At the Palace of Auburn Hills, Ewing was dunked again, which hurt the Knicks' morale. Next, the Pistons' offense became better and better, better than the Knicks' offense.
However, the rebounding was still weak. Rodman's playing time was very fragmented and his body could not hold on. As long as the Pistons took the lead, the Knicks could often get back with more shots. It was not until the 11th minute of the final quarter that the two teams tied. 78:78.
With only 56 seconds left, the Pistons attacked and called a timeout to give Zhou Quan some rest time.
As soon as he returned to the bench, Zhou Quan wanted to lie down, but he was too tired due to too many sudden injuries. The team doctor began to massage his calf to prevent him from cramping.
"The Pistons had 27 rebounds and the Knicks had 45, 18 less, and two less in the final quarter. The gap is getting wider and wider. If the Pistons lose at home tonight, rebounding is the only reason."
In the TNT commentary box, Robert Guida shook his head.
Ringo Wilson smiled: "No way, the Pistons were a little unlucky today, the Knicks picked up a lot of rebounds.
Moreover, Rodman was injured. He only played 26 minutes today and had six rebounds. In the last minute, he might not be allowed to play. "
Robert Guida said: "The Pistons' rebounding relies heavily on Rodman's performance, but in fact this team's rebounding ability is average.
Johnselli averaged 35 minutes per game and could only grab 5.7 rebounds, and he was second in rebounds on the team. For a main center, this is too few. At least eight are required to pass.
Do you know how many rebounds a point guard in Tekken averages per game? 5.1. He often breaks in and has good rebound opportunities. He is third in rebounding on the team.
Now that Rodman has a problem, no one can step up and grab rebounds.
If the Pistons still want to win the championship again, my suggestion is to re-build the inside lineup. At least there must be an inside lineman with a good mid-range shot who can open up space for the inside line to break through, and then have a substitute inside lineman who is good at grabbing rebounds on the bench. . "
Ringo Wilson laughed and said: "John Salley can only play as a substitute. He has always been a substitute. He can play as the main force because Laimbeer suddenly retired and no one was available, so he was allowed to step up."
"Dennis, are you okay?"
On the Pistons bench, Chuck Daly asked about Rodman.
Rodman only played 6 minutes in the final quarter and was replaced three minutes ago just so that he could step up at the last moment. He still believed in the rebounding ability of the big insect.
Rodman patted his left knee and lower back, shook his head and said, "Coach, I really want to go up, but these two places hurt so much that I don't even want to get up now."
Daly shook his head in disappointment. Tekken became the team's rebounding leader today. It can only be said to be a tragedy. He had to replace Bedford.
On the Knicks' side, Pat Riley arranged foul tactics.
"Be tough when committing a foul so that he doesn't miss the penalty."
He stared at Oakley and the others fiercely and said: "At the critical moment, Iron Fist does not dare to fight. If he is punished, the Pistons will lose. Do you understand?"
"clear!"
Oakley and the others shouted in a deep voice.
Pat Riley finally whispered: "If he dares to take action, don't be weak and start a fight directly. However, Patrick, Charles and you main players should not take action. You would rather be beaten than fight back. Let the substitute players on the field and He hit."
Oakley and others felt helpless for a while. Doesn't this make us look like weaklings? But they could only nod in the face of Riley's severity.
In Chicago, Zhang Lijia held a piece of paper, which calculated Zhou Quan's statistics: 24 points, 7 rebounds, 10 assists, 5 steals, 1 block, 4 turnovers and 3 fouls.
"Tsk, tsk, if there were fewer mistakes, tonight's performance would be really great. It's the first playoff game like this. The future is bright!"
He couldn't help but sigh.
The Palace of Auburn Hills, Pistons offense.
There is no other tactic. It is a pick-and-roll tactic with Zhou Quan and the outside, and then break through with the ball, come out to cover from the inside, and finally go in to shoot by himself, or break out the ball.
From the left-wing waist position, Zhou Quan used John Salley's screen to break through Oakley and reach the paint area.
"Bang!"
But at this moment, Oakley, who was caught, suddenly fouled from behind and directly hooked his shoulder, pulling him to the ground and causing him to fall hard on his back.
