At this time, Zhou Quan took the ball and began to advance quickly on the left wing.
John Paxson turned back from the top of the key and was at the forefront of both sides.
Jordan caught up from a position near the left sideline, but Joe Dumars got between him and Zhou Quan. When he struggled to pass Joe Dumas, Zhou Quan had already held the ball from the left elbow and entered the paint area. , his pursuit was still slow.
Zhou Quan rushed into the paint from the left elbow area. Facing John Paxson who had just arrived at the basket, he jumped up and slashed with an ax again.
Facing the iron fist, which was as fierce as a tiger, John Paxson, who had suffered a lot of losses and had a bad conscience, couldn't help but retreat in panic even if he blocked it.
"boom!"
The explosive sound of the basket exploded again.
"ah!"
"Shh!"
The Pistons suddenly burst into cheers, which were then extinguished by boos from their opponents.
"4:0, the Pistons lead." Robert Guida said.
Ringo Wilson shook his head and said: "The Bulls missed two shots, the Pistons grabbed backcourt rebounds twice, and the Iron Fist made two successful counterattacks.
Iron Fist's continuous counterattacks and dunks boosted morale. Now the Bulls have to score goals to interrupt the Pistons' momentum and cannot let their opponents act recklessly at their home court. "
"Let's fight one."
Jordan pushed forward with the ball himself while yelling at his teammates.
He came to the right three-point line, and after a tentative step, he controlled the ball with his left hand and blasted Joe Dumars from the left.
Joe Dumars immediately turned around to pursue the defense and stuck to Jordan's right side in time, forcing his opponent to continue to control the ball with his left hand. At the same time, he engaged in physical confrontation to squeeze Jordan toward the center.
At the free throw line, Zhou Quan immediately implemented a defensive double-team and pounced on Jordan.
Before being double-teamed, Jordan stopped and turned around at the right elbow, put the ball together with both hands, and pushed towards the top of the key to the open John Paxson.
"Snapped!"
But just when he released the ball, Zhou Quan, who was well prepared, took a step in time and intercepted the ball with all his strength. Then he rushed forward and launched another counterattack.
Jordan, who was anxious, quickly used his strength and chased after him.
Zhou Quan made a small change of direction and bypassed John Paxson, crossed the center line in a few steps, and rushed to the front, one step ahead of Jordan behind him.
"Oh ho ho..."
Two thousand fans of the away team started shouting and cheering for Zhou Quan.
"Shh!"
Huge boos arose, drowning out the shouts.
When Zhou Quan reached the top of the arc, Jordan had already caught up to his left side and started squeezing his body.
He looked to the left, and out of the corner of his left eye he saw Joe Dumars two steps behind him on the left. The next moment, he flew up.
Jordan also took off and jumped higher. With his wingspan, his defensive height overwhelmed Zhou Quan. He had to be at least one foot taller. He raised his right hand and blocked the shot.
But Zhou Quan suddenly threw the ball behind his head with his backhand, turning the layup into a pass.
"not good!"
Jordan paused in his heart, and the next moment there was an awe-inspiring sound behind him.
"boom!"
Joe Dumars quickly followed up, flew up, caught the ball with both hands in the air, and dunked, pressing down on Jordan who was falling in front, and smashed the Bulls' basket.
"Well done!"
Zhou Quan roared excitedly at Joe Dumars, who dunked on Jordan, and the Pistons bench, with two thousand Pistons fans, all shouted.
"Shh!"
The angry United Center, like an awakened bull, roared.
"Too bad, the Pistons counterattacked again, Iron Fist intercepted Michael's pass, and then passed a back pass to Joe Dumars in the fast break, and Joe Dumars dunked Michael. The score is now 6:0, and the Bulls have not scored yet. ." Ringo Wilson shook his head and sighed.
"Very beautiful defense! The Pistons are indeed the strongest defensive team in the league. I think they really have the strength to take away a victory from the United Center." Robert Guida said excitedly.
Under the basket, Jordan was breathing heavily, his chest was heaving, and his angry eyes were as hot as fire, as if he was about to ignite.
