Chapter 384: Killing the Shark

Zhang Lijia took the data sheet and said: "Zhao Dong scored 31 points in the first half. He rarely shot in the third quarter and only scored 8 points. In the last quarter, he took over the offense and scored 18 points so far. A total of 18 points." Scored 57 points.

His shooting percentage is 58.2%, which is lower than the efficiency in the first three rounds of the playoffs and lower than the G1 game, falling below 60%. This is because the defensive end is against O'Neal, which consumes too much physical energy, and the second is because The reason why the Lakers implemented extreme double-teaming on him. "

Su Qun said: "His shooting percentage in the last quarter was 53%, which was lower than the first three quarters. It dropped by ten percentage points, which is a bit big."

Zhang Lili said: "Yes, the iron man can't bear it until now. I hope he can persevere. It's a pity that O'Neal committed five fouls and Ben also committed five fouls. If Zhao Dong still has the physical fitness, he can just rush them. , maybe we can fight."

Su Qun sighed: "I have no physical strength. For a few minutes just now, Feilong could only shoot jumpers from outside. He couldn't rush forward. After all, he is not a real iron man."

In the TNT live broadcast, Barkley said: "O'Neal has scored 41 points today, and he scored 15 points in the last quarter, making 6 of 7 shots and 3 of 8 free throws. It is very efficient. This is the most important reason for the Lakers to catch up with the score. , the Knicks can no longer stop him."

Smith said: "If O'Neal can still maintain some physical fitness, the Lakers will have a chance to complete the comeback in the end."

On the Lakers bench, O'Neal kept panting and couldn't even bother to wipe off the sweat.

He was too tired. In the last quarter, although Kobe helped him attract Zhao Dong's defensive attention, the Knicks tried their best to defend him. Willis and Trent took turns to play against him, and Zhao Dong He worked hard to defend, and at the same time he had to face Zhao Dong's crazy attacks on him on the defensive end. His physical energy consumption was very large, and he was more tiring than paying public food to his wife.

On the other side, Zhao Dong was drinking water and panting. His physical energy consumption was at least twice that of O'Neal. The huge consumption was testing his ability to break through the physical limits.

The team doctor is massaging his calves to prevent cramps. The calves are a little tight.

Nelson didn't ask the team doctor about Zhao Dong's condition. Even if it was a cramp, Zhao Dong had to go up at the last minute, even if he couldn't walk, just because this was the finals.

The timeout ends and the Knicks attack.

Zhao Dong still controls the ball, with Stackhouse at the second position, John Wallace at the third position, and Willis and Trent fighting for their lives inside.

The Lakers replaced Ben with Horry. In order to prevent Zhao Dong's impact, they replaced Ben in the final quarter.

The first half of the last quarter,

Zhao Dong still had the energy to attack the basket, and the Lakers could not catch up with the score. However, in the next few minutes, he had no impact and only made jump shots with a poor shooting rate, so the Lakers were able to catch up with the score.

Just because he saw that Zhao Dong could no longer rush forward, and now it was the critical moment to chase points and take the lead, Phil Jackson replaced Ben and replaced him with the key man Horry.

Bang bang bang, Zhao Dong dribbled the ball two steps outside the top of the front arc and controlled the time.

Kobe's physical fitness was almost at its limit, but he still tried his best to defend, lowering his arms and spreading his arms, and kept moving with Zhao Dong.

"The main defensive shot, he can't rush up, it must be a shot."

In his mind, he made this judgment based on Zhao Dong's state in the previous few minutes.

18 seconds, 19 seconds, 20 seconds, Zhao Dong suddenly took a step forward and made a breakthrough.

"Fake surprise and real surrender!"

Kobe's body instinctively wanted to retreat back, but he was forced to stop immediately.

He firmly believed that his judgment was not wrong. Zhao Dong could no longer rush forward. Even if he forced his way in, he should be able to catch up.

What's more, there is an internal defensive barrier inside. Zhao Dong, who has no impact, is like a tiger with missing teeth. The barriers of O'Neal and Big Ben are like the unattainable roof of the world for Zhao Dong.

Just when Kobe forcibly stopped retreating and his body froze, Zhao Dong took back the step he took.

"correct!"

Kobe became excited instantly, and his frozen body immediately jumped forward.

He is taking advantage of this opportunity to close up and create opportunities for his teammates to double-team.

But at this moment, Zhao Dong turned around, directly jumped forward Kobe, and reached the top of the arc with the ball.

