Faced with this kind of eruption from Curry, the Hokies were suddenly at a loss.
They had built their defensive game plan around Westbrook, but for Curry they clearly hadn't prepared much — before tip-off, they had even taken it for granted that he wouldn't see many minutes tonight.
And once Curry stopped stubbornly hunting threes, his offense became harder to predict, which actually won him more looks from the outside. He knocked down four three-pointers in the first half alone.
When the fourth one went in and pushed the lead into double digits, that expressionless face of his finally changed. He stuck his tongue out at the camera in celebration — completely loose now.
For the whole first half, Curry went 9-for-16 for 23 points with just one turnover, playing like a different man from the game before.
In the second half, the Hokies switched Dowdell onto Curry and threw frequent double teams at him, but Curry seemed ready for it. Far from panicking the way he had last game, he used their adjustment to dish out several fine assists.
By the final buzzer, Curry had gone 12-for-21 from the field — 6-of-12 from three — erupting for 32 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists, with just 3 turnovers.
With him leading the way, the Demon Deacons crushed the Hokies 81–66.
After the game, the fans in the building still wore looks of disbelief.
After all, who could have imagined that the man who coughed up 13 turnovers in his first game would drop 32 points in his second?
This was NAA D1 — a game between A League teams, no less!
Even Hollywood wouldn't dare write a script like this.
Out on the court, the Demon Deacons were clustered around Curry whooping and hollering, and Westbrook was pouring water straight from a bottle over Curry's head.
A relaxed smile finally found Prosser's face too. If Curry had laid another egg tonight, then he — the one who had insisted on starting him — would probably have been joining Curry in the pages of The Associated Press.
When the celebration with his teammates wound down, Curry turned and walked over to Prosser and hugged him, gratitude written all over his face.
"Thank you, Coach. You saved me."
Curry's words came straight from the heart, carrying even a slight tremble. He couldn't imagine what it would have done to his confidence and his career if he had come off the bench tonight — or worse, been handed a DNP.
"You should thank Hansen. He put in a lot of good words for you." Prosser was being straight with him.
Curry froze at that. He had never imagined Yang Shuai would go this far for him.
"Well, hello there, future NBA superstar." Cole had come down to the court with Yang Shuai by then, and he smiled as he held out both hands to Curry.
The words left Curry a little sheepish; blushing, he hugged Cole.
Then, cheeks still rosy, he took it upon himself to shake Yang Shuai's hand and bump shoulders with him.
"Thank you. For everything you've done for me." Curry didn't know how else to put his gratitude into words.
"Don't thank me — thank yourself." Yang Shuai shook his head. He had had his doubts during the game too, but Curry had come through.
"No. Without you I never could have done it. I'll remember it forever." Curry was dead serious, and he drove it home once more. "Forever."
Yang Shuai smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "Keep it up, Chef."
Curry had played a truly splendid game, but this was only a beginning. He still had a long road ahead.
The next day, after classes, Yang Shuai came to the practice gym, where the Demon Deacons' session was in full swing.
Despite all the travel the day before, the players' spirits looked sky-high.
Beating Virginia Tech meant a great deal not only to Curry himself, but to everyone else on the team as well.
Even Prosser, always stern on the practice floor, was all smiles today.
Yang Shuai spotted Cole there too, waved hello, and went to sit down beside him.
"Stephen made the Associated Press again," Cole said, smiling as he passed along the good news.
"No surprise there." Yang Shuai hadn't expected anything else. A swing that huge between two games was prime news material — it would have been surprising if he hadn't made it.
"Skip made it too," Cole added.
Now Yang Shuai understood why Prosser was in such a good mood. It wasn't all that shocking, either: standing by a player as a starter even after 13 turnovers, and then watching him break out — that was the mark of a renowned coach.
"Too bad you're not on it," Cole said at last, turning to look at him.
"Isn't that just our job?" Yang Shuai's tone stayed even.
A scout's work happens behind the scenes, never in the spotlight.
"I'm glad you see it that way." Cole had assumed Yang Shuai would feel something about it, since Yang Shuai's role this time had been absolutely crucial.