"Beep!"
The referee made a gesture, a defensive foul, and two free throws.
"Boy, from now on, don't even think about going in again."
Oakley leaned close to Zhou Quan, lowered his head to the latter's ear, and used trash talk to stimulate him. He hoped that the rookie would take the initiative, and then he pretended to be a softie and received a few blows, and asked the referee to punish the rookie.
But Zhou Quan ignored Oakley's provocation. He knew very well the importance of it. The playoffs were not a good time for fights. If Oakley dared to provoke him, he would just teach him a lesson during the regular season.
But when he turned around, his left elbow stabbed Oakley hard in the left rib.
"hiss!"
Oakley gasped in pain.
"He elbowed me, he elbowed me just now..." He shouted quickly.
"NO, I didn't, he wanted to get me down." Zhou Quan quickly defended.
Including the referee, the three referees shook their heads and said they did not see it.
"Shet!"
Oakley was so angry that he cursed.
Zhou Quan was a little disappointed. Oakley didn't take action?
He stood on the free throw line, smiled at Oakley and said: "Villain, the jury is more willing to believe the testimony of a gentleman than the sophistry of a gangster."
"asshole!"
Oakley turned pale with rage.
Zhou Quan took the ball thrown by the referee and started dribbling.
He has a rhythm to his free throws, dribbling the ball three times, exhaling, and shooting.
"brush!"
"brush!"
Made two consecutive free throws to exceed the score at 78:80.
Looking at Zhou Quan, Pat Riley shook his head in disappointment.
At the most critical moment, this rookie's psychological quality is really too stable. He is a guy who is born to adapt to big scenes.
With 46 seconds left on the clock, the Knicks attacked.
Zhou Quan tried his best to lock down Mark Jackson at the last moment, but the truth of the league was still right. The Knicks used a pick-and-roll to break his defense on Mark Jackson.
Mark Jackson got a little space through the pick and roll, but instead of breaking through with the ball, he immediately passed the ball to Ewing in the low post on the left wing. The next moment, Zhou Quan bypassed the pick and roll and jumped in front of him again.
"Bang!"
After receiving the ball, Ewing began to hit John Hanley with his back.
But at this time, Zhou Quan lost Mark Jackson without hesitation, rushed to the low post, and implemented a double-team.
Joe Dumars had moved from the right wing to the top of the arc. When Zhou Quan was double-teaming downwards, he quickly pounced on Mark Jackson and implemented a complementary defense.
And his man, Knicks backup shooting guard John Starks, was empty.
This time the Pistons' double-teaming tactic was betting on Ewing's ability to assist at this moment because he couldn't see the opening on the weak side.
The bet was right. Ewing saw Zhou Quan rushing to his side. With his limited vision, he no longer had enough time to observe the open space on the weak side. Now he had to either force a shot or pass it to Mark Jackson.
At the critical moment, the superstar only believes in himself and chooses to do it himself.
Moreover, Mark Jackson's current position is on the three-point line. He has no three-pointers. Joe Dumars has almost made up for it, and there is no big gap.
He suddenly turned around and jumped back with his legs. While getting rid of John Salley, he also escaped from Zhou Quan's double team.
The next moment, he got up again and took a mid-range shot.
Zhou Quan tried his best to change direction, take off to block the shot, and stretched his arms as much as possible, but he was still a step behind his boss. Ewing's bunny jumping ability to get rid of the defense made his double-team fail.
As soon as he landed, he immediately turned around and rushed towards the paint.
It's not that he thought the ball wouldn't hit, but that he didn't give up any opportunity to grab rebounds, especially when rebounding was super difficult today.
"boom!"
The next moment he heard the most beautiful sound.
"short!"
The bearded John Lowes shouted with excitement.
"Iron Fist? Iron Fist got the rebound."
The next moment, the bespectacled man Longger Lance shouted.
Zhou Quan rushed to the left waist in one step. With good luck, the basketball bounced into the air above him. He quickly grabbed it, turned around and rushed towards the front court.
Taking two steps laterally, Mark Jackson immediately blocked it.
"Bang!"
With a quick reaction, Zhou Quan pushed the ball and the ball passed between Mark Jackson's legs and passed through his crotch.
