The Bulls were preparing to serve from the baseline. Zhou Quan, who was standing next to Jordan, suddenly pounced on Trent Tucker, who was two steps away and was about to catch the ball.
Joe Dumars reacted quickly and immediately stood in front of Pippen, cutting off Pippen's receiving angle.
As soon as Jordan saw Zhou Quan pounce on Tucker, he knew that the Pistons were going to press in the backcourt, and immediately shouted to Scott Williams who was about to serve: "Here."
The next moment, Zhou Quan, who had just pounced on Tucker, turned around and pounced back. At this time, Scott's ball had been passed over.
"Damn it!"
Jordan immediately stepped forward and jumped to catch the ball.
Zhou Quan also rushed up and grabbed the ball with Jordan in the air.
But he knew that Jordan had a height advantage and could jump higher than himself, so his purpose was not to grab the ball, but to engage in an aerial confrontation with Jordan so that Jordan could not catch the ball.
So he didn't jump very high at all, but deliberately jumped up and rubbed against Jordan. Before Jordan could touch the ball, his body was tilted, and then the ball was missed.
"oh!"
The whole audience exclaimed.
"The Bulls are in trouble!" Bill Walton shouted.
Darnell Walker was lucky at the critical moment. He rushed over to get the ball and quickly handed it to Zhou Quan. Zhou Quan turned around and took the ball towards the basket.
"Shet!"
Jordan was so angry that he gritted his teeth and chased after him.
Pippen, Tucker, and Scott, who had just served, rushed to the basket to stop Zhou Quan's attack. Jordan also caught up, but Zhou Quan pushed with his hand and the ball flew to Joe Douma on the right wing. Sri Lanka.
Pippen hurriedly turned around and pounced on Joe Dumas, but Joe Dumars handled it calmly and did not shoot. Instead, he pulled outside the three-point line, waiting for his teammates to come back, and at the same time delaying the attack time.
Five seconds later, he passed the ball to Zhou Quan on the left wing. Zhou Quan caught the ball, and the others pulled away, and he started to single out Jordan.
The attack time was almost over. Zhou Quan made a fake shot and shot another three-pointer. But this time Jordan accurately predicted and almost blocked the ball.
"boom!"
The ball was short, and Seikali moved first at the critical moment, grabbed this key offensive rebound from Scott's head, and was fouled by the opponent.
"Ronnie, good job."
Zhou Quan ran up to applaud Seikali with a smile on his face.
Although Sekali is not good at defense, he is really good at rebounding, averaging 9 points per game in the playoffs, and his offense is also okay, averaging 15 points per game in the playoffs.
With his passing, the field goal rate exceeded 50%. This efficiency was a very good performance when the Bulls' inside line was also poor, and it was also a key factor in the Pistons' ability to win two games.
"71 seconds, 9 points, the Pistons still have two free throws, it will be difficult for the Bulls to catch up." Bill Walton said.
The next free throw was made, Seikali made the first free throw, but missed the second free throw. Grant grabbed the rebound and the Bulls attacked.
"brush!"
Jordan stepped down quickly, received a long pass from Grant, reached the top of the arc and hit a three-pointer with a stop jumper. The basketball penetrated the Pistons' net like a sharp arrow.
"ah!"
The whole place was filled with excitement. Bulls fans seemed to have seen the hope of a comeback for the Bulls. Huge shouts and cheers resounded for nine days.
Zhou Quan was in hot pursuit, but was escaped by Jordan's emergency stop and fell to the floor.
Jordan looked down at Zhou Quan, his eyes as cold as knives and as sharp as swords.
Zhou Quan got up and didn't even look at Jordan. He walked forward and knocked Jordan away. He shouted at his teammates who were returning to defense: "The game is not over yet. Where is our defense? Defense! I want to see your defense!" "
Sekali and Rodman lowered their heads. They were careless just now and did not stop Grant's fast pass, which allowed Jordan to play a fast break.
"This offense lasted 2.4 seconds, and now there are 68.6 seconds left, 102:95, and the Bulls are still 7 points behind." Zhang Liang said.
"The bull hasn't given up yet!" Sun Zhenping said.
Zhang Lili shook his head and said: "There is still enough time, how can we give up? We are playing crazy, after a wave of offense and defense, a 7-point advantage is nothing, one minute is enough."
