At half past eight, the game officially started.
Jump ball, Sonics offense.
Zhou Quan holds the ball and Jordan defends.
Schrempf and Jose Hawkins ran directly to the left and right sidelines, wide open, leaving Noda's center to Zhou Quan.
Pippen and Ron Harper still defended on the line, leaving two meters in the air, about three meters away from the top of the arc.
Rodman entered the basket and swung around, then moved out to the right low post, washed his hands and then went in again.
Gilliam pulled to the left wing, one step away from the paint area, Kevin Willis followed to the left midfielder, and Luke Longley guarded the basket.
"Hey, is Zhou Quan attacking with the ball at the top of the key? Aren't you afraid of being double-teamed by Jordan, Pippen, and Harper?" Zhang Lili was a little surprised.
"This is to open up the rhythm of singles and prevent Zhou Quan from being double-teamed on the outside. He plays the same way on the court, but usually on the wing, but the Bulls defend on the line, and Zhou Quan is still often double-teamed." Xu Ji Enlightenment.
"Sudden? Shoot? Pass?"
When he saw Zhou Quan leaning down to dribble, these thoughts flashed through Jordan's mind, but it was just a thought. The next moment, he pounced on him, pressed closely, and through proactive defense, did not give Zhou Quan any chance.
His defensive strategy was still the same as in the previous game, trying to delay Zhou Quan's time and create opportunities for double teams on both wings.
This time it was at the top of the arc. He believed that as long as Pippen and Ron Harper were fast enough, they could even form a favorable situation of three-and-one.
His pressing action was to fire the signal gun for the double-team. Pippen and Ron Harper, who were three meters away, immediately rushed to the top of the key.
"Three to one!"
Seeing Jordan move, Pippen and Ron Harper also rushed to the top of the key, and Zhang Lili shouted urgently.
"How to fight Zhou Quan?" Xu Jicheng also shouted.
When Jordan was pressing forward, Zhou Quan dribbled the ball and took a step back with the fastest reaction speed. At this time, he had seen the attack from both wings, and then he took another step back.
This second step back made Pippen and Harper feel uncomfortable because they could no longer maintain their defensive position on the line and cut off the passing and receiving routes between Zhou Quan and the wings.
They were very fast. When Zhou Quan took the second step back, they had already pounced on the first step. They were only two meters away from completing the flanking attack. With just one step, their hands could almost reach Zhou Quan, so at this time It is impossible for them to change direction, they can only speed up and continue to double-team, trying to get the double-team in place before Zhou Quan passes the ball.
At the same time, when Zhou Quan took a step back, Schrempf and Hawkins on the left and right wings also took a step back in time. Between them and Zhou Quan, the field of vision was clear and there was no obstacle.
Zhou Quan retreated in the second step. When Jordan continued to press forward, his ball was also pulled up by his right hand. Then he turned right. The full panoramic view from the corner of his right eye captured Schrempf's next moment, and his right hand followed the trend. With a backhand move behind him to the left, the basketball instantly flew to Schrempf and passed the ball in a straight line.
Pippen reacted quickly when he rushed towards him, and instinctively stretched out his hand to block it. However, Zhou Quan added a turning movement and once again extended the distance between the passing position and him by half a step. No matter how long his arms were, there would be nothing wrong with him. Is it enough?
"Pass the ball without looking behind the back!" Larry Bird shouted.
Magic Johnson saw the pass, which was so fast and straight that Pippen had no chance to defend. He couldn't help but shake his head, feeling helpless.
"Snapped!"
Schrempf catches the ball with both hands, and his passing position is very good and comfortable. He doesn't have to make any adjustments at all to face the basket, take off, and shoot.
Pippen could only look at Schrempf five or six meters away from the top of the key, without any chance or even the thought of returning to defense.
"The open shot needs to be made!"
Zhang Lili shouted expectantly.
"brush!"
The water splashed and he hit a three-pointer.
"ah!"