"Be angry, old bird, but it won't give you power." Zhou Quan spat trash talk.
"Get away!"
Jordan roared.
"Ha ha……"
Zhou Quan and his teammates laughed.
"Let's fight one."
Jordan took the ball again and advanced it himself, shouting at the same time.
"Hit one! Hit one..."
A unified shout rang out in the United Center, as if someone had organized it. The sound got louder and louder, and the cohesion of the fans was evident.
"brush!"
This time, after Jordan broke through to the left elbow area, he did not pass the ball under the double team of Joe Dumars and Zhou Quan. Instead, he stopped and turned around, and then turned around and shot a fadeaway jumper, scoring the Bulls' first goal.
"One of two shots. Under the strong defense of the Pistons, the Bulls actually have no other way. He must take more shots and rely on his personal strength to defeat the Pistons." Robert Guida said.
Ringo Wells said: "Grant mainly scores inside, Cartwright's score can be ignored, John Paxson is locked up with an iron fist, and none of the three of them can become a powerful scoring point. The Bulls can only rely on Michael on the offensive end. And Pippen.”
Robert Guida said: "If Grant plays well inside, he can score a lot of points. It depends on what kind of defense Rodman can play.
On Paxson's side, Tekken frequently double-teamed Michael today. In fact, he had a chance. The first ball was given to him, but he missed the shot when Tekken returned to defense. Maybe he was not trusted. "
6:2, Pistons attack.
This was the first positional battle today. Zhou Quan took the ball to the frontcourt and stopped on the right wing, three steps away from the three-point line. He was not in a hurry to attack.
The first three attacks were all quick counterattacks. Running at full strength consumed more physical energy. Let's take a moment to slow down.
Jordan can't stand it anymore. Do you think I don't exist?
But he still didn't take the risk to steal, because Zhou Quan was ten centimeters shorter than him, had a very good wingspan, and had a very low height to control the ball, making it very difficult to steal.
The attack time was still multiplied by eight seconds, and Zhou Quan made a move.
The moment the basketball was pulled up, he took a step forward with his left foot and pressed his left elbow against Jordan. At the moment of the confrontation, he grabbed the ball with one hand and threw it. The ball flew quickly from Michael Jordan's side into the right wing.
"Snapped!"
Joe Dumars inside the three-point line received the ball and started a single to John Paxson.
At this time, Zhou Quan ran towards the top of the arc. When Jordan caught up with him, he suddenly changed direction downwards, passed Jordan, and cut into the right elbow area.
Jordan immediately turned around and chased downwards. At this time, Rodman on the right waist saw the opportunity and immediately came up to prepare for a pick-and-roll.
Joe Dumars passed the ball in time. After receiving the ball, Zhou Quan changed direction and hit Grant, while Rodman blocked the pursuing Jordan.
Zhou Quan ran into the paint with the ball. After two steps, he jumped up to face Cartwright and performed a tomahawk-style dunk.
Cartwright's defense was very tough and his attacks were ruthless. In the Battle of Mount Auburn, after Grant injured the Assassin, the two teams had already gotten angry, but he still had no scruples and used the most vicious foul to injure John Salley. This completely angered Zhou Quan, and then he was injured under Zhou Quan's defense.
This time, he still jumped up to block the shot and pressed down with his big hand.
"Go to hell!"
Zhou Quan, with a fierce look on his face, slashed downwards with his ax, and with a bang, the Bulls' basket roared, and Cartwright fell down.
"Beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded.
"ah!"
Two thousand Pistons fans instantly raised their arms and cheered wildly.
Zhou Quan hung above the basket, released his hands, spread his legs, sat on Cartwright's body, and then passed by with his head held high.
"Shh!"
Seeing their center being dunked and humiliated, the Bulls fans were not willing to do anything. Huge boos broke out and countless abuses came overwhelmingly.
"Tekken, great job!"
Rodman and others rushed up and hugged Zhou Quan.
Before the free throw, Phil Jackson called a timeout.
"8:2, the Pistons started with a strong defensive counterattack, and then completed a dunk on the center in the positional battle. It really boosted morale! The Bulls' center was dunked by the opponent's point guard, which hurt morale. ." Robert Guida said.