"Oops!"

Kobe was shocked. Zhao Dong was not a fake surprise, he was a real surprise.

"He actually still has some energy left?"

At this time, he suddenly remembered that just a few minutes before this, Zhao Dong had no breakthroughs and only made jump shots. Could it be that he was recharging his energy?

"Boss, don't blame me!"

Ben returned to defend the basket and made up for it first, blocking Zhao Dong.

But at this moment, Zhao Dong had a bad luck and switched from controlling the ball with his right hand to his left hand. With a small change of direction to the left, he made a sudden move from the left and went straight to the basket. He took a small step and then jumped up. , facing O'Neal with a dunk.

"Bang!"

The next moment, he was pulled directly to the floor by O'Neal and fell hard.

"Beep!"

The referee's whistle sounded.

"not good!"

Phil Jackson, who had been standing on the sidelines, thought to himself, O'Neal has committed five fouls, now?

The referee pointed to the outside of the court and signaled O'Neal, who committed six fouls, to get off the field.

O'Neal was a little confused. The pull just now was his instinctive reaction and he couldn't control it at all. He couldn't get used to Zhao Dong's dunk.

"hehe……"

Zhao Dong, who was lying on the floor, gasped and laughed twice.

He really has no energy now. He had been lazy for a few minutes just now, just for this breakthrough and one last charge at O'Neal.

"Boss."

Several teammates ran over and pulled Zhao Dong up.

O'Neal glanced at Zhao Dong unwillingly and walked helplessly off the court.

Zhao Dong walked to the free throw line, took a few breaths and then made the first free throw. 102:106, the Knicks led by 4 points.

For the second free throw, he was still very cautious and took several dribbles before taking the shot.

"brush!"

Hollow into the basket.

"Beautiful, Zhao Dong's free throws are still accurate at the critical moment. It is now 102:107, and the Knicks lead by 5 points."

Zhang Lili explained excitedly.

"There are still 45 seconds left for the Lakers to start attacking." Su Qun said.

"Without O'Neal, the Lakers have lost their containment inside. They replaced Horry inside, but Horry's low-post offense is not very good. Now the Lakers rely entirely on the outside. It depends on how they play." Zhang Liye shouted.

At this time, Harper advanced to the frontcourt, and Zhao Dong defended in front.

Trent was pulled to the left corner by Horry, Willis and Big Ben were active in the low post, Kobe and Stackhouse were on the right, and Glen Rice and John Wallace were on the left.

The Lakers have no other offensive option now and can only leave it to Kobe to create opportunities for others.

Kobe ran without the ball, dropped Stackhouse after continuous reverse runs, entered the wing, received the ball from Harper, and entered the paint area.

Zhao Dong sank from the high position, preparing to return to defend the basket.

When Kobe reached the right elbow area of ​​the paint with the ball, he suddenly stopped for a jumper. With a swish sound, at the critical moment, he did not pass the ball, chose to play it himself, and hit a mid-range shot to seal the score.

"104:107, 28 seconds left." Barkley said.

Knicks offense.

Zhao Dong holds the ball and advances unhurriedly, while Kobe defends in front and retreats to defend.

Barkley shouted: "Now Feilong has scored 59 points, which is three points short of breaking Kim Baylor's 61 points. Just like the G1 game, let us look forward to the moment when he breaks the record."

After approaching the top of the arc, Zhao Dong made a pull gesture and the basket was left empty.

"Snap, or shoot?" Kobe's mind was spinning rapidly.

But last time he was surprised, this time he was unable to make a decisive judgment.

Bang bang bang, Zhao Dong is still controlling the ball and is not in a hurry to start the offense.

20 seconds, 21 seconds...

"There's no time, it must be a shot."

At this time, Kobe finally made a judgment. He took a small half step forward to prevent Zhao Dong from suddenly taking action and not having time to jump to block the shot.

But at this moment, Zhao Dong began to break through. He took one step and directly passed Kobe without testing.

"Fooled again!"

Kobe was furious and retreated hurriedly.

But at this moment, Zhao Dong braked suddenly and took a step inside the three-point line at the top of the key. Kobe took a step back and lost his defensive position, leaving more than a meter of distance between the two.

In the next moment, Zhao Dong actually stepped out of the three-point line, and then calmly made a jumper with Kobe's eyes bleeding.

The ball flew toward the basket, and everyone's eyes were fixed on the orange basketball.

"brush!"

The water splashed and he hit a three-pointer.

"Ouch!"