The moment the ball went in, Schrempf pumped his fist and roared.
He missed a lot of open shots in the last game, and he really hoped that he could miss fewer shots this time. He hit the first ball, which made him feel very comfortable and his confidence returned.
"Beautiful! Zhou Quan passed the ball very beautifully, and Schrempf also made a beautiful shot. This huge open space was not wasted." Xu Jicheng said excitedly.
"As long as he can make an open shot, he will be successful today. Zhou Quan's passing ability never disappoints." Zhang Lili said excitedly.
Bulls offense.
After continuous passes, runs and pick-and-roll screens, Ron Harper got a small opening and received a pass from Jordan.
When Jordan caught the ball just now, Zhou Quan caught up with him in time. In fact, Zhou Quan's shooting percentage in his last singles game was not high enough. Excluding the attack at the basket, his shooting percentage on outside jumpers was less than 40%. This is chose to pass the ball.
Ron Harper shot a three-pointer from a position two meters to the left of the top of the arc. Hawkins missed the shot and the basketball flew toward the basket.
"boom!"
A little wide, and Rodman grabbed the rebound.
"Snapped!"
Missing the small opening, Ron Harper punched his right hand in anger.
Rodman wanted to pass out quickly, but Luke Longley blocked him, and the SuperSonics' offensive and defensive rhythm was slowed down.
When Zhou Quan came to the frontcourt with the ball, the Bulls had already completed their defense and he reached the top of the key again.
"Just looking for double teams at the top of the arc." Zhang Lili said nervously.
"As long as teammates can continue to hit open shots, will the Bulls still dare to double-team so unscrupulously?" Xu Jicheng said.
Zhou Quan slowly approached the top of the arc, his position was slightly to the right, and Jordan suddenly made a move.
Jordan has been mentally prepared for Zhou Quan to retreat. He will continue to attack and press, and will not give Zhou Quan a chance to easily play the ball.
But in the next moment, Zhou Quan suddenly turned right and rushed over from the left.
When Zhou Quan turned to pass, Pippen and Ron Harper also pounced on him, but their reaction speed was not as fast as him, a little slower.
"not good!"
Jordan was startled and turned around quickly, but it was already too late.
At this time, seeing Zhou Quan burst in and being double-teamed, Pippen and Ron Harper quickly turned around and returned to defend their respective men.
Zhou Quan strode to the top of the arc and reached the free throw line in two steps.
During this period, he had already seen Pippen and Harper returning to defense, so he did not pass the ball to Schrempf and Hawkins.
When he took the next step to the free throw line, Kevin Willis, who was guarding the left midfielder, had already taken two steps to the front of the basket and blocked him.
"Whoosh!"
Zhou Quan's ball flew to Gilliam, who was one step away from the left midfielder.
Gilliam caught the ball, got wide open in three steps, and shot a jumper.
"boom!"
I don’t know whether it was because the space was too large and there was no reference at all, or because the feel was really bad. The ball was deflected, and it was deflected a little too much.
"mine!"
Rodman yelled in his heart, and after accurate prediction, he moved to the position first, grabbed the offensive rebound, and then handed it to Zhou Quan hand in hand.
Zhou Quan felt that there was someone behind him, it must be Jordan. He did not take a shot, but hit the ground and passed the ball in the gap, and then passed it to Gilliam.
Gilliam paused as he caught the ball for the second time.
"Take action!"
On the sidelines, George Karl yelled.
Gilliam jumped up again and hit the target with a swipe sound.
"call!"
Gilliam was sweating. If he still couldn't hit the open ball, George Karl might replace him directly.
"Almon, good shot." Zhou Quan encouraged.
Gilliam smiled gratefully and nodded.
"Rebounds! Control backcourt rebounds!"
Phil Jackson shouted anxiously from the sidelines that he was not in the mood to blow the whistle any more, so he directly closed his trumpet and shouted.