"Iron Fist made 3 of 3 shots in the beginning, with 6 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist and 1 steal. All three goals were dunks, including two defensive counterattacks and one positional dunk. His performance today was indeed very good," Ringo Wilson said. .
On the Bulls bench, after the players came back, Phil Jackson said in a deep voice: "1 of 3 shots, 1 turnover, and two offensive rebounds without grabbing a single one. I hope you will focus all your attention and improve your performance." Attention to the game.
Remember, this is home, our home court, with 20,000 fans in attendance and millions of Chicagoans watching you. "
After a three-second pause, and after the players digested his words, he said again: “We must first strengthen our rebounding efforts, including offensive rebounds.
Secondly, Michael, you are now 1-for-2 from the field. I can't say that your touch is not good, but I need you to strengthen your breakthrough, because we cannot let the score be opened up. "
"clear."
Jordan chewed his gum very quickly and nodded.
Phil Jackson added: "Today they made three defensive counterattacks, all of which were successful. We must speed up our return.
At the same time, we need to be more cautious in our offense. Obviously, their defensive effect was very good today. Iron Fist helped defend Michael several times, and we need to open up their defense.
From now on, Pippen controls the ball and launches the attack from the left wing. Michael moves without the ball and looks for opportunities. We want the iron fist to leave Michael. Paxson, don't stick to the top of the key. You have to run. Do you understand? ? "
"Understood." Jordan and others nodded.
The timeout ended and Zhou Quan made a free throw.
"brush!"
Extra penalty hit, 9:2, the Pistons led by 7 points.
"3 of 3 shots, 1 of 1 free throw, 7 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist and 1 steal, the performance is really beautiful!" Zhang Liangyi exclaimed at his home.
"But the camera is still on Jordan. Even if Zhou Quan scores, there are no extra shots for him, and Jordan's scoring shot will be replayed immediately," his wife said.
"No way, this is their territory. It would be great for Xiao Zhou to gain a foothold in the Pistons and become the leader of a team. The league will never praise him." Zhang Liji shook his head.
At the United Center, Pippen held the ball on the left wing and attacked. The Pistons' defensive formation also shifted to the left. Jordan led Joe Dumars to run continuously on the weak right wing.
John Paxson was also running around, forcing Zhou Quan to chase him around. At this time, the former ran to the left wing, and the latter also chased to the left wing.
On the right wing, Jordan and Joe Dumars occupied a large area of outside space, and there was no second Pistons defender within three meters.
At this time, Pippen passed the ball, Jordan received the ball and singled out Joe Dumars.
No one has a chance to help defend because the distance is too large. As long as he dares to double-team, there will be a big gap left. With Jordan's passing ability, he will never let go of this opportunity and can only watch Jordan single out Joe Dumars. .
Moreover, the defensive distance is too far, and with Jordan's offensive speed, there is no time to reach it.
"Bang!"
Two meters away from the paint area, Jordan played with his back and only arched for a moment, then turned around and shot a fadeaway jumper. He completed the attack in less than two seconds without giving his opponent a chance to double-team.
Joe Dumars tried his best to block the shot, but his hand only reached Jordan's elbow, which was too far.
"brush!"
The water splashed and hit two points from far away.
9:4, Pistons attack.
"boom!"
Ulrich cut inside the basket and received Zhou Quan's pass. Under Grant's defense, he failed to hit a throw near the basket.
Cartwright grabbed the rebound and the Bulls attacked.
Joe Dumars chased the ball very closely and did not give Jordan a chance to catch the ball. Pippen took the ball to the left midfielder and saw that Jordan had no chance, so he had to force the shot.
"boom!"
Even with Rodman and John Hawley's four big hands blocking the shot, there was no shot.
"mine!"
Rodman turned around and was about to grab the rebound when Zhou Quan rushed down from above and snatched the rebound away. He was so anxious that he blew his beard and stared.
Iron Fist, are you sorry? The Queen is sitting on the sidelines watching me. If I don’t grab a few rebounds and show my vitality, how can I climb into her bed?