Joe Dumars in front took the rebound ball and rushed forward quickly. John Starks desperately chased from the flank to the center, getting closer and closer.
Zhou Quan could no longer run, but he still tried his best to move quickly from behind.
John Starks came off the bench and was physically better than Joe Dumars. When he got to the paint, he was already behind him.
At this time, Joe Dumars rushed to the back and made an emergency stop for a layup.
In the Knicks, John Starks, Oakley, and Anthony Mason were among the three most aggressive players. At this time, they jumped up from behind and flew to block shots.
"Bang!"
The two collided in the air and fell to the ground.
"Beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded.
"Damn New Yorkers!"
"He did it on purpose!"
Suddenly, the palace of Mount Auburn was filled with curses.
Next, Joe Dumars made a free throw.
Unfortunately, I fell down just now and was affected. I missed two free throws at the critical moment, and the score was still 78:80.
Oakley grabbed the rebound and the Knicks attacked. With 18 seconds left, Pat Riley called a timeout.
"Patrick, the last attack is here."
Two points away, he has only one option, to believe in his superstar Patrick Ewing. This is a must. Even if he is a championship coach, at the most critical moment, he will only believe in his superstar, not others.
"Um."
Ewing nodded dully.
"Don't leave them time. After the tie, immediately defend with all your strength. We will solve them in overtime." Pat Riley warned.
"I arranged for John to cut in from the weak side. If you don't have a chance, remember that you have your teammate behind you and he is waiting for your ball."
But in the end, he grabbed Ewing and whispered something in his ear.
"Dennis, hold on for a few more seconds, I need your help."
On the Pistons side, Chuck Daly pulled Rodman up from the bench and asked him to help guard Ewing. He concluded that the last ball must and could only be Ewing.
"I know, coach."
Rodman also gritted his teeth and played like this tonight. The team has a chance to win, but he doesn't want to lose.
The timeout ends and the Knicks attack.
Zhou Quan mustered up his courage and struggled to get in front of Mark Jackson, trying to lock the opponent's downward passing route.
Believe in superstars, this is the tradition of the NBA, he knows this, and Chuck Daly also said just now that the last shot will most likely be Ewing, so he has to lock the passing routes of Mark Jackson and Ewing .
"Zhizhizhi..."
At the last moment, all that was left in the Palace of Auburn Hills was the sound of sneakers scraping together and the heavy and nervous breathing of countless fans.
With seven seconds and six seconds left, Mark Jackson got rid of Zhou Quan through the pick-and-roll and passed the ball down.
When Ewing received the ball, a pick-and-roll occurred on the weak side, and John Starks used the wall to get rid of Joe Dumars and cut towards the basket.
"Bang!"
Ewing dribbled the ball and hit from behind, but John Salley hit it hard. Rodman pounced from behind, and Zhou Quan also pounced on him. Facing a three-person double-team, he could only choose to implement Pat Riley's tactics, giving him Starks cuts from behind and passes the ball.
At this moment, he didn't even have time to look behind him and could only blindly believe in John Starks' inside cut.
The next moment, the rabbit jumped, turned around in the air, took a step back, opened the distance between John Salley and Rodman, and threw the ball over John Salley's head before it even hit the ground.
"coming!"
At the moment of passing the ball, he saw Starks cutting into the right waist position, and his eyes lit up.
"Dorsal cut!"
With a full-level panoramic view, Zhou Quan, who rushed down from above, saw Starks cutting in. He even saw it earlier than Ewing, seeing it from the moment Starks started cutting in.
When Ewing used the rabbit jump, he immediately decided to give up the double-team on Ewing and rushed directly to cover the basket.
Starks cut to the right waist and saw Ewing's jump pass. His eyes lit up and he accelerated and rushed in.
"I'm going to finish the last dunk."
The next moment, he received the pass, jumped up hard, held the ball with both hands, and smashed it into the empty basket.
On the opposite side, Zhou Quan rushed in from John Salley and also flew up with all his strength.
"Bang!"
The two instantly collided in front of the basket.
John Starks only weighed 82 kilograms and could not hit Zhou Quan. He was knocked directly from the air and fell to the ground after landing. He was badly injured.
