The Way of the Center

At ten o'clock in the morning, it was the end of get out of class at Iowa State University. At this time, due to the large number of people, the campus and dormitory buildings suddenly became noisy. It was after hearing these noises that An Jie slowly opened his eyes. own eyes.

After experiencing that game yesterday, the Cyclones players and coaches rushed back to Ames overnight. Originally, almost all physical strength was exhausted during the competition, and the long-distance running made everyone feel even more exhausted. It just so happens that there is no class, no training, and no competition today, so An Jie can rest until now.

On the return bus yesterday, all the players bowed their heads in silence, only Ricard stood at the front and encouraged his players.

"We can definitely go to March Madness! We are one of the best teams in the Big 12, and March Madness is for teams like us."

However, after the defeat, the players did not react much to it. No one can say for sure what is not 100% sure.

Although there is no training today, everyone still has to gather in the gymnasium in the afternoon. Because today, Iowa State will find out whether it will qualify for the March Madness tournament.

Picking up the phone, An Jie found that there were seven or eight text messages on it. Among them were Wu Hua's, his father's, and comforting text messages from various friends. However, there was a name of the letter that An Jie did not think of, and that was Catherine.

"That little girl, you really care." An Jie smiled slightly at the phone screen, and it was the first time An Jie smiled after losing the game yesterday.

"Dad, why are you so sad? I think you are more sad than those players." Catherine looked at her father who was even cooking with a sad face, really puzzled.

"Hey, you don't have a little bit when you see your hometown team lose a key game..." The bearded man stopped abruptly in the middle of his words. He knew that his daughter could not understand this feeling.

"What's the matter, the NCAA has so many teams that can't make it to March Madness every year. If everyone is as sad as you are, it's okay."

Sure enough, Catherine was not a fan at all.

"Schools like MIT are not going to be sad about not being able to make it to March Madness, because if I move too much on the court, I might destroy a future pillar of the United States. They are glad they didn't make it. It's too late." Just as the father and daughter were bickering, An Jie suddenly pushed the door open and entered.

"Also, thanks for the text message."

"What message?" The bearded man looked at his daughter suspiciously.

"It's nothing! I'm going to greet the guests!" Catherine walked away embarrassedly, complaining that her father was too sad, but on the other hand, she sent a text message to comfort An Jie. Daughter, the splashed water.

"Girl, by the way, An Jie, when will the results come out?" the bearded man asked with concern.

"At two o'clock this afternoon, the committee will call Coach Ricard's office to inform us of the result."

"I think we still have a good chance. Think about it, the champion candidates have all lost to us."

"I hope, what if the old men in the committee don't like dark horses? Or think we have no commercial value?" After a night of calmness, An Jie is now much more optimistic than yesterday, but he is still a little uneasy.

"If there is a result, please call me immediately. Don't forget our deal. You give me the tickets, and I will give you a free celebration banquet."

"Don't worry, I won't forget such things as eating Overlord Meal."

...................................

"Coach, it's so early? There's no training scheduled today." Old Austin had just lit a cigarette for himself when he saw Ricard walking towards the gymnasium in formal attire.

"Come and pack something, the office is too messy." Ricard would not say that he couldn't sit still at home, and wanted to go to the office early to watch the phone.

"I heard that the school leaders are going to hold an encouragement party for your team. The last time the Cyclone team got such a good result in the regular season, most of the people here were not born yet." Old Austin squinted He squinted his eyes and recalled, he remembered when he was a young boy, Jeff.**** Senna led the Cyclone team to kill all directions. The Cyclones team really hasn't been so brilliant for a long time.

"They won't worry about the party until we're in March Madness." Ricard waved at Old Austin, and walked into the empty gymnasium alone.

At one o'clock in the afternoon, everyone appeared at the entrance of the gymnasium. Besides the players, there were also some fans waiting outside.

"Come so early? I thought I would be the first."

"I wouldn't have come if you hadn't made me so nervous. Those old men in the committee might still be taking a nap in the warm bed." Anthony Ben said as he rubbed his almost frozen body. Both hands, because of face, he had to say such a duplicity.

