Pause time.
Players from both sides follow the instructions of the head coach in front of their respective teams’ seats.
The New York Knicks, who were 3 points behind, were undoubtedly in a disadvantageous situation. In order to defend their own basket in the last confrontation, the team's head coach Norman Thomas also warned the players.
"DeMarcus, Dwight, I need you two to guard the inside, and you must not give that guy Giannis any chance to make a shot...Adrian, you are always ready to double-team from the wing..." ..."
"They have a high probability of giving the ball to Giannis, so we must guard him tightly... As long as we can prevent the ball, we will counterattack immediately, and remember to shoot three-pointers..."
call out.
The referee whistle sounded.
The two sides returned to the court again.
It's the Milwaukee Bucks' turn to serve.
Center Brook Lopez stood under the basket and raised the basketball. Before he threw the basketball, the Knicks had already started to defend frantically. Antetokounmpo Giannis was double-teamed by Cousins and Howard, and for a while he couldn't find any chance to make a shot.
Even so, he kept running and it looked like Giannis still wouldn't let go of the ball.
However, one second he was still running around, and the next second he suddenly covered teammate Malcolm Brogdon. Malcolm seized the opportunity to throw away Zach LaVine and rushed to the basket to catch the ball.
After getting the ball, he sprinted decisively with the ball.
Malcolm was fast and caught the Knicks off guard. Previously, everyone thought that Giannis would definitely control the offensive ball at the last moment, but they did not expect that the Bucks would let Malcolm take the ball away.
Fortunately, Zhao Feiyang reacted quickly. He decisively gave up on Eric Bledsoe, who he was marking, as soon as Malcolm got rid of LaVine. By the time Malcolm crossed the half court, he had already caught up with him.
Both were very fast and entered the Knicks' penalty area one after the other. When Malcolm thought he was ready for a layup, Zhao Feiyang pounced at him. The two jumped up almost at the same time. As soon as the basketball thrown by Malcolm was released, Zhao Feiyang slapped him and flew to the backboard.
Snapped.
The wonderful chase led to cheers and screams from all the Knicks fans.
The rebound bounced away.
LaVine and the opponent's defender Bledsoe jumped up to grab the ball at the same time. Both of them touched the basketball, but neither of them could win the ball.
The basketball tumbled out amid the chaos.
Antetokounmpo Giannis was still tightly double-teamed and had no way to fight for the ball in this situation. However, Howard and Cousins, who were guarding Antetokounmpo, ignored one person, and that was center Lopez, who was standing under the basket and serving.
Lopez did not rush into the battlefield, but always observed from outside the three-point range. It wasn't until the moment the basketball rolled out that he finally seized the opportunity and rushed forward.
He surprised the Knicks when he picked up the basketball. Before the Knicks players could even react, Lopez rushed into the basket with the ball.
Lopez had no choice but to throw the ball toward the backboard with his left hand when dunking.
boom.
The basketball board falls into the basket.
The ball went in.
The whole audience was in mourning.
113 to 108.
The Knicks trailed by 5 points.
There are only 6.7 seconds left.
The tide is over.
It is no longer possible to turn defeat into victory.
The Knicks released the ball immediately, and Zhao Feiyang sprinted across half court with the ball. The Bucks did not even choose to interfere with him.
Everyone knew that even if Zhao Feiyang made a shot, the Knicks would not have time to push the game into overtime.
Uh-huh.
Zhao Feiyang rushed to the half court and threw a three-pointer as quickly as possible.
His three-pointer landed firmly in the basket.
There are 2.1 seconds left.
110 to 113.
The Bucks sent the ball, and Antetokounmpo Giannis, who got the ball, stood still and allowed the final attack time to reach zero.
Beep.
The timer beeps and the game is over.
The Knicks lost.
The players stood on the field looking forlorn.
The Bucks were in wild cheers, and everyone from Giannis Antetokounmpo to the substitutes showed great excitement.
It looked like they were very happy about beating the Knicks!
"Guys! Let's go!"
Zhao Feiyang said something to LaVine, Adrian and others.
Under his leadership, his teammates also left towards the player tunnel. Everyone was silent on the way back, and even Howard, who was always optimistic, didn't discuss anything.
The defensive mistakes made by him and Cousins at the last moment were one of the key factors in the team's loss. Both of them knew this, but no one among their teammates pursued the matter, not even Zhao Feiyang, as the leader. There is no blame for this problem on the two of them.
After everyone returned to the locker room, Zhao Feiyang saw the team's low morale and stood up to encourage them, "Don't think too much, everyone! It's just a game! Of course it's good to win, but it's not a bad thing to lose. .....At least, losing can let us know where our problems are..."
"During this period, our two core players are on a truce, and the decline in combat effectiveness is certain... It will be good to win the next game..."
Seeing Zhao Feiyang say this, LaVine and Adrian also hurriedly stepped forward.
"Zhao is right! It doesn't matter if we lose a few games in the regular season! As long as we defeat our opponents in the playoffs, it's enough!"
"The Bucks are very strong, and that guy Giannis is also very good! This time we know their true strength. When we look back and our lineup is complete, such a failure will not happen again..."
The three of them originally hoped to dilute the low atmosphere within the team, but unexpectedly Cousins, who had been silent, couldn't help it at this time.
"Damn it! What a bullshit super center... That guy is nothing special! I will kill him next time we meet..."
After hearing Cousins' words, no one else spoke, except Howard who expressed disdain.
"Oh! Really?"
"DeMarcus, your ability to speak big words has indeed exceeded that of Giannis! I really hope you said these words in person... But it seems that you will be blown away by him... ."
Howard's cynicism made Cousins completely angry.
"Dwight, what did you say?"
"If I weren't paired with a fool like you, wouldn't I be able to guard against that guy?"
Howard stood up immediately after hearing this.
"Come on! DeMarcus, who do you think you are?"
"I used to be a super center in the league, a player on the best defensive team, and one of the league's signatures. What about you? Why do you compare to me?"
Seeing that the two were about to turn from a verbal conflict into a physical conflict, their teammates quickly stopped them.
At this time, the team's head coach Norman Thomas also entered the locker room. He and the members of the coaching staff stared at the situation in the locker room with confused expressions. After discovering that it was Cousins and Howard again, Coach Thomas's face suddenly darkened. down.
"It's you two guys again!"
"DeMarcus, Dwight, come out! I have something to tell you..."
