The players of the Steam Oven Workers were immersed in the excitement that their tactical run was successful and that their star star was about to hit a three-pointer. Suddenly, he was intercepted. No one else could react, and Cardinal could not catch up.
Li Ao rushed to the frontcourt, grabbed the ball one step outside the free throw line, took two consecutive long strides to close range, jumped up hard, and performed a tomahawk chop!
The Trojans fans who had just been suppressed were instantly ignited. More than 20,000 people cheered wildly, shouting "Leo" loudly, and their momentum suddenly surpassed that of the opposing fans.
Li Ao's teammates were also very excited. Bai Mamba, who had just been upset about blacksmithing, immediately cheered up.
So what if he strikes iron?
He has teammates! He is not fighting alone!
He still dares to shoot the next ball!
That's right, White Mamba discovered that their handsome boy seems to be able to dance better than before?
However, I am in the wonderful youth of 18 years old, and my body has developed a bit, which is normal.
It's just that he's a little sore, as if his jumping hasn't improved since high school...
With 3 seconds left in the first half, the Steam Oven Workers sent the ball out. Jalan Cornell took two quick steps and shot at the buzzer in the center circle... and was slapped by Li Ao, who would never relax until the whistle was blown. fly.
With steals + dunks + blocks, Li Ao helped the team regain a 1-point lead over the Steam Furnace Workers 43-42 entering the halftime break!
Now it was John Allison's turn to be annoyed.
Why do you only think about three points?
In the ball just now, Li Ao didn't care about the off-ball pick-and-roll and rushed to steal Cardinal. If he hadn't been thinking about throwing a three-pointer, Rodney Smith would have had the opportunity to catch the ball and directly attack the frame.
However, if you think about it this way, when it comes to the next attack, the players of the Steam Oven Workers will still choose the boldest attack method.
This is the way to play a 'coal-powered' steam furnace, move forward without fear!
…
Back from the break, Sam Clancy is now extremely excited.
That guy needs to be beaten again!
The head coach's adjustment just now allowed Li Ao to reduce offense during regular time, support more, find suitable containment positions, and focus on defense.
But there was one sentence that Sam Clancy didn't pay attention to, or selectively ignored.
When necessary, Li Ao can take the initiative to command his teammates.
When is it necessary?
This Henry Bibby didn't say, that is, he gave Li Ao command on the field in a different direction!
Li Ao did not question the coaching staff's arrangement. After reviewing the first half, he felt that this choice was appropriate.
Since his teammates can consistently hit regular goals, it is indeed a more advantageous choice for him to do more things.
He believes in his teammates!
The half-time break ends and the second half begins.
The Trojans sent out a combination of Nate Hale, Li Ao, Sam Clancy, Shelby Jordan, and Brusenthal.
After the game restarted, Li Ao quickly discovered another benefit of the middle-aged handsome man's adjustment to his playing style - the opponent paid more attention to his defense!
He played 15 minutes in the first half and scored 9 points, which was not many, but the goals he scored were crucial.
The mid-range shot at the beginning, the dunk 2+1 when the opponent was about to take the lead, the throw-in during the offensive and defensive transition after a 5-minute break in the middle, and the two free throws were fouled, and the final steal and counterattack dunk.
In fact, he made 3 of 7 in the half. His efficiency was average for his style of play, but he was unable to sustain every goal and impressed the opponent. During the halftime period, the Steam Oven Workers strengthened their defense against him.
This makes Li Ao's play adjustment more effective!
It is much easier to find opportunities to provide support than to find opportunities to catch and shoot. He does not need to throw away his opponents and play with poor rhythm. Instead, he actively looks for defense changes and flanking attacks, creating opportunities for teammates to take advantage of the pie or play out of position.
Originally, Henry Bibby's goal at this stage was to use hand-to-hand combat to wear down the opponent and just continue to hold on to the score. However, relying on Sam Clancy's attack at the basket and Brusenthal's mid-range and short-range shots, they defeated the opponent. An 8-4 start, 51-46, the Trojans took a 5-point lead!
Steam Oven Workers head coach Keane DeKay called a timeout to make substitutions and adjust tactics.