Zhou Quan was better. He staggered two steps before falling to the ground.
"Beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded.
"boom!"
Using your body to stop your opponent's dunks is the toughest defense, and the Palace of Auburn Hills immediately burst into loud cheers.
At this time, the referee ran up, pointed at Zhou Quan, made a defensive foul gesture, and gave the Knicks two free throw opportunities.
"asshole!"
John Starkton was furious. His last dunk was actually destroyed by Iron Fist.
Dazed from the fall, he walked to the free throw line, and then missed both free throws in Pat Riley's anticipation.
"mine."
Rodman made his final big move, grabbing a backcourt rebound and then getting fouled.
Next, he made one of two free throws, widening the point difference to three points.
With 1.5 seconds left on the clock, Starks made a super long shot after receiving the ball.
At 78:81, the game ended, and the Pistons achieved a home victory with great difficulty.
"boom!"
The moment the game ended, the Palace of Auburn Hills was thrown into carnival, with everyone from fans to players cheering and shouting.
Although it was only the first game of the series, everyone was extremely happy to win against such a strong opponent as the Knicks under such difficult circumstances.
At the end of the game, Zhou Quan did not cheer with his teammates, but lay down directly. His calf had begun to cramp.
"Iron Fist, we still won."
Rodman also sat next to him, holding his painful knee with a smile on his face.
"Dennis, is your knee okay?"
Zhou Quan glanced at Rodman and asked breathlessly.
Rodman smiled broadly and said: "Old Shang, you are all working hard, I have to work hard."
In the TNT commentary box, Robert Guida held the statistics table and praised:
"This game was really unexpected. No one would have thought that the Pistons would have such a big problem with their rebounds. At 29:46, the Pistons actually grabbed 17 fewer rebounds.
But what is even more unexpected is that in this case, the Pistons actually won and the Knicks actually lost. "
Ringo Wilson smiled: "I can only say that except for rebounding, the Pistons have achieved the ultimate in other aspects.
Especially defensively, the Pistons only allowed Ewing to score 21 points, shot only 38% from the field, and prevented Ewing from making 5 turnovers.
In addition, Tekken's defense allowed Mark Jackson to make 5 of 13 shots, a shooting percentage of only 38.5%. Including free throws, he only scored 12 points. More importantly, Mark Jackson only sent 4 assists in this game.
Mark Jackson did not organize the team's offense well, and his performance was far lower than Tekken's performance. This was an important reason for the Knicks' loss. "
Robert Guida smiled: "Joe Dumars made 7 of 15 shots today, shooting 46.7%, not bad efficiency, 2 of 6 three-pointers, and scored 16 points.
But it is a pity that he did not break through or kill, so he did not make a free throw. What is even more disappointing is that because he was floating outside and had bad luck, he did not have a rebound. "
Ringo Wilson said: "On 1-for-9 shooting, the Assassins' performance was even worse, perhaps due to injuries, just like Rodman today.
Rodman averaged 18.7 rebounds per game in the regular season, but today he only played 27 minutes and only grabbed 7 rebounds. The Pistons' rebounding leader was Iron Fist. As a point guard, he actually grabbed 8 rebounds. "
Robert Guida praised: "So the reason why the Pistons won today is not because they did their best except rebounding, but the performance of Iron Fist is actually the only reason."
Then he read: "Tekken played 40 minutes, made 8 of 16 shots, 10 of 12 free throws, 26 points, 8 rebounds, 10 assists, 5 steals, 1 block, 4 turnovers and 4 fouls.
His shooting percentage was 50%, his free throw percentage was 83.3%, and he made 12 free throws. This was a reward for his continuous breakthroughs with the ball throughout the game, and his lethality was very powerful.
Except for a few mistakes, in other aspects, his performance was superstar level. Without his performance, it would be impossible for the Pistons to win tonight.
If you don't understand the value of this data, I can make a comparison, that is Ewing's 21 points and a 38% shooting rate.
One of them is a super center who is very close to the basket, and the other is a rookie point guard, but the latter is more efficient for only one reason. Tekken breaks through too many times, and his shooting position is closer to the basket than Ewing. "
(End of chapter)
