Chapter Five: The Edge of Elimination

Tang kept shooting after two misses. Harbor trailed by one at halftime. Luo made call after call from the directors' box. In the third, the officiating tightened abruptly, and Qiao collected three fouls in four minutes. Du sent Xinglan in. She scored eight straight to keep Harbor close, but Yunzhou found a simpler answer: let her attack alone and sever every passing lane. In the final two minutes, Xinglan drove and found Tang in the corner. The three spun out. On the next trip, Zhou's layup was blocked. Harbor lost 78–74 and fell behind 2–1 in the best-of-five series. The internet turned overnight. “Game One fluke.” “Locker-room mutiny.” “Shen Xinglan usurps head coach.