Henry Bibby also made substitutions. He praised Sam Clancy, "You are the biggest contributor to the score." He replaced Nate Hale and Sam Clancy with Charles and Granville.
Sam Clancy is used to the role of rusher in the rotation phase. He usually rushes up and rushes for a few minutes at this time. Today, when he was praised, he sat down cheerfully and gave Li Ao a provocative look.
Li Ao:-_-||
This guy is so easy to fool.
Back from the timeout, the Steam Oven Workers attack.
Li Ao followed Jalan Cornell and Shelby Jordan followed Cardinal. The Trojans' defensive space was widened. The Steam Oven Workers backup point guard Maynard Lewis and backup center Greg McIver went straight to the basket after a pick-and-roll.
McIver had a shot, Charles was pulled out, Li Ao and Shelby Jordan failed to shrink in place, Maynard Lewis excitedly went deep into the basket, took off, and wanted to dunk...
Brusenthal has made a great contribution! A slap blocked the ball raised by Maynard Lewis, and Li Ao grabbed the rebound.
He could obviously make a quick layup or close-range throw, but he had to dunk. He didn't take Brusenthal into consideration, so he got blocked!
This was a big blow to the players of the Steam Oven Workers.
When the Trojans attacked, Li Ao noticed that the opponent began to relax its marking on him and strengthened its defense against Brusenthal.
He cut in decisively, Granville passed the ball tacitly, and Li Ao came to the basket to receive the ball. McIver shrank quickly and made up for it, but Li Ao withstood McIver and raised the ball to hook...
McIver tried to reach out to interfere, but it was a little short, and he watched helplessly as Li Ao hit the hook!
McIver is a very good backup center, averaging 8.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1 steal per game. He weighs 110 kilograms but has excellent movement speed, quick defense and defense, strong pick-and-roll cuts, and even has a three-point shooting rate of 31%. points, so he can easily pull the center out in the pick-and-roll.
But the problem is that with his height of 201 centimeters and wingspan of 200 centimeters, even with a tonnage of 110 kilograms, he can only stare blankly when the opponent's inside line stops him under the basket.
However, he usually shrinks to hold up other small forwards, and can often rely on his weight and strength to make the opponent unsteady. I never expected that Li Ao could barely hold it!
Moreover, this guy looks so immature, but plays the game so simply and efficiently, with seemingly no unnecessary movements. He is so mature!
He never thought that Li Ao played simple things because he only knew those simple things...
But when it comes to the Trojans coaching staff, what they want to think about is-play with your brain!
The Trojans' attack and defense severely dampened the morale of the steam furnace workers!
With a 7-point difference, after the Trojans gradually replaced their strongest lineup, it became extremely difficult for the Steam Oven Workers to overtake the score again.
After Li Ao scored two points, he began to switch to a supporting style to reduce the consumption on the offensive end, because the opponent paid more attention to his defense.
His simple offensive method, from long two-point coverage to the effective scoring area under the basket, the players of the Steam Oven Workers were not sure when he would take the initiative to attack and could only keep watching.
When the Trojans fielded their strongest lineup of Glanville, Trey Pagnier, Li Ao, White Mamba, and Brusenthal, the Steam Oven Workers fought back, but they could only make a fuss. There is a reply.
Playing against such a strong opponent, Li Ao learned a lot and enriched his playing style.
At 14 minutes and 32 seconds into the second half, the Trojans attacked.
The steam furnace workers must defend themselves especially hard because they are really in danger now!
76 to 84, they were already 8 points behind.
There were more than 5 minutes left on the clock, a single-digit score difference, and there was still hope. The score difference reached double digits. With the strength of the opposing Trojans, they themselves thought it was impossible.
Li Ao flanked White Mamba in a pick-and-roll, and the opponent's defense changed very quickly and very actively.
Granville's sudden score + wing pick-and-roll didn't come out this time, but it didn't matter, the 35-second attack time was only halfway through.
Li Ao continued to run. He looked at the opponent's defensive position and movement, and came up with an idea. Let's give it a try! They have the initiative anyway.
