bayedsolid Chapter 673 A player in position 1, always squatting in the corner, is that something a human would
Chapter 673 A player in position 1, always squatting in the corner, is that something a human would
O'Neal laughed heartily, and the chair creaked loudly.
"I knew it would be interesting to see these two guys get together."
After a brief interruption, the competition continued.
Wang Xiucheng's sudden burst of energy allowed the Nets to quickly stabilize the score.
Then both sides suddenly went silent.
And so the game came down to the last minute.
The Mavericks scored 22 points in the second quarter thanks to their performance in the first half.
Keep in mind that these points were scored without securing rebounds; they weren't many, but at least they were a bit better than in the first quarter.
The Nets, who played terribly in the first half of the quarter, rallied in the second half, scoring 20 points in the quarter.
Both sides played well for half a quarter.
This means that the score difference between the two sides is still more than 15 points.
Irving dribbled the ball past half-court and handed it to Doncic.
Irving ran to the side, and Doncic held the ball. After a while, when there were 7 seconds left on the shot clock, Doncic dribbled the ball and started the attack.
Wang Xiucheng was guarding Doncic.
After all, it would be a waste not to use a steal count of around 4 per season to defend the ball handler.
After dribbling the ball with his back to the basket, Doncic turned and bumped into Wang Xiucheng with his shoulder, taking a step forward as well.
Doncic immediately dribbled the ball, stepped back, and launched a three-pointer.
The action is completed in one go!
The ball slammed against the rim with a thud and bounced back.
Westbrook, who had somehow wandered into the paint, grabbed the rebound and immediately passed it to Wang Xiucheng.
Wang Xiucheng received the ball, turned around, and dribbled past Doncic.
Before Wang Xiucheng could rush forward, Doncic grabbed him with a slap.
This allowed Wang Xiucheng to break through and, if all else failed, deliver a powerful dunk from the free-throw line.
Even better, it's a three-pointer from the long jump!
Regardless of which one it is, it's not as worthwhile as giving Wang Xiucheng two free throws.
The only problem is that Doncic has three fouls, which could be a concern in the second half.
Wang Xiucheng tossed the ball to Glassie and walked to the free-throw line to wait.
Swish!
Swish!
Made both free throws.
With his free throw percentage improving to 78% this season, no team dares to foul Wang Xiucheng without restraint.
The Nets' lead was now 17 points, 59-42.
With 38 seconds left in the first half, the Mavericks had possession of the ball.
Doncic still had the ball.
It's not that Doncic doesn't believe others can handle the ball; Kyrie Irving can handle the ball too.
But the person opposite him is Wang Xiucheng. How can I choose to crouch in the corner when I'm facing Wang Xiucheng?
A player who plays number one position should always be squatting in the corner. Is that something a human being would do?
With 6 seconds left on the shot clock, Doncic drove into the paint and opted for a fadeaway jumper.
Although Wang Xiucheng jumped to interfere, he did not actually block the ball.
However, Wang Xiucheng's jumping ability and speed are well-known, and Doncic raised his shooting arc in order to avoid Wang Xiucheng's hand.
Perhaps that's why the ball hit the rim but didn't go in.
Gafford finally got a touch on the ball and flicked it up.
Doncic immediately rushed towards the paint, trying to steal the ball.
But by sheer coincidence, the basketball hit the rim again and bounced out.
This unexpected turn of events caused Gafford, Doncic, and Towns to all miss the shot.
Wang Xiucheng caught the ball from a distance of more than a meter behind Doncic, almost without jumping.
Then, with no one around him, Wang Xiucheng took the ball again, turned around, and charged towards the front.
This time, no one was able to foul Wang Xiucheng again.
So Wang Xiucheng crossed half-court, slowed down slightly, and took the shot from beyond the three-point line.
Swish!
The basketball traced an exaggerated arc, flying over the Barclays Center before finally crashing into the basket like a cannonball.
With a thud, the basketball hit the floor, making a dull thud.
"Guaranteed Three-Point Shot Card" activated!
62 is better than 42!
The Nets' lead reached 20 points for the first time.
With little time remaining, Doncic finally sank a long two-pointer just before the buzzer, bringing the deficit back to 18 points.
At halftime, the Nets led the visiting Mavericks 62-44.
"Welcome back. The first half is over. By now, some candidates should have finished their exams."
"Seeing this score, people might think they've misread it."
"That's right, the Nets are now leading by 18 points."
"Does Professor Yang Yi have anything to say?"
Yang Yi looked at his laptop and said in a relaxed voice.
"Xiao Wang took 10 shots in the first half, which isn't a lot, but he scored 14 points and had 5 assists."
"The Mavericks did a very poor job protecting the boards tonight. They only grabbed 4 offensive rebounds in the first half, while the Nets had 9, more than double the number of the Mavericks."
"The reason why Wang Xiucheng was a little lazy was because his teammates performed exceptionally well tonight."
"If the Mavericks can't fix their rim protection issues in the second half, this game will be very difficult."
Yang Yi paused for a few seconds before continuing, "The Mavericks will probably play more physically in the second half, but it won't be very effective against the Nets."
"The Mavericks' intention in physically engaging Wang Xiucheng was to wear him down, but Wang Xiucheng often stayed detached from the game, crouching in the corner, which allowed him to avoid physical contact with the opponent."
"Perhaps in the second half, Wang Xiucheng's abundant stamina will make the outcome of this match a foregone conclusion sooner."
After Yang Yi finished speaking, Wang Meng looked at Meina beside him and asked, "Sister Na, what good things did you bring for everyone today?"
Because she wasn't in Huaxia's live stream room, there was no space for Mina to participate.
"Today I'm bringing you a limited edition hoodie from the Nets vs. Mavericks NBA Finals. The one I'm wearing is from the Nets. The front features cartoon portraits of Nets players, including Wang Xiucheng, and the back has the number 12. Of course, other numbers are also available, so feel free to buy whichever you prefer."
Having reached the finals for the second consecutive year, the Barclays Center is now much more adept at organizing its operations compared to last year.
During the intermission, Barclays arranged a number of exciting programs, and this time there was no delay, the performance ended almost on time.
They also left a few minutes for some substitutes from both sides to come back and warm up.
The second half of the game started on time.
Just as Yang Yi predicted, the Mavericks continued to use physical play from the start, breaking the game into pieces.
Both teams' shooting percentages dropped significantly, which kept the score low in the third quarter, at 23 to 24.
The good news is that the Mavericks scored one more point than the Nets.
The bad news is that the Mavericks are still down by 17 points in the series.
For the Mavericks, they have to go all out in the fourth quarter, or the game is over.
Even though we're already risking our lives right now.
During the break, Kidd bent down and loudly gave his players pep talks.
The players' feelings were unknown, but the assistant coaches were thrilled and eager to put on their jerseys and play.
Udoka, on the other hand, remained unhurried as always. He first discussed the matter with his henchmen for a long time, and in the end, it was unclear whose opinion they adopted, but they devised a tactic to have Durant take the lead in a one-on-one situation.
After a short break, the fourth quarter began for both teams.
While Wang Xiucheng was resting, the Mavericks had both Doncic and Irving on the court.
Doncic launched a furious counterattack in an attempt to close the gap before Wang Xiucheng returned.
However, contrary to expectations, Durant exploded!