"Stop talking nonsense here, I think you must have been unable to sleep last night, kid."

The players walked into Ricard's office talking and laughing, but saw the coach sitting on a chair staring at the phone, his eyes bloodshot.

"Boss, did you sleep here last night?" Mike Taylor was frightened by Ricard's haggard appearance.

"No, I came at half past ten." Ricard's eyes were still fixed on the black phone. "Tyler, order me takeout."

The players are waiting in the office. Unlike the time that passes quickly on the court, every second of this hour in the office is extremely tormented. Some players leaned against the wall, slumped on chairs, and kept crossing their chests to pray for God's blessing. What about Ricard? He didn't even move his eyes while eating lunch. This atmosphere reminded An Jie of the scene when he was waiting for the college entrance examination results with his parents last year.

When the audience was silent, An Jie's cell phone rang suddenly. This sudden voice attracted everyone's attention, except Ricard's.

"Hey, big bull." An Jie blinked at everyone after answering the phone.

"Oh, so it's my big black guy." Suddenly the atmosphere became a little more active.

"An Jie, turn on the hands-free phone for me and put it on the coach's desk. I'm going to be driven crazy." Morris was not much more relaxed on the hospital bed than the players here.

At 13:35, assistant coach Moore rushed into the office with a mess of hair.

At 13:45, Asakin fell asleep on the chair and fell to the floor.

At 13:50, Cruz was so nervous that he kept going to the bathroom.

At 13:55, everyone gathered around the small desk, staring at the black phone with Ricard.

"Ding ding ding ding!!!!" At two o'clock, the phone rang suddenly, and everyone looked at Ricard. Ricard slowly raised his hand, his heart beating wildly.

"Hello, sir." Although he was nervous, Ricard's tone was still very calm.

"Okay sir, I see." After two simple sentences, Ricard hung up the phone.

"It's over? Not even thirty seconds!" Anthony Ben picked up the receiver and put it to his ear in disbelief, but of course he couldn't hear anything.

"Coach, we..." Taylor looked at Ricard's stern expression, and didn't dare to continue asking.

"Everyone." Ricard finally spoke, and no emotion could be heard from his tone. "We've done really well this season, tied for second in the Big 12, the best finish Iowa State has had in nearly a decade. I... Work together." After speaking, Rickard got up and picked up his coat, ignoring everyone's gaze, and walked straight to the door of the office.

Sure enough, beautiful fantasy does not exist in reality. All the players were silent at the moment, and they returned to the state they had just lost yesterday.

"Also, I almost forgot to tell you." Ricard stepped out of the office with one foot, but turned around suddenly.

"You have just been invited to participate in the NCAA March Madness Championship!" Ricard finally couldn't continue acting, he threw away his coat and laughed excitedly.

Everyone looked at each other for a second, and then they all hugged each other. Excited shouts filled the entire empty gymnasium, and old Austin, who faintly heard the echo at the gate, smiled slightly.

The next moment, more than a dozen people rushed out of the stadium carrying Ricard. They unscrupulously carried Ricard for a long distance on the campus, and their joyful roars almost disturbed everyone who was taking their lunch break, but no one complained to them.

"We're selected! We're selected!" Morris yelled following the phone on the hospital bed.

"Sir, please calm down." Morris was surrounded by a few nurses who were confused about the situation to "celebrate" with him.

"Where are we going hahahahaha." Anthony Ben, who was the most "reserved" just now, can't even speak clearly at this moment. He only knows to carry Ricard and run around with everyone, and then echo everyone's crazy smile.

"Celebration banquet! Celebration banquet! I invite you to eat Chinese food!" An Jie ran at the end and directed the direction.

"Let's go! I like Chinese food! Curry rice is my favorite!"

"Idiot, that's RB food!"

"Eh..." An Jie broke out in a lot of cold sweat instantly.

Are you ready? There are 63 teams left, and the Cyclone will continue to wreak havoc on the NCAA arena!

(The National Day holiday is here, I wish you all a happy holiday life. I will post it at the first update today, and ask for advice and recommendations by the way.)

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