Same day, different location.
At Oracle Arena, the Golden State Warriors, sitting at home, ushered in the challenge of the Memphis Grizzlies.
Although many people say that the Memphis Grizzlies' Western Conference title has been snatched away by the Houston Mosaic, the Warriors still cannot afford to underestimate them due to their prestige accumulated through countless hand-to-hand battles.
Facing the Golden State Warriors, who may be second only to the Trail Blazers in the league, a group of tough guys from the Grizzlies also felt tremendous pressure and raised their defensive focus to the highest level. After all, in the 2014-15 playoffs, The Warriors defeated the Grizzlies with a score of 4:2.
It can be said that Curry and the Warriors made a name for themselves in the playoffs for the first time, relying on the backdrop of the Grizzlies.
However, the Grizzlies still underestimated the Warriors' explosive firepower.
Less than three minutes into the game, Durant's hand felt so hot that he hit two three-pointers in a row.
After the opening, the Warriors established an advantage at 8:3.
Faced with the Warriors' violent outside touch, the Grizzlies chose to focus on attacking the inside, taking their time and clenching the score, quickly narrowing the point difference to 11:12.
Then Durant waved the sickle again and hit his third three-pointer in a single quarter. The Warriors immediately made more points and stopped the Grizzlies at 25:18.
After the timeout, Curry assisted Thompson to hit a three-pointer, giving the Warriors a double-digit advantage.
In the last two minutes of the first quarter, the Grizzlies also launched a 5:2 attack wave.
After the first quarter, the Warriors led the Grizzlies 32:15.
The second quarter also started, and the Grizzlies narrowed the point difference to 5 points. But as Ku Ritian suddenly showed off his power, the Warriors launched a 15:4 offensive wave amid the cheers of the home audience, leading by 16 points.
The Grizzlies had no choice but to request a timeout again.
After the timeout, the Grizzlies continued to attack the inside to cause damage. Marc Gasol showed his general style. He made 4 of 7 shots in a single quarter, including 1 of 2 three-pointers and 5 of 5 free throws. He scored 14 points, which caused a problem for the Warriors. Huge trouble.
The bosses of both sides faced Gasol from afar and led the Grizzlies to attack 16:4, falling behind by 6 points.
At the end of the first half, the Warriors led the Grizzlies 61:52.
Judging from the situation in the first half, the strengths of both sides are quite clear. The Warriors are better at shooting from the outside, while the Grizzlies are better at attacking inside.
However, entering the third quarter, the Grizzlies were in trouble.
Perhaps due to the fierce surge in the first half, Gasol's physical reserves declined rapidly. In the 8 minutes of the third quarter, his efficiency dropped sharply. He only scored 5 points, which was as high as 21 points in the first half. Mr. Meng is so different.
The Warriors took this opportunity to widen the point difference. Curry hit another three-pointer. The Warriors led 72:56 and stopped the Grizzlies.
After the timeout, the Grizzlies slowed down their offensive pace, but Curry and Thompson hit three-pointers one after another in excellent condition. Coupled with Durant's unsolvable mid-range pull-up, the point difference continued to widen.
After three quarters, the Warriors led the Grizzlies 83:66.
After the start of the final quarter, Gasol and Draymond Green each scored points, and the Grizzlies fell behind 77:91. Just as the Grizzlies were about to gain momentum, Durant and Thompson each hit a three-pointer from a 45-degree angle on the left and right, which can be said to be a shot through the throat.
The Warriors re-established an 18-point lead.
In the last two minutes of the game, the Warriors, who were in control of the situation, did not give the Grizzlies any chance and firmly held the victory in their hands until the electronic buzzer announcing the end of halftime sounded in Oracle Arena.
At the end of the game, the Warriors defeated the Grizzlies 121:104, making a good start to the playoffs like the Trail Blazers.
Since then, the Warriors have led with a total score of 1:0.
In this game, Durant scored the highest score in the game with 32 points and 10 rebounds. After the game, he was named the best player tonight.
Curry performed equally well, scoring 5 three-pointers, 29 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
Thompson had 21 points and three rebounds, and Green had a triple-double with 19 points, 12 rebounds and 9 assists.
In this campaign, the Big Four of the Warriors all played their own technical styles. The four of them cooperated tacitly, leading the Warriors to hit one wave of offensive climaxes, so much so that even the Grizzlies, who are known for their defense, were unable to guard against them.
…
After returning home, before going to bed, Wang Zelin read the Warriors' game report and frowned. The Warriors' firepower was very fierce. They were indeed the team he wanted to beat most in West Lake.