Don't forget, Jordan is the most powerful killer in the league. As long as he is given a chance, he has enough ability to kill any game. "
In the ABC commentary box, Bill Walton said: "It's 52 points. Congratulations to Michael Jordan. You scored 50+ points in a single game for the sixth time in your career in the playoffs. You surpassed Chamberlain and scored 50 points in a single game in the playoffs. First in history.”
"It's amazing," Williams laughed.
Pistons offense.
Zhou Quan estimated that the Bulls would press in the backcourt in order to speed up the tempo, and Joe Dumars and Darnell Walker would support him from behind. He would advance with the ball himself.
"Damn it!"
Jordan cursed secretly and could only defend and retreat.
He was worried that he didn't dare to press Zhou Quan, because Zhou Quan's breakthrough with the ball was too good, and he would be in trouble once the press failed.
And there's still time, it's not time to make a desperate move.
"Defend! Defend..."
At this time, nearly 20,000 Bulls fans shouted, and the United Center Arena echoed with uniform cheers.
Zhou Quan took the ball to the left wing, close to the left sideline, and the others pulled away, forming a one-on-one pattern between him and Jordan.
"Jordan, tonight, I am your God!"
At this time, Zhou Quan, who had not talked trash throughout the game, actually started talking trash.
Jordan was startled, endless anger welling up in his head, and his eyes were full of evil, but the next moment he cursed: "Asshole!"
"squeak!"
As soon as Zhou Quan's trash talk came out, he suddenly stepped out with his right foot and started to thrust from the right side. Jordan was distracted by his trash talk and his reaction was slow. He rushed over in one step.
"Boom!" Zhang Lili shouted excitedly.
Seeing Zhou Quan break through Jordan and reach the left elbow in two steps, Scott Williams in the low post had no choice but to lose Sekali and go up to cover.
"squeak!"
Zhou Quan reached the left elbow area and made a jump shot, and the ball flew towards the basket.
This position is the most accurate area for Jordan's mid-range shot, and it is also the most accurate position for his mid-range shot, because this position is the weakest defensive area under the man-to-man defensive system. That one hasn’t caught up yet.
"boom!"
At the critical moment, Zhou Quan's full-level willpower was very effective. He shot very resolutely and his hands were very steady. With his physical fitness, he could still hold on, and the basketball hit the basket.
"Beautiful! One ball for another, just do it like this, use points to suppress the momentum of the Bulls, and don't let the opponent gain momentum." Zhang Lijia shouted excitedly.
"49.2 seconds, 104:95, another 9-point difference. If they can't prevent the Pistons' offense, even if the Bulls can score, they won't be able to come back." Bill Walton said.
At the three-point line on the right wing, Jordan stood still to catch the ball, leaned down to get the ball, and suddenly started a breakthrough. He took one step from the left and passed Zhou Quan, and hit the right elbow area for a pull-up jumper.
"brush!"
The water splashed and the two-pointer hit.
Zhou Quan gritted his teeth. It was not that he was not careful, but that his physical fitness was not as good as Jordan's and he failed to keep up. At the last moment, Jordan's physical advantage was being reflected.
The Pistons have always had the advantage, and now they still have two timeouts, one long and one short. The Bulls still have a long timeout. After catching the ball, he immediately made a timeout gesture and asked for a long timeout to give himself a chance to breathe.
After returning to the bench, he took the towel and sat down. The masseur came over to massage his calves, and his teammates handed him another energy drink.
"104:97, we still have a 7-point advantage, and there are 37 seconds left. Don't be careless." Assistant coach Musk reminded.
Chuck Daly squatted in front and said in a low voice: "In the last half minute, cheer up. As long as we survive these 37 seconds, we can win the match point."
At the match point, everyone was in high spirits.
Especially the assassin's eyes were shining.
"Now we change the formation and catch them off guard." Chuck Daly said.
After the timeout, both sides took the field.
On the Bulls side, BJ came on the court and replaced Tucker.
For the Pistons, Darnell Walker came off the court and onto Isiah Thomas.
"Oh, both sides are very bold. They both replaced a point guard." Williams said in surprise in the ABC commentary box.
Bill Walton immediately analyzed: "The Bulls should speed up, time is running out. But the Pistons? I don't know what coach Chuck Daly is thinking."
The Pistons attacked and the Assassins advanced with the ball.
Neither Zhou Quan nor Joe Dumars stayed behind to respond, and took Jordan and Pippen away, leaving the assassin to deal with BJ alone.