"The Bulls lost the first backcourt rebound, which led to the SuperSonics' second offensive score. Neither Luke Longley nor Kevin Willis are the kind of insiders who have strong control over rebounds. In addition, their assist defense and supplementary defense His abilities are not good, he moves too slowly," Magic Johnson said.
Larry Bird joked: "This Bulls are missing a Rodman."
When Magic Johnson heard these words, his eyes lit up.
He feels that what Big Bird said is really right, and the Bulls have no chance to get Rodman, because Rodman's contract has expired and he has not completed an early contract extension with the SuperSonics. As long as the Bulls are willing to give a big contract, Rodman DeMann may or may not stay in Seattle.
5:0, Bulls attack.
On the right wing, Zhou Quan was chasing Jordan, and Kevin Willis was covering the pick-and-roll. He detoured in time, only half a step behind Jordan.
When Jordan ran to the right elbow area, Ron Harper passed the ball down from the top of the key. After receiving the ball, he immediately jumped sideways, preparing to adjust his posture in the air and complete the technical action of the catch and jump shot at the fastest pace. , giving the chasing Iron Fist no chance to disrupt his attack.
He even took off with a backward kick.
The moment Jordan caught the ball and took off, Zhou Quan's 96-level neural reaction speed was completely aroused. He reacted instantly and swooped up like a leopard, flying past Jordan.
"Block!"
Zhang Lili shouted loudly.
"Snapped!"
The moment it flew past Jordan, Zhou Quan's right hand swatted. With a precise strike, the basketball that Jordan had just raised his hands above his head was instantly swatted away.
"oh!"
There were gasps throughout the United Center.
"yeah!"
The Smiling Assassin and others stood up from their seats and cheered.
"well!"
Buckley and others slapped their thighs and sighed sadly.
"Damn it!"
Jordan's eyes were splitting after being blocked.
After Zhou Quan landed, he raised his head upwards, his vision locked on the ball in the air, which was still in front of him. He accelerated and ran forward, and then caught the ball three meters outside the three-point line first, and rushed from the top of the arc. Ron Harper took a step slower.
"Beautiful! Zhou Quan completed a block. He grabbed the ball and was about to hit it!" Xu Jicheng roared excitedly.
"boom!"
Zhou Quan entered the paint area and hit a flying dunk that exploded into the basket.
"7:0, Zhou Quan scored the first goal, and the SuperSonics led the Bulls away from home." Zhang Li said excitedly.
"Two points, two assists and one block. After two days and two nights of rest, Zhou Quan should be in better shape tonight than in the G3 game." Xu Jicheng said excitedly.
At this time, the Bulls called a timeout and the players from both sides returned to the bench.
Phil Jackson first talked about defense, and said very seriously: "Gentlemen, you should know that only defense can win the championship. Our ability to win the G3 game depends on defense.
But now we have failed to defend Tie Fist twice in a row. Once he passed the ball, he directly assisted, and once he passed the ball after a breakthrough, he still directly assisted.
Michael, I need you to be more committed on the defensive end and use your defense to create opportunities for your teammates to double-team, OK? "
"OK."
Many veins on Jordan's bald head were jumping, and he kept chewing gum in his mouth. Then when Phil Jackson was about to continue speaking, he interjected:
"Guys, just a reminder, I feel like Iron Fist will be in good shape tonight. Scotty, Ron, your double teams should be faster."
"Also stopping him from passing the ball," Phil Jackson added.
The three nodded at the same time, and Phil Jackson continued: "On the offensive end, one shot was missed and one was blocked. I need you to cheer up, because this is a game we absolutely cannot lose."
He stared at Jordan without looking at anyone else, and said: "This is a game that neither you nor I can lose. If we lose, the boss will probably clean up this Bulls team. I may leave, and you may never have a chance to win against Iron Fist again in the future." .”
The veins on Jordan's head jumped rapidly, the chewing movements of his mouth became faster, and the sharpness in his eyes became sharper.
