pinnacle of basketball

Chapter 343 The Last Game

More than 80% of the audience came for UCLA, and when the tickets were sold, the sponsors matched each ticket with a T-shirt, which was the color of the team they supported.

UCLA is a classic gold and white.

The main color of Marquette University was originally yellow, which is similar to the color of UCLA. However, because UCLA has a more glorious history than Marquette, and the current NCAA is held in Los Angeles, UCLA is also considered a home game. Therefore, in the final selection of jerseys, Marquette University made a "concession" and will wear black.

Because there is a huge contrast in the colors, the support rates of the two teams can be seen at a glance in the auditorium.

Occasional black spots can be seen amidst a sea of ​​golden yellow.

UCLA took advantage of the "home field" to the extreme, and such a disparity in support rate was clearly displayed in front of the two teams. No matter how strong the psychological quality is, people's hearts will fluctuate.
"No, this game is not allowed to be played." After seeing such a disparity in approval ratings, the players of Marquette University were a little flustered, and they already had the idea of ​​retreating before the game started.

Fortunately, there are still people with excellent psychological quality in the team, the man who lifted Marquette to the finals.

William's face was very calm. He had thought about such a scene. After all, the opponent was a super giant with 15 NCAA championships in their hands, and they had only won the championship once. Reasonably, they all deserved such support.

However, the support rate of Marquette University was beyond William's expectations. Although the audience supporting them was scattered and scattered, they roughly estimated that there were at least a few thousand people. This kind of support rate is quite good for an "away" team. Do you know how far is the distance between UCLA and Marquette University?

Not to mention the NCAA games, even the NBA games, the attendance rate of the away team is just that, the fan base is only a part, and the distance is the biggest factor that hinders away fans from watching the game on site.

Those fans who can travel thousands of miles to the scene to support the visiting team, although the number is large, the power they bring to the players is not inferior to the home team.

If this is Marquette's home court, presumably the approval rating will be another scene.

Old K looked at the team members around him and smiled lightly. After all, they were a group of children.

As a legendary coach of the NCAA, old K has given his whole life to the NCAA. He can be the one who has witnessed the growth and glory of the NCAA, or he has created these brilliance.

He has coached the NCAA for more than 40 years and has served as the coach of seven teams, five of which have won the NCAA championship. UCLA is one of them. As for the other two teams that have not won the championship, one is Wake Forest University, and the other is Marquette University, which has just entered the finals.

He hopes that Marquette can successfully win the championship and make Wake Forest "the only one."

In the 2027-2028 season, the old coach K served as the head coach of UCLA. Although it was only one year, he successfully led the team to the top. Creativity took over the team and won the championship. After winning the championship, the old K chose to leave UCLA and passed the coach to Barton.

After that, Old K moved to Marquette University. However, for a long time, he was unable to help the team out of the predicament. The outside world questioned that he was old and his coaching philosophy was no longer suitable for contemporary basketball.

William is not outstanding in the talented USA, but his presence reminds old K of an old man, the most satisfying player in his coaching career: Kobe Bryant.

Old K and Kobe had an intersection when they were in the national team. He never hesitated to praise Kobe in front of the media, and said that Kobe is the best player he has ever coached.

At that time, there were star players like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Kevin Durant.

But the old K loves Kobe, which is very similar to Popovich.

William reminded Old K of Kobe Bryant, in terms of stature and technical characteristics, he was somewhat similar, especially his unyielding and almost stubborn character.

The "Mamba spirit" is almost extinct in the NBA. Many players keep muttering about the Mamba spirit, but in real time, few people can do it, and those players who are dubbed "Mamba successors" have the same achievements.

Old K has coached Kobe, he knows what the real Mamba spirit looks like.

He felt it deeply from William.

From the moment he met William, Old K announced one thing: If William graduated from university or entered the professional arena, then his coaching career would be over.

Willian will be the last "star" he has ever coached.

This year is the third year that old K and William have met, and they have reached the final.

But regardless of whether he wins or loses this game, Old K will leave the game because William announced that he will participate in the draft after the season.

Therefore, this game is also the curtain call of the old K coach.

In this regard, he showed calmness after going through the storm.

His 43-year coaching career is enough for him to make a perfect curtain call.

In fact, William announced last year that he wanted to play in the NBA, but was stopped by Coach K because the team was eliminated in the second round of the knockout round. Old K felt that it was not the best time for William to participate in the draft.

Old K wants him to play for another year. If the team's record improves, his ranking will naturally rise, which can be regarded as a continuation of his coaching career.

Old K hates failure more than anyone else, he wants to draw a successful conclusion to his career, he wants to bring Marquette and William a championship.

William followed the old K's advice and fought for another year. As a result, he made it all the way to the finals in the lower half, and William's draft ranking also rose to the third pick in the first round, second only to Oscar and Jackson.

If Marquette University wins the final, William will most likely overtake Oscar.

Old K looked at William with gentle eyes. He had kept such eyes for some years. As he got older, old K's eyes lost a lot of vigor.

William is encouraging those frustrated teammates, "Don't care about the number of spectators, we just need to hit every ball well, and we will "swallow" their golden ocean with victory."

His speech is sonorous and powerful, which can always bring strength to his teammates.

"The last game!" William put his hand in the middle.

Teammates stacked their hands on it one after another, "No regrets!"

The words "last game" deeply shocked old K. Yes, this is his last game, William's last game, and many Marquette University players' last game. Some people are facing graduation, survival, and society, but this is not the end. After the game, they can still continue their love for basketball in their own way.

(End of this chapter)