"Dennis, are you watching the show?"
On the sidelines, Chuck Daly roared at Rodman.
"oh oh."
Rodman hurriedly ran to the frontcourt.
The Bulls returned to defense very quickly. Zhou Quan quickly advanced to the top of the arc. Jordan got in front of him, but he did not slow down at all. He directly changed direction and rushed over, accelerating to break through from the right side and Jordan's left side.
Jordan quickly took a step back.
But he moved from stillness, but he was nowhere faster than Zhou Quan's momentum. Under Zhou Quan's intentional collision, their left shoulders touched instantly. With a bang, he was knocked over to the ground, and the latter lost some weight. Speed and then sprinted into the paint.
"oh!"
Seeing Jordan being knocked over, 20,000 Bulls fans screamed in surprise.
The next moment, Zhou Quan jumped up facing Pippen and Grant under the basket.
The two jumped up to block the shot at the same time, and their four big hands blocked all the space in front of the basket.
But when Zhou Quan reached the highest peak, his right hand holding the ball threw the ball to the left side of the basket.
"boom!"
In the next moment, Johnselli jumped up, put his hands together, and smashed the ball into the basket.
"Oh, a beautiful alley-oop dunk, John Salley's goal was effortless, so easy." Robert Guida said in admiration.
Ringo Wilson said: "Tekken rarely plays like this. He always advances to the frontcourt and waits for his teammates to be in position before launching an attack.
Not just now, before Rodman was in position and Cartwright was not in position, he directly launched an attack. Perhaps it was because of this that Michael was knocked over because he was not ready. "
Robert Guida shook his head and smiled: "No, no, even if Michael is prepared, he may be knocked over. You have to know that he is standing there to defend, and even when he is hit, he still retreats to defend, and his center of gravity is shifted backward. Easier to be knocked over.
Moreover, the impact of Iron Fist is very great. His speed is not too fast, but he has tonnage. He is not a small sports car, but he is a pickup truck with the accelerator pressed to the bottom. "
11:4, the Bulls attacked and called a timeout again.
"Michael, I give you unlimited fire authority."
"Everyone defends with all their strength. Play this as the finals and the last game of the season. Do you understand?"
The Bulls then tried their best to improve their defense on the defensive end, and the intensity of the confrontation reached another level. Just a few minutes later, Zhou Quan went in and was knocked down twice, while Jordan went in as many as three times.
By increasing their defensive intensity, the Bulls achieved the purpose of limiting the Pistons' offense, and then used Michael Jordan's unsolvable personal offense to start chasing points.
His touch was not as hot as in the G1 game, and it was difficult to catch up with the score for a while, but he was able to hold on to the score without letting the score difference widen.
After the first quarter, at 27:20, the Pistons led by 7 points on the road.
Because Jordan never came off the game, the Pistons did not dare to replace Zhou Quan and Joe Dumars. All three played the entire first quarter.
Robert Guida analyzed: "Iron Fist was the Pistons' scoring leader in the first quarter, making 4 of 6 shots and 4 of 5 free throws. He scored 12 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover and 1 foul in a single quarter.
He made all three of his first three shots and 1 of his next three. In these three attacks, he broke into the paint area, was blocked once under the basket, and made two near-basket throws. "
Ringo Wilson said: "For the Bulls, Michael Jordan made 5 of 11 shots in the quarter, a shooting percentage of 45.5%, and 5 of 5 free throws. He scored 15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 turnovers and 1 foul in the first quarter. The true shooting percentage is 56.8%."
Robert Guida said: "Tekken's shooting percentage is 66.6%, and the true shooting percentage is 73.2%. In terms of offensive efficiency, Tekken's performance in the first quarter today is very good. Coupled with the organization and defensive performance, this is the Pistons' lead in the first quarter. The most important reason for the 7 points.”
Ringo Wilson said: "The Pistons' defense is really like an iron barrel. Michael scored 15 points alone, and the others added up to 5 points. The Pistons basically cut off the connection between teammates and Michael, and this is also the Jordan created by the Pistons. Lawful defensive tactics.”
