On December 3, 1996, Pat Riley returned to Madison Square Garden for the first time this season.
Tonight's game is also the Knicks' first national live broadcast in December. Pat Riley still maintains his elegant image, with a crisp suit and a shiny slicked back hair...
The New York fans at the scene looked at the almost bald Jeff Van Gundy standing on the sidelines and suddenly felt that their head coach's aura was weak.
After the start of the new season, the Heat achieved a record of 12 wins and 4 losses.
PJ Brown, who had just joined the Heat, seamlessly integrated into Pat Riley's "iron-blooded" tactics, and the inside line formed with Alonzo Mourning suppressed Patrick Ewing after the opening game.
The Heat's perimeter trio of Tim Hardaway, Sasha Danilovich, and Dan Marley also showed aggressive defense. The Knicks' offense misfired after the opening...
"Defense! Defense! Defense!"
The New York fans at the scene shouted loudly and cheered for the team's defense.
Tim Hardaway used Mourning's pick-and-roll at the top of the arc to successfully get rid of Charlie Ward's defense, and Charles Oakley quickly retreated inside.
As Hardaway took off for a layup, Oakley gave the opponent a hidden elbow, and the ball hit the frame. Before the old guy had time to be happy, P.J. Brown grabbed the offensive rebound...
"Shet! He committed a foul!"
Hardaway was still complaining to the referee after landing. P.J. Brown grabbed the rebound and threw the ball directly to the right wing outside the three-point line.
After receiving the ball, Sasha Danilovich didn't make too many adjustments, facing Alan Houston who was defending, and confidently shot a jump shot!
"Whoa!" The three-pointer hit the net.
12:2, with 7 minutes and 18 seconds left in the first quarter, the Heat expanded the point difference to double digits.
"Shh!"
The New York fans at the scene were furious, booing and yelling at the same time.
In the next round, the Knicks were blocked by the opponent for another 24-second violation. Pat Riley sat back on the bench with a smile on the sidelines.
As Mourning received Hardaway's breakthrough pass from the middle near the baseline on the left side and succeeded in a jumper, Jeff Van Gundy couldn't hold himself any longer and immediately requested a timeout.
14:2, a disastrous start, New York fans booed directly to the home team...
"A bad start, Ewing's low-post offense was completely restricted, and the Heat's interior defense was simply airtight."
In the live commentary box, John Andaris looked at the technical statistics and his tone became deeper and deeper.
"Pat Riley should be the head coach who knows the Knicks best in the league. We must make effective adjustments in time. A 12-point difference is too much."
Commentator Marv Albert thought of the Knicks' offensive rhythm and felt that the game was going to be cold...
On the bench, Jeff Van Gundy sat in front of everyone, wrote and drew on the tactical board, and shouted loudly:
"We still have enough game time to turn the game around, defend well, cherish every possession, and don't lose any more rebounds!"
No one responded. The old guys were in a terrible mood. The national broadcast was like this and they couldn't save their face.
Charlie Ward sat on the bench in frustration, watching Li You and everyone reappear. After the game against the Sonics, his playing time dropped sharply.
With the defensive pressure provided by the Heat, falling behind by 12 points, it is indeed not an easy task to recover the score.
Li You also had a serious look after his appearance. When facing the league's top defenders, some of his abusive tactics cannot be used.
"Let's go Knicks! Let's go Knicks! Let's go Knicks!"
After serving from the baseline, the scene erupted with cheers again. As soon as Li You caught the ball, Hardaway pounced on him.
While giving physical confrontation, his right hand hung on Li You's waist, and his left hand quickly started to cut the ball.
The six-foot (183cm) height allows Hardaway to easily lower his center of gravity. Facing this extremely oppressive defense, Li You turned around and immediately accelerated after releasing the ball with his left hand.
Unable to get rid of the opponent's entanglement, Li You, holding the ball in his left hand, shouldered the defense and kept accelerating. Taking advantage of the opponent's sliding, he immediately dribbled the ball behind his back when he approached the midline. After switching to his right hand, he protected the ball and dribbled it across the half court...
Try to let your strong side hand control the ball. The scene will be ugly, and Li You doesn't care.
Coming to the right wing outside the three-point line, Hardaway continued to provide physical confrontation, pulling and cutting the ball, and constantly moving his hands...
Charles Oakley immediately moved to the left side of Li You, pulled out Mourning, and took the initiative to start a pick-and-roll attack.
Hardaway glanced at the movement behind him, saw Li You's shoulders shaking, and subconsciously moved back, preparing to squeeze through the screen. Just as he moved his feet, Li You suddenly lowered his center of gravity after blasting the ball on the spot, and turned around to accelerate.
Losing half of his body in an instant, Hardaway cursed secretly and quickly slid back to the left while continuing to pull covertly with his right hand.
Li You, who cut in at a 45-degree angle, broke through to the right block and immediately took the initiative to exert force. Taking advantage of the opponent's tug, he slammed his body into the opponent. At the same time, he decelerated to an emergency stop, exerted force under his feet, and took a large step back!
Hardaway was knocked hard and jumped to defend. Soon he found that he could not effectively interfere with Li You's step-back jumper.
"Whoa!" A solid hit from mid-range!
The fans at the scene immediately cheered loudly. This was the first time the Knicks scored a sports goal in this game...
Taking advantage of Hardaway's baseline catch, Li You also stepped forward to lead the defense, giving the opponent a hidden elbow and whispering at the same time:
"Those boring little tricks of yours don't work on me!"
"Shet! Shut up, rookie!"
He wanted to respond with a ball protector, but found that Li You had already moved away. Hardaway, who suffered a secret loss, cursed in anger.
In the game against the SuperSonics, Li You suffered a hidden loss from Gary Payton. He made three turnovers in that game. The opponent's hand movements left a deep impression on him...
However, Li You learned quickly. While Hardaway was accelerating, he pulled and pulled from time to time. The opponent stopped at the three-point line. The two men kept moving their hands. The referee couldn't stand it anymore and blew the whistle:
"squeak!"
When Hardaway saw the referee indicating that he had committed an offensive foul, he jumped up in anger and complained loudly:
"Hey! Hey!! Look carefully before blowing!"
The home whistle gave blessing, and Li You, who had taken advantage, kept high-fiving and celebrating, and the fans at the scene also cheered loudly.
Mourning saw his teammates getting emotional and quickly pulled away Hardaway who was still complaining to the referee:
"Back to defense! We are 10 points ahead!"
Hardaway's aggressive leading defense had no effect on Li You.
Facing these small defenders, the cautious Li You didn't make any changes in front of his body at all. He dribbled the ball behind his back, raised his head to protect the ball, and passed the half court steadily.
Ewing didn't want to lose, so he took the initiative to pick and roll this time and quickly dribbled the ball behind his back. After switching to his left hand, Li You immediately broke through to the left.
Struggling to squeeze through the screen, Hardaway pursued the defense, and PJ Brown on the inside also delayed.
When the two were surrounded, Li You flicked his left wrist, and the basketball passed directly under PJ Brown's crotch. Ewing, who was passing down, received the ground pass. Just as he was about to rush forward in three strides, he was assisted by Mourning. Pull it off.
"Fake Squid!"
The gorilla staggered when he was pulled, cursed, turned around and pushed Mourning. Players from both sides immediately crowded to the basket, fearing that their teammates would suffer, and started pushing each other.
When Jeff Van Gundy saw something was wrong on the sidelines, he quickly shouted:
"Pat, stay calm, calm down!"
