First Round: Morgan State vs Davidson
"Qi Jun, hurry up!" Wu Xiaolei waved her notebook in the air, her face excitedly lit.
"Coming, coming! Geez, Xiaolei, I knew I shouldn't have packed all these damn lenses." Qi Jun huffed as he lugged his massive camera bag into the media zone. One glance at the roaring crowd inside Reliant Stadium and he nearly tripped over himself.
It was deafening—easily over 110 decibels. At that volume, you could hardly speak and be heard.
With the temperature pretty mild today, the stadium's fiberglass dome was shut tight. The cheers of 70,000 people bounced and echoed off the walls.
Qi Jun gave a quick side-eye to the American press nearby—loaded with gear. Short lenses, long lenses, monopods, tripods... the whole shebang.
"Whew, good thing I brought everything but the kitchen sink." He grinned and unzipped his bag with pride.
Once he had his camera assembled, he hurried over to Wu Xiaolei—only to find her standing frozen, hand over her mouth, eyes locked on center court.
"Uh…"
Even Qi Jun had to admit—whether they wanted to or not—the players from Morgan State couldn't help but turn and stare as the Davidson Wildcats entered.
They weren't just any team. They had one of the Southern League's top scorers and a March Madness legend himself: Stephen Curry.
The son of NBA sharpshooter Dell Curry.
Stephen!
Stephen!
Stephen!
And right behind him was Lin Yi, the seven-foot Southern League top blocker. The same Lin Yi who went head-to-head with Blake Griffin three times and made a name for himself each time.
Lin!
Lin!
Lin!
The Davidson fans had shown up in full force from North Carolina. In the front row, under the brightest lights, sat the Curry family—Dell, Sonya, Sydel, Seth... even Ayesha and her gang of girlfriends.
But they weren't the only celebrities courtside.
Yao Ming was here. And he didn't come alone.
Tracy McGrady. Shane Battier. Ron Artest. Luis Scola. Chuck Hayes. Aaron Brooks. Kyle Lowry...
The whole Rockets squad was in the building.
They were sitting just across from another star-studded group—Cavs' own LeBron James, along with Daniel Gibson and J.J. Hickson. Since their game wasn't for another three days, LeBron figured, why not pull up and catch some NCAA heat?
The crowd was drowning in red—the Wildcats' colors. Their chants filled the stadium like a rising tide:
Davidson!
Davidson!
Davidson!
Referees Curtis Shaw, Mike Stewart, and Les Jones stood at center court, deep in pregame discussion.
Morgan State's current big name was a third-year small forward, Barbie Moss, already declared for the draft. He was joined by senior Joe Morris and freshman Leonard Paul, both planning to follow.
Lin Yi didn't recognize any of them. Which probably meant they hadn't made much noise in the timeline he knew. But even so, like the scouting report said, if Davidson slipped up, Morgan State could still pull an upset.
After warmups, Steph bumped Lin with his elbow. "I'm giving you the first shot today, big guy."
Lin chuckled and patted Steph on the shoulders.. He knew exactly why Steph was handing it over.
Yao Ming was in the house. Of course, Steph wanted Lin to show out for his fellow countryman.
Up in the commentary box, Barkley was doing his thing. "Not gonna lie, this Davidson team might be the one to give North Carolina some real trouble."
If Lin had heard him, he'd probably have jumped up there to throw hands with Barkley. That guy just couldn't stop jinxing him again.
"Please," Kenny Smith rolled his eyes. "Carolina's biggest enemy is itself."
"Kenny, I know. Just have a good feeling about his team."
"Let's watch and see."
...
The crowd was electric. Half screaming for Morgan, half losing their minds for Davidson.
"It's a Morgan State tradition—this whole battle-roar thing they do." Steph leaned in and explained like a guide.
"We're from Maryland," the Morgan State fans shouted. "We don't care how big you are—we're bringing the fire!"
The Wildcats fans also returned fire with their chants.
With both fan bases roaring, Lin Yi and the team stepped into the arena's spotlight.
Ref Curtis Shaw stepped into the middle circle, basketball in hand. Players took their positions. The ball went up.
Lin Yi soared and swatted it back to Steph.
And just like that—game on.
"The Wildcats are starting with their usual pick-and-roll combo—Steph and Lin," the announcer called out.
Everyone knew Davidson's bread and butter: that unstoppable two-man game.
Morgan State had prepped for it, but facing it in real time? That was a different story.
Barbie Moss switched onto Lin.
"Looks like Lin's going iso on the first play."
Lin caught the ball just above the arc, with Moss guarding him.
Dribble. Dribble. Dribble.
Moss was bracing himself.
Tall guys usually fumble the ball trying to drive, right?
Wrong.
Lin hit a lightning-fast behind-the-back dribble—ball switched hands, left foot blasted forward.
Three giant steps from the three-point line.
Way too fast.
Morgan State's defense didn't even have time to collapse.
BANG!
One-handed dunk. First two points to Davidson.
"Yo, that was nasty!" Steph smacked Lin on the back, laughing.
He'd seen it a hundred times, but it still got him hyped.
...
Across the court, Yao chuckled as the Rockets looked on in shock.
"Yeah," he said with a grin, "this is just how he plays."
LeBron, in his shades, waved a hand and leaned back in his seat. Big Z might be taller, but dribbling like that? Big Z never pulled off anything like it.
Back near the Curry family, Ayesha's friends were whispering.
"Ayesha, you've got Steph, how about hooking us up with Lin?"
Ayesha thoughtfully said. "You know what? Sure."
...
Meanwhile, on the court—
Moss tried to return the favor with a drive of his own... but before he could rise for a dunk, a giant hand came out of nowhere.
SWAT!
Lin blocked it like he'd seen it coming yesterday.
And then—like an NFL quarterback—he launched a full-court pass down the court.
Steph caught it in stride beyond the arc.
Pull-up. Release.
Swish.
Nothing but net.
"Now that's what I call a deadly combo!" Barkley whooped.
Smith just shook his head.
...
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