, but before that, one of the team's substitutes was seen going toward the scorers' table in a clear sign of a substitution; as soon as the announcement came out, a cold look settled on Maurice's face.
Barrows out.Lincoln in.
Seeing how they had taken him out of the game and the look the coach was giving him, grinding his teeth, Maurice quickly went to the chair to sit down while Lincoln quickly entered the court.
"We'll talk later," was the only thing he could hear from the coach in his direction while he covered his face with the towel, knowing the game was over for him.
After that the game continued, but by removing Maurice's offense from the game, the Vikings little by little began to cut the lead they had, which Coach Arbitello did not take long to realize, already thinking of ways to avoid that.
Quickly with an idea in mind, he addressed Artie. "Have Dominykas come out and have Aaron move to the center position," he said, causing Artie to turn toward him surprised.
"Are you sure?" he asked doubtfully, knowing that he initially planned to move Aaron to 그 position little by little.
"We need the ball to move more among the players and for someone to share the load of organization with Corey," was Coach Arbitello's reasoning.
Seeing the determined look of his friend, Artie did not doubt one second more and with a determined look quickly began to make the arrangements while the game continued developing on the hardwood.
Authors thought's
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