He waved for the ball while running towards the top arc.
Although Granville was puzzled, he protected the ball. When Li Ao made a braking action, he immediately passed the ball.
McIver, who was at the power forward position, switched to Li Ao when he was guarding the pick-and-roll. When he saw Li Ao running toward the top of the arc, he hesitated for a second and chose to follow him.
Seeing Li Ao catching the ball from the top of the arc, McIver remembered that the scouting report said that the opponent had no three-point ability, and he had never seen the opponent hit a three-pointer in the video.
However, Li Ao had scored several key goals before. At this point in time and in this situation, McIver could only choose to follow up. If the opponent scored a three-pointer this time, they would be finished.
On Granville's side, after the ball was passed, his first reaction was 'What should I do next? ’, after a moment of confusion, he chose to go around the bottom corner like he usually did when Brusenthal played in close singles or Trey Paganier played in singles on the wing, and then ran back to close.
However, after he successfully ran back and left behind Carson Cunningham who was chasing him, he didn't see his teammates who were singles on the other side of the three-second zone when he usually ran like this. He felt lonely while running, and the opportunity came. , but there is no ball...the ball is coming!
Granville suddenly saw the ball appear on the floor in front of him and bounced in front of him. He subconsciously burst out and stepped forward to catch the ball.
John Allison immediately pounced on him under the basket. Granville grinned and threw the ball. John Allison jumped up hard, but still couldn't touch the ball.
Granville's little throw drew a very high arc and fell... into the frame!
When the ball was scored, John Allison, who had caught his foot, knocked down Granville, who was smiling broadly. The two of them screamed in pain at the same time. The 208-centimeter big man and the 175-centimetre little man, This posture, this voice, this picture is so beautiful...
The people around him forgot to help others for a while.
Li Ao couldn't stand it any longer, so he stepped forward and pulled John Allison away and asked, "Are you okay Brandon?"
Seeing that the other party nodded although he gritted his teeth, Li Ao picked up Granville and put him down.
Li Ao's action of pulling away John Allison made the players of the Steam Stove Workers Team, who had already opened up the score difference to 10 points, furious, but saw Li Ao lifting his teammates up like a pigeon...
Listening to the uncontrollable laughter of the fans at the scene, well, they felt that John Allison was not that miserable. John Allison, who was originally the most angry, was not angry anymore.
John Allison thought of a famous scene he saw two days ago that went viral - Li Ao almost knocked over the strongest scorer in the pac10 league, but protected the opponent, but when he stabilized the opponent, it was Just pick the opponent up and put him on the ground to stand firm.
He was lucky that he was big and the other party couldn't lift him up, otherwise he would have died.
The referee saw that both of them were fine. Although the scene just made me laugh, he was professional and signaled Granville to take a free throw.
Granville is used to it, and it's not the first time. This is an away game, and there are outsiders here, so the fans of their team laugh more restrainedly.
At home, the laughter was deafening.
Granville walked to the free throw line. The fans cheered and booed him. He was picked up by Li Ao. The excitement and pain caused by the 2+1 had faded a lot, so he calmly added the penalty... Come in too!
87 to 76, the Trojans' lead reached 11 points!
The score difference reached double digits for the first time in this game, which was a huge blow to the players of the Steam Oven Workers who were lagging behind.
But this team is really resilient!
At this time, they tried their best to defend and failed to prevent it, and the point difference was widened. However, they still did not give up. Instead, they tried their best to launch a final counterattack. With such momentum, it felt that the point difference was not 11 points, but 1 point. It's like he can overtake him.
But the Trojans have long known this characteristic of their opponent, and they paid special attention to it. They did not let up when they were 11 points ahead, and followed up with all their strength to fight back.
The Steam Oven Workers first played a wave of 6-3, but then the Trojans responded with a wave of 7-4, and the score came to 86-97.
When the Steam Furnace Workers attacked, Jalan Cornell hit a three-pointer in a single against Trey Paganier's defense. The score reached 89-97, with 1 minute left, and they still did not give up!
However, when the Trojans attacked, Li Ao caught the ball and turned around and hit a mid-range shot. With 58 seconds left, the point difference returned to 10 points!