Then, he watched two games in the Eastern Conference today.
The most exciting game in the East is the Boston Celtics vs. Indiana Pacers game.
Logically speaking, no matter from which dimension the two teams look, there is a huge gap whether they are starters or substitutes.
However, the Pacers achieved an unexpected upset despite being looked down upon by the outside world.
From the beginning of this game, the Celtics failed to show a crushing attitude. Instead, the tenacious Indiana people teased the nerves of the North Shore Garden fans with wonderful goals again and again.
After the first quarter, the Celtics led the Pacers 28:23.
At halftime, the Pacers turned away and led the Celtics 48:46.
After three quarters, the two teams were tied at 74.
In the crucial final quarter, the two sides were locked in a stalemate, but as Paul George scored a valuable three-pointer and then made two free throws, the Pacers launched a 14:4 attack wave and scored 9 points. lead.
The other turning point in this game happened at this moment.
Although Thomas Jr. and Ingram scored three points one after another, the tenacious Indiana people had already shown strong self-confidence and exuded determination to win.
With 7.5 seconds left in the game, the Celtics chased down only two points. As Paulo George attacked the basket, drew a foul and made two free throws, the Pacers won a thrilling 106:102.
The Indiana native, who was considered a loser, was upset in front of the proud Bostonians and won the first victory of the series, leading the Celtics 1:0.
In the whole game, Paul George scored 30 points, 9 rebounds and 4 steals, and was worthy of being the best player tonight.
Jeff Teague had 15 points, 2 rebounds and 7 assists, Myles Turner had 11 points and 8 rebounds, Monta Ellis had 11 points and 10 rebounds, Lance Stephenson had 16 points and 7 rebounds, and Thaddeus Young had 10 points. 9 rebounds for a double-double...
A total of 6 Pacers players scored in double figures tonight. The victory was not just the result of General Joe alone, but the victory was achieved through the hard work of the whole team.
For the Celtics, Thomas scored 33 points, a game-high, plus 5 rebounds and 6 assists. With a height of 175, he made 10 of 18 shots in 38 minutes, with a field goal percentage of 55.6%, 4 of 7 three-pointers, and a 42.9% shooting percentage. He was also outstanding, plus 10 of 12 free throws...
With a true shooting rate of 70.9% and a score of 30+5+5, Thomas Jr. tried his best.
It's a pity that for the huge Celtics, apart from teacher Xiaofeng, only Al was the only one tonight... Horford and young player Ingram performed normally. The former had 19 points and the latter had 14 points. No one else scored in double figures.
It is not an exaggeration to say that Thomas was unable to support himself in this game, because he received too little assistance from his teammates.
Over there in Chicago.
Facing the young Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference, the Bulls, who ranked second in the Eastern Conference during the regular season compared to the Celtics who ranked first in the Eastern Conference, achieved a crushing victory at home.
In the contest with Anthony Davis, Antetokounmpo, who has not yet evolved into the peak Greek monster, was a little immature in this duel. Although he scored a quasi-triple-double of 22 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals and 1 block, His shooting percentage was barely over 40%, and his efficiency was average.
On the other hand, Davis, who has already entered his peak period, scored 34 points, 15 rebounds and 5 blocks in this game, which is a dominant insider data. It can definitely be regarded as a masterpiece of his career in the playoffs.
In addition, there are Wade with 23 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, and Rose with 18 points and 13 assists... The Big Three scored 75 points together tonight. They easily defeated the Bucks' defensive system purely by relying on the stars' individual offense.
At 117:93, the Bulls got a good start at home.
At this point, the G1 battle in the first round of the Eastern and Western playoffs has officially ended.
On the east side:
Boston Celtics 0:1 Indiana Pacers
Chicago Bulls 1:0 Milwaukee Bucks
Cleveland Cavaliers 1:0 Atlanta Hawks
Toronto Raptors 1:0 Washington Wizards
On the west side:
Portland Trail Blazers 1:0 Utah Jazz
Golden State Warriors 1:0 Memphis Grizzlies
San Antonio Spurs 1:0 Los Angeles Lakers
Houston Mosaics 1:0 Oklahoma City Thunder
…
Among the 8 matchups in the first round of the Eastern and Western Conference playoffs, the Celtics were the only team to be defeated. This was beyond the expectations of the fans and at the same time, it also lost the face of a wealthy team. .
This makes people wonder what the Celtics' record as No. 1 in the Eastern Conference is? What is its gold content? Is it mixed with moisture?