BJ tried to force the assassin, but although the assassin's body was failing, his rich experience was not what he could compare with. He could easily turn around and get past him.
Arriving in the frontcourt, he handed the ball to Zhou Quan on the left wing.
"I understand, it's about physical fitness. Iron Fist's physical fitness is no longer good," Bill Walton said.
On the court, Jordan immediately went over to press Zhou Quan, trying to speed up the tempo.
But he couldn't steal the ball from Zhou Quan alone. Zhou Quan struggled outside the three-point line on the left wing for nearly a few seconds. Jordan's pressing had no effect, so BJ lost the assassin and double-teamed from the top of the key.
"The bull is in a hurry!" Zhang Lili said loudly.
"Whoosh!"
After BJ took two steps over, Zhou Quan suddenly passed the ball and the basketball flew straight to the top of the arc.
"Oops!"
BJ hurriedly returned to defense, but was it too late?
What kind of person is the Assassin? A super madman who scored 25 points in a single quarter in the finals. Even though his body is not good, there is a big gap.
"brush!"
The ball flew towards the basket, splashing a pool of white water.
"ah!"
Isiah Thomas roared with excitement, beyond excited.
"Defense!"
Zhou Quan's roar sounded like an alarm.
"Zhizhizhi..."
Jordan is sprinting downfield.
Under the basket, Grant picked up the ball and was retreating to the baseline.
Rodman quickly ran forward, waving his hands constantly to stop the Cobra from firing quickly.
Taking this opportunity, Zhou Quan caught up with Jordan, and Joe Dumars also returned to defend.
"The Bulls are gone!" Bill Walton shook his head.
"107:97, the Pistons lead by ten points, with only 18 seconds left," Williams said.
On the court, the Bulls took fifteen seconds to complete an attack. Jordan forced a shot and failed to hit. Rodman grabbed a defensive rebound. With only two seconds left, the Bulls gave up.
"Beep!"
As the referee blew the whistle to end the game.
"Oh ho!"
Zhou Quan, Joe Dumars, Rodman, Assassin, all Pistons players, staff, coaches, and two thousand Pistons fans, all cheered heartily at this moment.
Not far away, looking at the celebrating Pistons, Jordan was extremely reluctant.
He lost the key G5 game at home, allowing the Pistons to get the match point. The three consecutive championships encountered the greatest difficulty. He would rather be defeated by all other teams in the league than be defeated by the Pistons.
"Next game, come back in the next game, we must come back."
But the game was over, and he could only accept the result. With this thought in mind, he turned and walked towards the players' tunnel, with a somewhat lonely background.
"MJ! MJ..." Many fans kept calling him.
In the ABC commentary box, Bill Walton said: "The G5 game is over. The Detroit Pistons defeated the Chicago Bulls and got the second round match point."
Williams picked up the statistics table and read: "Jordan made 22 of 42 shots, 52.4% from the field, 3 of 6 three-pointers, 7 of 8 free throws, 54 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, and 3 turnovers in a single game. 3 fouls.
The state was not very good in the first quarter, but Michael adjusted his state in time later, and his hand data was still super explosive throughout the game. Unfortunately, he lost to Iron Fist, who was in even more popular form.
He must be very unwilling to lose the match point, which casts a shadow on his prospects for three consecutive championships and plunges him into a dark situation. "
Bill Walton read: "Tekken made 16 of 28 shots, 57.1% from the field, 2 of 4 three-pointers, 4 of 4 free throws, 38 points, 6 rebounds, 12 assists, 4 steals, 3 turnovers and 4 fouls.
He scored 16 points less than Jordan, but his organization and passing allowed the Pistons to shoot 50.5% overall, while the Bulls only had 46.4%. In the end, the Pistons had the last laugh. "
Williams smiled and asked: "Bill, Iron Fist should be a ball-holding and core style of play, right?"
"no doubt."
Bill Walton said: "Most of the ball is in his hands. The whole team revolves around him. His personal performance determines the victory or defeat of the team."
Williams said: "This style of play is also a top-level style of play, but it should have good and bad qualities, right?"
Nodding, Bill Walton said: "As I said just now, if he is not in good condition, the team will most likely lose the game.
His current style of play is somewhat similar to Jordan's. Later, after Phil Jackson became the head coach, Jordan gave up the ball.