Finally, Phil Jackson said to everyone: "One more thing, rebounds. We lost a backcourt rebound. Our rebounding ability is not as good as theirs. Everyone must fight for rebounds and don't let anyone go." .”
Jordan immediately reminded: "Be careful with their fast break. When transitioning from offense to defense, the outside line must return to defense in advance. At this time, rebounds can only rely more on the inside line."
Phil Jackson sighed, this is the difficulty. The Sonics can hand over the rebounds to the inside because they have a rebounding leader, and the other inside rebounds are not bad. But the Bulls can't, Jordan has to rush in and grab rebounds.
However, the Sonics' offensive and defensive rhythm is very fast, and the Bulls are not as fast as the Sonics. Enough people must return to defense in advance, which will affect outside players' rush for rebounds.
At this time, the timeout ends, the game restarts, and the Bulls attack.
"brush!"
Jordan ran to the top of the arc to catch the ball and then made a gliding jump shot. Zhou Quan was a little slower and hit a three-pointer.
"This goal is so difficult!" Zhang Lili exclaimed.
7:3, SuperSonics offense.
Zhou Quan once again held the ball close to the top of the arc. Jordan on the front, Pippen on the left three-point line, and Ron Harper on the right three-point line were staring at him like three wolves, ready to pounce at any time.
Two meters away from the top of the arc, Jordan began to adjust his feet, ready to pounce on him at any time.
But at this moment, Zhou Quan suddenly feinted past the opponent with the ball in one hand, which immediately destroyed Jordan's rhythm of preparing to pounce on him.
But at this moment, Gilliam, who had pulled to the left, suddenly started cutting inside.
Defender Kevin Willis was distracted by Zhou Quan's breakthrough action at the top of the arc, and did not immediately notice Gilliam's cut inside. By the time he reacted, Gilliam had already cut inside. Successfully, he lost his defensive position.
The moment Gilliam started cutting inside, Zhou Quan's full-level panoramic vision saw his movements, so he was ready to pass the ball.
At this time, he had just used a one-handed feint to break through, shaking Jordan's center of gravity. The next moment, Gilliam made a successful cut, and he immediately jumped up with the ball.
"Jump pass!"
Zhang Lili shouted loudly.
Jordan's reaction was a little slow. No, it was because his feet were a little slow and he was shaken. He only had time to reach out to block it, but he didn't have time to jump to intercept it.
"Whoosh!"
The ball flew over Jordan and toward the low post.
As soon as Gilliam emerged from under Kevin Willis, he looked at the top of the arc and immediately saw Zhou Quan's jump pass. He stretched out his hands and the ball fell into his hands, and then took a step inward for a layup. .
Luke Longley under the basket saw Zhou Quan's jump pass, but the pass was too fast. He quickly adjusted his feet to take off and block the shot. Gilliam had already completed the layup, and he hit Gilliam's Wrist, and the ball went in.
"Beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded.
"Beautiful! Two plus one."
Xu Jicheng said excitedly: "Zhou Quan has already assisted three times. Today he paid great attention to passing the ball. This will encourage his teammates to run more actively and activate the morale of the whole team."
"The ball was passed so beautifully! Gilliam's cut inside was also very timely. The two's high and low post passing and cutting tactics cooperated very well." Zhang Lili said excitedly.
In the TNT commentary box, Larry Bird praised: "Iron Fist played very smartly, he knew that the Bulls were going to double-team him on the outside, and he knew that Jordan was going to create opportunities for Pippen and the others to double-team through pressing movements.
So he used his active breakthrough to disrupt Jordan's defensive rhythm first, and coupled with Gilliam's cut, broke the Bulls' defense. "
Magic Johnson said: "Usually he will make a breakthrough after getting close to the top of the arc. This time it was earlier. Michael really didn't expect it. The defensive reaction was passive and he failed to defend proactively."
"boom!"
Gilliam missed a free throw and Luke Longley grabbed the rebound.
9:3, SuperSonics lead by 6 points, Bulls attack.
(End of chapter)