However, this has nothing to do with Wang Zelin. He is patiently preparing with his teammates for the G2 battle three days later.
That's right, as the team with the first and second best record in the division's regular season, it enjoys certain privileges!
There were three days between their G1 and G2, so they didn't need to be as nervous as the teams on the second and third planes. They only had to have another fierce battle every two days.
Three days passed in a flash.
On the night of the 19th, in the second game between the two sides, the Jazz made no adjustments for the time being and still had the same starting lineup.
The Trail Blazers are ready to take advantage of the enemy's tactics.
Similar to the situation in the last game, the Trail Blazers achieved a huge 25-point lead in the third quarter, and the final quarter was completely reduced to garbage time.
Hayward took a lot more shots tonight, scoring 22 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. On the surface, he performed like he did during the regular season.
But in fact, his game efficiency is very poor, with a win-loss value of -19, the highest in the team.
In other words, Hayward, as the star player, did not contribute any positive value on the court. He once again fell under the iron barrel array carefully arranged for him by the Trail Blazers.
Wang Zelin played 25 minutes and scored 31 points and 12 rebounds. He did not exert much effort at all. With 7 players in the team scoring in double figures, he easily won the game 128:99.
After two games, the Trail Blazers moved to Salt Lake City.
Coming to one of the few devil's home stadiums in the league, the Jazz failed to cause any trouble for the Trail Blazers.
After returning to the home court, Hayward's condition recovered somewhat and he played like a Salt Lake City boss. He scored 29 points, setting a record in a single game in the playoffs.
But tonight, other Jazz players collectively stretched their crotches.
To be precise, under the Blazers' high-pressure defense, each of them was pressed to death, and they were helpless in the face of the violent beating.
In this game, Hayward staged a lone hero plot similar to Thomas's in the past few days. He was the only one fighting in the entire team.
Unfortunately, he is not the kind of super strong man who can single-handedly kill the game once his scoring touch explodes.
His highest score in a single game during the regular season was 39 points against the Timberwolves on April 7.
Prior to this, his highest score in a single game in the playoffs had to be traced back to 17 points against the Spurs in his playoff debut five years ago.
It wasn't until the 2016-17 season that Hayward and the Jazz returned to the playoffs after five years.
Even with a career-high 29 points, it was still difficult to defeat four hands with two fists. What's more, the Trail Blazers didn't just have four hands, they had 8 hands, 16 hands, or even 32 hands...
In the third game, his Jazz team was defeated 97:128 at home!
In the fourth game, 105:130, the Jazz once again lost a huge score of 25 points. In a life-and-death battle with a 0:3 deficit, they were still controlled by the Trail Blazers.
After the entire series, the Trail Blazers averaged nearly 30 points per game over the Jazz. It is self-evident how big the gap between the two teams is.
After being swept 0:4, Salt Lake City fans only felt depressed for a while, and then quickly accepted the reality.
There is no way, the strength is there, if you can't beat it, you can't beat it!
It is very irrational to criticize the young people of the Jazz team at this time.
Instead of doing this, it is better to give your opponents the most sincere applause to express their high respect.
…
"Swept their opponents 4:0! The Portland Trail Blazers became the first team to break through the first round of this year's playoffs!"
"In 4 games, the opponent was beaten by an average of nearly 30 points per game! How exaggerated, how outrageous... Perhaps this is the true embodiment of the terrifying dominance of the dynasty team!"
"Congratulations to the Trail Blazers, they successfully advanced to the Western Conference semifinals and are one step closer to their fourth consecutive championship!"
"Shocking! The current leader with 40+20 points in the regular season only performed 35+14 in the playoffs? Is this a loss of morals or a distortion of human nature..."
On the night of the 24th, when the news spread that the Trail Blazers swept the Jazz 4-0 to take the lead in the first round, it quickly caused an uproar in the outside world.
That night, countless fans stayed up all night and discussed the matter crazily on the Internet.
Before the playoffs started, people had tried their best to imagine the Trail Blazers' dominance. After all, they had dominated the league for three full years.
But when the playoffs came, they found out that they still underestimated the Trail Blazers.
When Wang Zelin only averaged 35+14 per game, the Trail Blazers were actually able to beat their opponents by nearly 30 points per game. The good playoffs were turned into a one-sided game by them.
Such terrifying strength made all the strong teams in the East and West startle, as if they were hit on the chest by a sledgehammer, and they felt panicked.
Can they really defeat such an opponent?
(End of chapter)