But there is also a difference, that is, he is a point guard, not a shooting guard. If his offensive condition is not good, he can still concentrate on organizing the offense and passing the ball to his teammates. He can make appropriate adjustments between organization and personal offense, and his His psychological quality is very stable, so his state has always been very stable. "
"Michael Jordan is so strong, but he couldn't make it to the Eastern Conference Finals even with his big-core style of play. After giving up the ball-handling big-core style, he switched to the triangle offense and won two consecutive championships. Why did the Pistons switch to the ball-handling big-name style because of Iron Fist? What about nuclear play?" Williams asked again.
Bill Walton said: "After all, Jordan is not a point guard. There are definitely disadvantages to having too much ball power. Pippen's growth is a necessary condition. His existence has liberated Jordan's singles ability. The ultimate goal of the triangle offense is to let Jordan plays alone, so this tactic is most suitable for Jordan.
However, the core style of play with the ball does not mean that you have to attack with the ball, nor does it mean that you have to play by yourself. Tiequan's personal offensive ability has improved a lot this season. He can attack by himself with the ball, or he can create opportunities with the ball and then distribute the ball. Go out and let his teammates attack, so this style of play is also the most suitable for him.
Everyone has a style of play that suits him. Jordan and Iron Fist are different types, so they require different styles of play. Fortunately, they both got their opportunities and met the right head coach. "
At the scene, Zhou Quan was being interviewed.
"Tekken, are you confident that you can win this series at home?" a reporter from ABC asked.
"We hope, but we are also mentally prepared." Zhou Quan did not finish his words.
"Don't you have absolute confidence?" the reporter asked.
"What is absolute confidence? Do you think the Bulls are little cats and shrimps? Then you underestimate Michael Jordan too much. He is not the waste you think he is."
Zhou Quan can be sure that this reporter has bad intentions and his attitude is biased toward the bull.
The reporter explained awkwardly: "No, no, that's not what I meant. I didn't say he was a waste."
After giving the reporter an embarrassment, Zhou Quan explained: "It is to make all psychological preparations. This kind of preparation can prevent us from being in a mess under any circumstances."
"You gave up the ball to Joe Dumars and even Isiah Thomas for some time tonight, and they did a good job, as good as you. Will you share the ball with them in the future? "The reporter immediately changed the topic.
Zhou Quan smiled and said: "I will play how the team asks me to play. Are you satisfied with my answer?"
"I'm so satisfied!" the reporter said dissatisfied in his heart.
"Okay, that's it."
Zhou Quan ended the on-site interview at the right time, walked to the bench, and bid farewell to Pistons fans and friends together with his teammates.
Back in the locker room, Chuck Daly did not sum up and asked the players to take a shower.
When Zhou Quan came out of the shower, Musk said: "Iron Fist, 97:109, the Suns won at home and got the match point.
Barkley made 11 of 16 shots, a shooting percentage of 68.8%, and 13 of 15 free throws. He scored 36 points and 12 rebounds, which was his best performance.
David Robinson made 10 of 16 shots and had a shooting percentage of 62.5%, but he only made 4 of 9 free throws. He was not as lethal as Barkley and was not good at free throws. He only scored 24 points and 8 rebounds. "
He was a little surprised and said: "15 free throw opportunities? That guy is very lethal!"
"Don't underestimate him. The Flying Pig plays on top of the three super centers. He and the Postman are the most powerful power forwards in the league. By the way, that Rain Man Sean Kemp is getting stronger and stronger. "Musk laughed.
"Match point, we got match point, haha!"
At this time, in the Phoenix and Suns locker rooms, Barkley was already so happy that he even got a bottle of champagne from nowhere to celebrate.
In the first round of the series, he was almost beaten by the Lakers. In the second round, he won two consecutive home games and then two consecutive away games, which made him feel like he was on a roller coaster. Now he finally got the match point, so he is very happy.
"Charles, the Bulls lost and the Pistons got the match point." A staff member said.
"Cough cough, cough cough..."
Buckley, who was drinking champagne, almost choked to death when he heard this.
"Do you want to call a doctor?" Lightning asked with concern.
"No, no...ahem...thank you, Kevin, I'm not there yet."
Barkley took his breath away and thanked him. He still didn't believe it and shouted: "This is impossible. How could Michael lose the match point? He said he wanted to win. There is no way Iron Fist can beat Michael."
"Michael scored 54 points, but Iron Fist was more efficient. He scored 38 points and 12 assists, defeating the Bulls." The staff member shook his head.
"How is this possible?" Buckley said in confusion.
(End of chapter)