Robert Guida nodded and said: "It means not letting others score, only letting Jordan score. On the contrary, letting others score, means not letting Jordan score."
Ringo Wilson praised: "This is the power of Michael, he can bite the score with one person's offense.
No matter how strong the Pistons' defense is, so what if they are No. 1 in the league? They couldn't stop him from scoring, it was truly incomprehensible! "
Robert Guida nodded: "The Pistons don't have Michael Jordan, so when the defensive intensity goes up and the offensive efficiency goes down, they lose the ability to widen the point difference.
This is a one-sided advantage. The Bulls have Jordan's unsolvable offense, and their offense has a bottom line. No matter how strong the Pistons' defense is, the Bulls can score a lot of points.
But the Pistons were not good. When the Bulls increased their defensive intensity, it became difficult for them to score. Without the sharp offense of the Assassins, they lost their strong offensive ability.
But no matter what, the Pistons' performance in the first quarter was very strong, especially Tekken's performance, which was omnipotent in offense, defense, and organization. "
At the beginning of the second quarter, Jordan played again. He led the bench to start a fight with the assassins and Mark Aguirre.
Chuck Daly saw a seven-point lead, but Zhou Quan's physical condition was not very good. He played the full first quarter and only allowed him to play 6 minutes in the second quarter.
At the end of the first half, at 51:49, the Bulls chased five points back and were only two points behind.
In order to save energy, Jordan mostly made jump shots in the second quarter, making 4 of 8 shots and 2 of 2 free throws. He scored another 10 points and 25 points in the half.
The Assassins performed generally under Jordan's defense, making 2 of 6 shots, 2 of 2 free throws, 6 points, 2 assists and 1 turnover in 12 minutes.
Mark Aguirre made 3 of 7 shots in a single quarter, plus 2 of 2 free throws, scoring 8 points.
In the second half, both sides were still half main players and half substitutes.
But on the Bulls side, Jordan was like an iron man and still played the entire game.
It is precisely because of him that the Bulls have the confidence to play half as the main player and half as the substitute to gain rest time for the rest of the main players.
Especially Pippen and Grant, both have average physical fitness. They both got a lot of rest time in the second and third quarters.
For the Pistons, Zhou Quan played 10 minutes in the third quarter and 28 minutes in the third quarter.
After the third quarter, 73:67, the Pistons led by 6 points.
Both sides are still fighting for defense in this quarter. Whoever dares to break into the opponent's paint area will be like water dripping into a hot oil pan. The paint area will boil immediately. Every time such a breakthrough attack occurs, someone will fall down.
So throughout the quarter, the game was very fragmented. In the second half of the quarter, they were all shooting outside, and the shooting percentages of both sides were not high.
"Michael scored 7 points in the third quarter. His touch was not good today, and there was no rest time. The Pistons double-teamed him with all their strength. His condition was average, but he had already scored 32 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. His shooting percentage was That’s 44.4 percent,” Ringo Wilson said.
Robert Guida said: "The Pistons are in better shape. Although the advantage is not huge, they always have a score advantage.
As the core, Tekken played 28 minutes today, making 5 of 9 shots and 8 of 9 free throws. He has already scored 18 points, 5 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals, 1 block, 3 turnovers and 2 fouls.
His shooting percentage was 55.5%, and he played a rare efficient performance on the offensive end, but he took fewer shots. "
Ringo Wilson said: "It was his timing of shots, allowing teammates with better opportunities to take shots, that put the Pistons in the lead. Otherwise, like his wasteful shots in G1, the Pistons would not have a chance to win.
In addition, his breakthrough today was quite good and he was very lethal. The main offense occurred at the basket, and his playing style was very fierce. "
Robert Gee said: "Both sides made a lot of substitutions in the second and third quarters. Except for Michael, the main players of both sides got a rest and accumulated energy for the last quarter. I think there will be a more intense offensive and defensive battle in the final quarter. Waiting for us.”
"I hope there will be no injuries, and the defensive actions must be controlled. There cannot be another battle at the Palace of Auburn Hills." Ringo Wilson reminded.
(End of chapter)
