Recap

The match Shohoku vs Sannoh takes place in the second round of Slam Dunk’s National High School Tournament, set in Hiroshima.

This game is one of the most intense and emotional matches in the series, showcasing the pinnacle of high school basketball competition. It pits the underdog Shohoku (from Kanagawa) against reigning champion Sannoh from Akita prefecture — the most dominant team in Japan.

In the first half the game is tightly contested; Shohoku ekes out a narrow two-point lead at halftime after trading baskets and defensive stops. Early in the second half everything changes: Sannoh opens aggressively, and Shohoku is unable to score for the first nine minutes after the break. During that stretch Sannoh strings together a dominant run, pushing the margin as high as twenty-two points and forcing Shohoku into desperate adjustments. Facing near collapse, Shohoku slowly fights back. Kaede Rukawa and Hisashi Mitsui help ignite the revival scoring multiple buckets, while Takenori Akagi anchors the defense and rebounding, and Ryota Miyagi sets the tempo and assists his teammates.

In the final seconds, Hanamichi Sakuragi, who is injured in the back after a hustle play, scores a dramatic jumper off a pass from Rukawa, sealing Shohoku’s stunning victory by a single point. The game ends with both teams exhausted and emotional, symbolizing the heart, growth, and passion that define Slam Dunk’s legacy.

The 2022 movie “The First Slam Dunk” covers this game almost completely, adding some details to the manga. The stats shown in the boxscore take both the manga and the anime movie into account.

Score Progression:  11-8 (min 2), 19-12 (min 4), 19-18 (min 8), 21-18 (min 19), 36-34 (half), 36-60 (min 29), 43-60 (min 31), 55-63 (min 33), 55-74 (min 35), 69-74 (min 38), 71-76 (min 39), 79-78 (final).