The referee watched the replay video closely.
Embiid and Bai Qiang collide in the picture.
The ball came to a standstill between the two men briefly.
His eyes were as sharp as a hawk, trying to find any clues of any violation from this moment.
His fingers roamed over the console, not missing every detail.
The scene cuts back to the moment when the player falls to the ground.
A trace of doubt flashed in the referee's eyes.
He took a deep breath and decided to listen to the opinion of the assistant referee next to him.
"What do you think?" he asked.
"It's hard to judge."
The assistant referee said, "But I think Joe's actions are indeed suspected of fouling."
The referee was silent for a moment and looked at the screen again.
He knew in his heart that this decision would affect the direction of the entire game.
He took a deep breath and made a decision.
"The verdict is upheld! 76ers, No. 21, offensive foul!"
The referee's words were a bolt from the blue for the 76ers!
It’s understandable:
Embiid is about to go up and beat the referee, can you not uphold the original verdict?
Two fouls in the first half, plus a technical foul.
No matter how bold Rivers is, he would not dare to keep Embiid on the court.
The Nets also replaced Bai Qiang.
Vaughan is afraid too——
He was afraid those guys in Philadelphia would retaliate in kind.
Currently, the score between the two teams is 42:31.
The Nets still hold an 11-point lead.
Durant and Harden led the second team to continue the campaign.
Philadelphia has four starters fighting with Korkmaz.
Harden doesn't have a good shooting touch, but he can attack the basket.
He and Durant's clever passing and cutting cooperation made the 76ers very uncomfortable.
As for Philadelphia, Seth Curry and Danny Green are on fire.
The other guys kept creating opportunities for them.
On the other hand, Rivers asked his players to increase their defensive aggressiveness.
After all, the core is not there, so we can only rely on more fierce defense.
At 9 minutes into the second quarter, the score between the two teams reached 51:45.
The efficiency of chasing three-pointers is really high!
Throw it out, come in!
Vaughn requested a timeout and it was time for a substitution.
"This kid Bai Qiang is about to come on stage. He is really Vaughn's darling!"
Ke Fan looked at the substitution reminder that appeared on the screen and said.
"Bai Qiang, he is really a controversial player. He usually has a flamboyant personality, but he is very down-to-earth on the court."
Director Zhang analyzed.
"There's another problem. Harden's condition is ridiculously bad. He doesn't seem to have recovered."
"Yes, Xiaofan, Harden has become the team's weakness on the court."
The camera cuts to the 76ers bench.
"Qiao, you have to control your temper on the court and don't be impulsive. I'll take care of everything!"
Reeves is admonishing Embiid, who has two fouls.
The latter stared at the referee with dissatisfaction written all over his face.
"Coach, I..."
Embiid was about to explain, but Reeves interrupted him with a wave of his hand.
"I know you have many reasons, but on the playing field, the referee is the biggest.
You've already received a technical foul, and I don't want you to have any more problems. "
Reeves is well aware of Embiid's temper. If he is called for a technical foul again, it will be a big blow to the team's morale.
"I know, coach."
Embiid lowered his head.
He was very unwilling, but he didn't want the team to be punished because of him.
The game continues.
The Nets attack.
Shamet held the ball across half court and passed the ball to Bai Qiang.
Bai Qiang glanced at Embiid disdainfully.
Then put the ball on the right side and make a strong breakthrough.
Embiid didn't expect Bai Qiang to do this, so he could only foul.
After Bai Qiang fell to the ground, he showed a provocative look.
He stuck out his tongue and flicked it at Embiid.
Embiid was so angry that he gritted his teeth, but the referee was right next to him.
He could only hold back his temper and try to ignore Bai Qiang.
Bai Qiang stepped to the free throw line.
"Strike! Strike!"
Embiid muttered from the side.
After Bai Qiang heard this, he smiled at Embiid and said:
"Hey, man! I can make it with my eyes closed."
After that, Bai Qiang dribbled the ball twice and took a decisive shot.
"Uh-huh!"
Free throws were made steadily.
"Fuck!"
Embiid can do nothing but curse!
Then, Bai Qiang executed his second free throw.
"Uh-huh!"
Another hollow entry into the net!
Bai Qiang walked back to the defensive end and stretched out a finger towards Embiid, which was full of provocation.
Embiid was so angry that he blew his beard and stared, but there was nothing he could do.
Maxi broke through and scored to help the 76 team stop the bleeding.
The game continued and Bai Qiang attacked again.
He cooperated with Durant in a pick-and-roll and cut inside.
Embiid had to guard, but he was staggered by Bai Qiang's fake move.
Bai Qiang used the European step he learned from Harden.
He was like a cunning fox, nimbly passing through Embiid's defense.
While Bai Qiang broke through, Durant also slipped to the outside.
A shameful scene occurred.
Bai Qiang broke through to the basket and did not finish by himself;
Instead, it was assigned to Durant on the outside.
Adu received Bai Qiang's pass and shot without hesitation.
The basketball draws a beautiful arc.
"brush!"
Hollow into the net!
The crisp sound of a goal makes people extremely happy.
"nice shot!"
The Nets bench was jubilant.
Embiid shook his head helplessly.
He knew that the Nets had taken the initiative in this game.
He looked up at the score. The Nets had extended their lead to 9 points.
In this game, it is quite difficult for the Philadelphia 76ers to make a comeback.
The Nets' offense is so explosive that it can widen the point difference instantly!
On the other hand, the 76ers can only struggle!
Scoring is like finding a needle in a haystack!
The 76ers offense.
Embiid, who had three fouls, began to be timid.
This also caused his basketball to be stolen by Bai Qiang when he broke through.
After Bai Qiang stole the ball, he quickly launched a counterattack.
He rushed towards the basket like an arrow off the string.
Behind him, Embiid couldn't catch up.
Bai Qiang came to the basket and faced Harris who was defending;
He turned around easily and avoided the opponent's block;
Then he got an easy layup.
58:47.
Courtside.
"boom!"
Coach Rivers angrily threw the tactical board down.
He was very dissatisfied with the performance of his players on the field.
Embiid, especially, is simply sleepwalking.
On the offensive end, he has only one trick, and he only uses his body's brute force to eat up his opponents;
The defensive end also frequently missed people, giving the Nets many open shooting opportunities.
Although Maxi tried his best, he was helpless.
Other teammates either felt cold or had no presence on the court.
Harris and Korkmaz, the two defensive elites, were useless in front of Bai Qiang.
They were completely unable to guard against Bai Qiang's offense and passing.
There are 23 seconds left.
On the last possession of the first half, the 76ers had the ball.
This kind of opportunity usually comes to core players.
but,
Since Embiid was in poor condition, Maxey executed the final attack.
Maxi took the ball to the frontcourt and consumed the attack time.
"7,6,5..."
Maxey faced Harden's defense.
He directly used eighteen kinds of martial arts.
He was like a cunning fox, nimbly passing through Harden's defense.
Harden's leg injury has not healed, and he was shaken around. He was completely unable to keep up with Maxi's rhythm.
Maxi came to the three-point line.
He aimed at the basket and took a decisive shot.
"brush!"
The basketball was like a shooting star, streaking across the night sky.
It passed through the basket accurately and landed in the net.
"boom!"
The basket made a crisp sound.
58:50.
Maxi smiled confidently.
He knew he had made the key shot and kept the team's hope of a comeback alive.
