Mimi, Speedy, Diego, and I lined up around the circle. Super-Size set up for the jump against Carmelo.
I checked the scoreboard on the wall beyond the baseline.
The Renegades were the home team.
My basketball eyes checked my father. He still stood with Ms. Yvonne and smiled proud.
“Good luck, everyone,” the referee said. She stepped to the middle and raised the ball. “Players, hold your spots.”
Super-Size had decent ups, but no way was he winning the tip, and I could tell Carmelo was looking to back-tap to Mohawk-2.
I was right.
Mohawk-2 caught the tip over his head, and then like a soccer player throwing an inbounds, he fired a pass up to Andre on the right. Andre took two dribbles and put up a shot from behind the three-point line.
Swish!
“Dag,” I said under my breath.
Eight seconds in, we were already down three.
“Let’s go, United,” Coach Acevedo said, clapping. “Run the offense, Rip.”
I brought the ball up. I was getting the ball to Diego. This was his first game. This was his first possession. The ball had to go to Diego.
I passed to him on the wing. He sent the ball to Mimi in the corner. She dribbled once and passed it back. Diego stared down his man and jab-stepped a couple times, but when his man didn’t go for the fake, he passed to me. I sent it right back to him.
“Take your shot!” I said.
He did.
Swish!
“Yes!” Diego leaped into the air. He high-fived me hard as he sprinted back on defense. “Let’s do this!”
Our whole bench stood and cheered.
“Way to go, Diego Vasquez!” Red shouted, waving his towel. “Let’s go, defense!”
The Renegades came right back and scored another quick basket. Kasaan lofted a pass over our defense to Mohawk-2 for an easy deuce.
“Run Black Widow,” Coach Acevedo said to me as I brought the ball up.
I thought-bubbled the play.
“Black Widow,” I called. “Black Widow.”
Suddenly, Kasaan and Andre charged. I wasn’t expecting the half-court trap. I picked up my dribble and pivoted right. With four waving arms blocking my sight lines and passing lanes, I tried spinning left …
Tweet! Tweet!
“No, no, no, thirty-two,” the ref said, rolling her fists. “You’re shuffling your feet. That’s a travel. Black ball on the side.”
“Shake it off, thirty-two!” a voice called from the far sideline.
I winced.
The Renegades called a set play, and once again they got the ball into Mohawk-2, close to the rim. He scored another easy basket.
Coach Acevedo called a time-out.
“We need to play smart out there,” Coach Acevedo said in the huddle. “We can’t turn the ball over. Let’s keep those heads up.”
I was trying to listen, but my eyes kept darting across the gym. They seemed to be doing so on their own.
“We can’t let them sneak in behind our defense,” Coach Acevedo went on. “We need to be sprinting back.” He looked around the huddle. “Mega-Man, you go in for Mimi. Maya, let’s have you sub in for Speedy.” He snapped his fingers in front of my face. “You with me?”
“Huh?” I said.
“I said, are you with me?”
“Yeah, yeah.” I shook out my hair.
“Show me that you are. Let’s get Mega-Man involved right away. Work the ball into him.”
I worked the ball into Mega-Man right away, but Carmelo blocked his shot and Kasaan beat me to the loose ball. Then Kasaan beat me downcourt and scored a breakaway layup.
“Let’s go, Rip,” Coach Acevedo said.
Once again, I brought the ball up, and Kasaan met me at half-court. This time, I faked to Diego and passed to Maya. But Kasaan didn’t buy my fake. Not for a second. He stepped right into the passing lane and stole the ball. Then he fired a chest pass to Andre, who raced down the floor for another fast-break basket.
I clasped my hands behind my head.
“Ref, sub,” Coach Acevedo said.
The ref signaled for him to make the switch. He sent Hudson in and me to the bench.
“Shake it off, thirty-two!” that voice shouted from across the gym.
I sat down in the empty chair next to where Red was standing and cheering.
“Nice playing, Mason Irving,” he said.
“Really, Red?”
I grabbed the towel from the back of my chair, covered my head, and placed my hands over my face.
* * *
“Any suggestions?” Coach Acevedo asked at halftime. We huddled up under the scoreboard. “I’m serious. I’m out of ideas.”
Things didn’t go any better with me on the bench. We still couldn’t get clean looks, and the few times we did manage to work the ball inside, the Renegades double- and triple-teamed. On defense, we switched to a two-three zone, but they destroyed us with hot outside shooting.
“We need to pick up the intensity,” Diego said, his face tight like a knot. “Clifton United is better than this.”
Diego played the whole first half. He was the only one who did. He played his heart out on every play at both ends of the floor.
“Ideas?” Coach Acevedo said. “Anyone?”
With my basketball eyes, I looked at my father. He was still standing with Ms. Yvonne, but he was no longer on the other side of the gym. He was behind Mimi and Mehdi across the huddle.
I grabbed the locks above my neck. He did ruin everything. He was ruining the Showdown.
“We’re going to shake things up a little to start the second half,” Coach Acevedo said. “We’re going with a lineup we haven’t tried yet.” He looked around the huddle. “Speedy, Diego, Mehdi, Mega-Man, Super-Size—you’re our five.”
Diego clapped hard. “We can do this, United,” he said. “Let’s go!”
“Let’s bring it in,” Coach Acevedo said, finger-waving us closer. “We’re up against quite a team, so whatever happens now happens. Let’s just play hard and have fun. That’s real Clifton United basketball.” He placed his hand in the middle. “Let’s play some real Clifton United basketball. On three, United. One, two, three…”
“United!”
Coach Acevedo pulled me to the side.
“We need you leading, Rip,” he said. “We need you focused.”
I nodded.
“No distractions,” he said. “You’re our team general.”
I nodded again and thought about my father.
* * *
We played real Clifton United basketball in the second half. We played hard and had fun. But there was no incredible turn of events or miraculous comeback. We lost by thirty.
Now, when I say we played real Clifton United basketball and had fun, that’s not entirely accurate. Coach Acevedo never put me back in the game.