Yesterday was the first time I got to play some basketball since I got here. It felt great to be back on the court. Even though I’ve been here just a week I already felt a bit rusty . However, since I’ve been playing all summer back in NY, I didn’t expect to get outmatched. When I arrived by bike to the courts right beside National Chengchi University, I picked a random court and parked my bike at the corner.
Courts by the riverside (河濱)
The system for joining a game is slightly different here, so I asked around how it works and if I could get picked up. I was sure I was going to look like an idiot but might as well get it over with. One guy I talked to pretty much figured out I was a foreigner when I asked him how long the games are played till. But thankfully, he was cool about it and told me to come here anytime from 6pm to 10pm (when the lights shut down) since there are always regulars at the court I picked. I guess I made the right choice. They were all fairly competitive and it wasn’t going to be cakewalk for me by any means. Plus, they all seemed like cool people in general.
Basketball games here are for the most part 3 vs 3. Ball is taken back to the 3-pt line, and games are played to 6 points. That allows for quick rotation of teams. Here, the winning team actually checks the ball to the new team at the start of a game. Fouls are called with less contact, but I knew that going in so I played a more finesse defense. Usually when the guy knows he fouled he calls it for the person too.
I wasn’t feeling 100% comfortable with my shot but I still hit a few. I wasn’t driving as well as I would have liked, though. My team won a couple, lost a couple. Overall, not bad- just great to be playing again. Rest assured I’ll be going back there whenever I stay at my aunt’s place.
NCCU in the background
The Chronicles of Greg 