The Steam Stove Workers team wanted to defend the ball and counterattack. In the end, they committed a tactical foul to gain luck. They had already committed 7 fouls. They just had to find the opponent's player with the worst free throws to foul.
But Li Ao hit the ball and killed his opponent's last hope!
The last few dozen seconds passed quickly. Before the final buzzer sounded, Cardinal threw the last shot of his college career directly from his own three-point line toward the opposite basket. It was also the last shot of the Steam Furnace Workers team this season. …
Accompanied by the long whistle that ended the game, the ball actually hit the backboard and bounced into the frame, causing the entire audience to scream.
However, this had no impact on the outcome of the game.
Relying on Li Ao's 18 points and 5 assists, White Mamba's 21 points, Granville's 9 points, 7 assists and 3 steals, Brusenthal's 16 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists... the Trojans defeated Steam 102-94. Furnace workers!
The Trojans fans cheered wildly, shouting "We want the championship" and "The Trojans are about to be great"...but their voices were covered by the fans of the Steam Oven Workers.
The Steam Oven Workers, who have gathered fans from major cities in Indiana, are now very unwilling!
They have a chance! If they have the opportunity to return to their home city to play in the final four games, they have the strength to win the championship!
However, it's a little bit close. Every time we take the lead, we're a little bit closer. Every time we try to gain momentum, we're just a little bit closer.
When the big screen at the scene showed Li Ao, the boos and curses of the fans of the Steam Stove Workers Team reached a boiling point!
Trojans fans were shocked by this crazy energy.
It’s so fanatical!
But this sounded very humiliating to the players of the Steam Furnace Workers, who felt as if they were being booed.
As for the Trojans players, if they were booed, they would be booed. They won!
Celebrate whatever you should!
However, seeing the two teammates walking towards the middle of the court, the Trojans players and coaches became uneasy.
Could it be...
Vaco!
The two came to the venue. One waved his arms upward and shouted, "Louder, haven't you eaten?", and the other made a gesture of listening.
Trojans fans instantly burst into flames, cheering wildly.
The boos and curses of the Steam Oven Workers were overtaken! But they were mainly shocked by the actions of the two people on the court. It was the first time they encountered such a situation.
When they reacted, they were so angry that they went crazy!
The teammates quickly pulled the two overly coquettish teammates away, and the scene was about to riot!
…
In a coffee shop near the Energy Solutions Arena, Vivian, Liam, and a mature and charming young lady were sitting together eating.
Mainly because Vivian was shouting too hard and shouting that she was hungry because she was eating.
She swallowed the last bite of steak, wiped her mouth, and said: "Thanks to my quick reaction, I asked you to go together. Otherwise, the people at Purdue University are so crazy today. Even if Liam, you can run faster than a dog, you will probably be a fool." I’ll get beaten too.”
"Am I afraid of them? I'm going to fight ten of them!" Liam retorted on the spot.
However, even though he said this, he was still quite scared. It was not like he had never been in a fight or beaten before.
But it would be embarrassing to get beaten up in front of a mature girl who I just made a date with.
Vivian saw an outsider and did not poke Liam's skin. Suddenly, she found that someone was missing and asked, "Where is Jessica?"
Liam responded: "She said she went back to the hotel first. You might have been too focused on eating and didn't hear her."
"Oh...no! When I picked her up at noon, she said she hadn't booked a hotel yet!"
Vivian and Liam looked at each other, their gossip souls burning!
"Could it be...Liam, I'm going back to the hotel, what about you?"
"I'll go too...wait, Sabella, let's go watch the fun together?"
A young lady named Sabella graduated from the University of Southern California ten years ago and started a small business in this city. When she heard the anecdote that she could watch the star of her alma mater’s basketball team, she immediately agreed.
The three of them quickly returned to the hotel and asked the front desk. Li Ao hadn't come back yet.
The three of them waited in the corner with newspapers covering their bodies. After waiting for a long time, they saw Li Ao returning to the hotel early, followed by Jessica who was eating dinner and leaving early!
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(End of chapter)
