Chapter 1235: Chapter 1234: Of Course We Won
Ye Qiu definitely won’t take the court, but that’s not what Li Yiping thinks. Right now, there’s quite a gap in player skills between Jin University and East Sea University. If Ye Qiu doesn’t play, they could lose by more than ten points on the away court.
By then, his reputation as head coach would be completely tarnished.
"Coach Li, I said we will win, so we will win. However, I don’t need to take the court. Just follow what I tell you."
Ye Qiu said calmly.
Li Yiping still had some doubts.
However, his rules and regulations couldn’t constrain Ye Qiu now, so he could only follow Ye Qiu’s instructions. Now, Ye Qiu wasn’t even wearing the substitute player’s uniform; he just sat with Luo Yang and the others in the visiting team’s spectator stands, watching the players below practice and adapt to the venue.
At 1:45 p.m., many East Sea University students poured in, quickly filling up the seats in the gymnasium. Sitting at the front, Li Yiping guided the five home team players who were to play first.
However, his eyes frequently glanced toward Ye Qiu.
"You all watch here, I’ll go down first."
As Ye Qiu made his way to Li Yiping, the five home team players had already come off the court. As Ye Qiu sat next to Li Yiping, he said, "Coach Li, you’re a seasoned coach, are you really afraid?"
"If we lose again, my reputation is gone."
Ye Qiu didn’t understand the torment Li Yiping was going through, so he didn’t share Li Yiping’s anxiety.
"Just let them play relaxed, anyway, we’ll definitely win in the end."
"If it doesn’t work, you really have to go on the court."
Li Yiping said.
At 2 p.m. sharp, the captains of both teams stood in the center. As the referee flipped a coin, and the captain from East Sea’s side won the toss, the referee blew the whistle, and the captain of the East Sea team started with the ball. As Ye Qiu watched, it was clear that the East Sea side had more advantages.
As the first quarter was about to end, Jin University was already down by eight points.
As they wiped their sweat and came off the court, while cheerleaders brought water and towels to the Jin University players, Ye Qiu could see they were really doing their best.
Still, Ye Qiu remained completely unhurried.
"Keep playing."
Ye Qiu said.
The Jin University players now felt that Ye Qiu wasn’t anxious at all, as if losing had nothing to do with him.
And up there, Luo Yang and the others were watching anxiously. If this continued, Jin University might indeed lose.
During the 130-second player rest, Li Yiping switched out two main players and put in two substitutes. Once those two were on the court, they desperately tried to grab rebounds.
After twelve minutes, Jin University actually widened the point gap even further, trailing East Sea University by fifteen points.
If this continued, they might lose by over twenty points.
At this point, the captain of Jin University’s basketball team changed his expression and could only go to Ye Qiu and say, "Ye Qiu, I’m begging you, get on the court quickly!"
It was obvious these people couldn’t wait any longer.
"Follow me to the locker room, I have something to tell you."
The Jin University basketball players could only follow Ye Qiu to the locker room. Once inside, after changing into a fresh set of basketball uniforms, they still thought Ye Qiu would say something or teach them some technique.
But Ye Qiu said, "That’s enough. Just go hard when you play out there."
Is that all?
They hadn’t seen Ye Qiu say anything at all?
However, they hadn’t realized that compared to just now, they had regained their strength, just as they had before the game, feeling quite energetic.
How could this be?
The Jin University team players couldn’t understand.
Once those players came out, and as the third quarter was about to begin, because these main team players were full of energy, far exceeding East Sea University’s basketball players, it was like they had become different people.
They gradually closed the score gap, narrowing it by twelve points in the third quarter, with only a three-point difference from East Sea University. The Jin University players regained their confidence.
This scene left even Li Yiping puzzled. What exactly was going on?
At the start of the fourth quarter, what surprised both the East Sea University players and the audience even more was that the Jin University players quickly took a five-point lead.
The head coach of East Sea University could only call a timeout to gather the players. As he did so, Li Yiping looked at Ye Qiu, and Ye Qiu remained the same.
He didn’t know what Ye Qiu had told these players to bring about such a change.
Now Jin University players were playing with increasing vigor, their shooting accuracy getting higher and higher.
As the game resumed, East Sea University not only failed to catch up, but the score gap widened to ten points, and by the end of the game, it was about a fifteen-point difference.
Jin University made a miraculous comeback, surpassing by over fifteen points. Li Yiping and the players hugged each other in excitement to celebrate, while East Sea students were cursing their team players. Luo Yang and Ning Yun were in disbelief, wondering what had happened.
As Ye Qiu walked out, Luo Yang and the others followed him and asked, "Brother Qiu, did you teach them any secrets?"
"I didn’t say anything."
"Then how come they—"
"They have no problem with stamina, so naturally, they won."
It was then that Luo Yang noticed the Jin University players’ stamina was indeed getting better, much better than East Sea University’s team players.
When they went outside, Ye Qiu checked the time; it was just after three in the afternoon.
Now that they had won, he was ready to return to Jinling.
"You guys are leaving so soon?"
Luo Yang and his group had rarely visited, and East Sea was much more prosperous than Jinling, so they didn’t want to leave so quickly.
"Brother Qiu, we still want to hang out for a bit."
Luo Yang said.
"Then you guys go ahead. I’m going to meet some friends, and then I’ll head back."
After Ye Qiu left, Li Yiping realized Ye Qiu was already gone.
"What exactly did Ye Qiu say to you guys in the locker room just now?"
Li Yiping asked.
"Coach, he didn’t say anything. He just told us to play hard, but once we came out, we felt full of energy, not tired at all, and got back into the groove quickly."
How could that be?
Li Yiping couldn’t believe it. He felt that the team was reborn in a way; otherwise, how could they have turned the game around against East Sea University?
He couldn’t figure it out.
But now that they had won, he could finally relax.
Luo Yang and the others got into Ning Yun’s car, while Ye Qiu, in the car, called Counselor Song Ying. Song Ying asked, "How did the game go?"
"Of course we won. Remember, you owe me a kiss, and make sure to give it to me when I go back next week."