Yang Shuai just shrugged. He truly didn't mind. He hadn't made The Associated Press along with the others, but what he'd gained was hardly nothing — the deepened bond with Curry alone was worth more than the whole thing had cost.
"Here, look." Cole handed his phone over.
Yang Shuai took it, puzzled, and saw The Associated Press's first poll of the NAA 2006–07 season — better known to fans as the AP rankings.
The poll rated the top 25 teams in D1 and came out once a week — as close as the NAA came to a live power ranking.
No. 1 was the University of Florida.
The defending champions, coached by Billy Donovan — the man who would later coach the NBA's Thunder and Bulls — with a core of Joakim Noah, Al Horford, Taurean Green, and Corey Brewer.
Normally, once an NAA team won it all, its core players left school for the NBA draft — especially when they had played well and their projected draft slots were high.
Yet these Florida men had chosen, against all that, to stay in school and play one more year, hoping to help their team defend the title.
No NAA team had pulled off that feat since Duke in 1992.
It was a kind of college-days romance, and it made them the strongest team in the country, beyond argument.
No. 2 was the University of North Carolina.
UNC had finished behind Duke in the A League last season, but with core players Tyler Hansbrough and Danny Green staying on, plus strong play from this year's recruits Ty Lawson, Brandan Wright, and Wayne Ellington, they had quickly become favorites to win it all.
Duke sat at No. 11.
For all that they had topped the A League last season and held AP No. 1 for long stretches, Duke had fallen short in the national tournament, their run ending in the round of 16.
And once the season ended, both of their senior cornerstones left for the NBA draft — JJ Redick, who had averaged 26.8 points, and Shelden Williams, who had averaged 18.8 points and 10.7 rebounds — and the team's strength dropped off sharply.
Still, even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. Over the summer they had brought in four five-star recruits from the class of 2006 in one stroke, and they still had Josh McRoberts, the No. 1 high school player in the nation from the class of 2005. They remained a force to be reckoned with.
Besides UNC and Duke, Boston College (15th) and Georgia Tech (23rd) also made the poll from the A League.
"If we want to reach the tournament, most of our chances will come from the committee's invitations — the AP ranking is one of their key references," Cole went on.
Yang Shuai nodded along. Winning the A League would guarantee a tournament berth, but that road was too steep and too uncertain. By comparison, climbing the rankings and getting invited was the surer bet.
After all, four or five A League teams typically made the tournament in a given season.
"I should have gotten some AP-ranked teams onto our schedule." Cole's voice carried a trace of regret. He genuinely had underestimated this team — and the exhibition opponents had been locked in back in the offseason.
"I think the schedule is just fine as it is. We need games like these to build chemistry and lift morale." Yang Shuai wasn't flattering him this time; he simply knew that rushing things would only spoil them.
"And besides, we still have conference play," he added.
Cole smiled, and the regret melted away.
NAA D1 had 32 conferences in all, and the A League alone claimed 4 of the 25 spots in the AP rankings. The weight of conference play went without saying — those games could lift an AP ranking better than most exhibition games ever could.
After his 32 points against Virginia Tech, Curry followed up with 26 more against Richmond.
And as Curry found his groove, he and Westbrook developed terrific chemistry.
Just like in that practice scrimmage long ago, Curry gave Westbrook room to attack off the bounce, while Westbrook's drives in turn opened up clean looks for Curry on the perimeter.
Wake Forest, meanwhile, kept rolling.
In the blink of an eye it was 2007. Before the new year arrived, the Demon Deacons had finished the exhibition stage of their season.
They had played 13 exhibition games in all, with a handsome record of 11 wins and 2 losses.
That was enough to push them into the latest poll, at No. 23.
It was only the tail end of the rankings, but it was plenty thrilling all the same.
And with the exhibition stage behind them, on the first day of the new year, Wake Forest officially opened the second half of its season — conference play.
Their first opponent: the University of North Carolina.
①: Most Valuable Player of the NAA Final Four.
Chapter 15