All the Knicks fans in the audience raised their arms wildly and cheered wildly.

"Beautiful! Congratulations Feilong, you broke Kim Baylor's record of 61 points in a single game set in the 1962 Finals. You are now the holder of the most points in a single game in the Finals."

Buckley roared excitedly.

"104:110, Feilong's goal determines the outcome. The Knicks lead by 6 points. There are 5.4 seconds left. The Lakers have no chance."

Smith roared excitedly.

"This record that has been silent for 38 years has finally been broken!"

On the sidelines, Jordan shook his head and said in an admiring tone to Magic Johnson next to him: "The dragon played so calmly. Kobe looked a little more tender in front of him."

Johnson also shook his head and sighed: "He can't make a breakthrough at all. Kobe should have faith in his own judgment. He clearly chose to defend the shot."

"If it was like you who were knocked back, who would dare to ignore Feilong's breakthrough? Even if you know that he can't break through, who would dare to let him break through?"

Jordan said disdainfully.

The magician was startled, then nodded with a wry smile.

The Lakers then adopted foul tactics to try to take a chance, but it was useless. The Knicks did not have O'Neal, so the slashing tactics were useless.

At the end, 104:113, the Knicks won by 9 points, won the crucial second home game, and will go to Los Angeles with a big score of 2-0.

"It's not easy to win this game. The Lakers are really strong." Zhang Lijia praised.

"If it hadn't been for that slashing tactic in the third quarter, the Knicks might not have been able to win this game." Su Qun said with a smile.

"It's really possible." Zhang Lili laughed and said.

Su Qun smiled and said: "Feilong made 23 of 39 shots from the field, a field goal percentage of 58.9%, 2 of 4 three-pointers, 14 of 16 free throws, and scored 62 points, plus 17 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, 6 blocks and 2 shots. 5 turnovers and 5 fouls, another super luxurious statistic.”

"Absolutely, the highest score in the history of a single game in the finals!" Zhang Lili said with an excited smile.

At this time, in the TNT live broadcast booth, Barkley said with a smile: "In the G1G2 game, Feilong averaged 61.5 points per game. This is the only one in the finals in the history of the league. He is the only one to score two consecutive games in the finals." A superstar with 60+ points and the record of scoring first in a single game in the Finals with 62 points. These two records alone are enough for him to be remembered in the history of the league."

"I want to see him break Jordan's 69-point playoff record, 29-point playoff record in a single quarter, and Thomas' 25-point playoff record in the Finals."

Kenny Smith said with a smile.

Barkley shook his head and said: "Playing against the Lakers, these records are very difficult, because Feilong needs to face O'Neal on both offense and defense, and the Lakers executed extreme double-teams on him, which consumes too much physical energy."

Smith flipped through the records and said: "In this game, the Lakers had a total of 26 double-teams, 8 triple-teams, 5 quadruple-teams, and 9 five-person double-teams against Feilong. The number of clips is 48.

Among these 48 times, 8 were double-teamed without the ball and 40 were double-teamed with the ball.

In 40 double-teams with the ball, Feilong took a total of 32 shots and chose to pass the ball 8 times. "

Barkley praised: "With an average of 12 double-teams per quarter, the defensive pressure Feilong faces is no less than Michael in his prime.

That's how the Pistons defended Jordan back then, but now the Lakers don't have such dirty defensive moves on Feilong.

At this point, the defensive environment faced by Feilong is not as bad as Jordan's. "

Smith said: "Now the Lakers are trailing 2-0, and they should have some advantages when they return to their home court. The Lakers should use the advantages of three home games to get back the big score."

Barkley said: "The Lakers probably don't have the strength to win all three home games. As long as the Knicks win one away game and then return to New York, the Knicks, who have the match point, will have the home court advantage, so the Lakers are now under pressure. It should be pretty big.”

Zhao Dong briefly accepted the interview at the scene, answered two questions, and then ended the interview because he was too tired.

When he returned to the locker room, he saw Trent and veteran Willis lying on massage chairs, receiving massages from the team doctor and his assistants.

"Kevin, Gary, how are you doing now?" Zhao Dong went over and asked.

"Alas, my old bones have been torn apart by sharks." Willis said with a tired look on his face.

Zhao Dong looked at Trent, who also looked tired and didn't want to say anything.

Shaking his head, he looked back at Nelson, who said: "They must reduce their playing time in G3, that's for sure."

"Coach, let me go, I can do it." Fordson, wearing the Knicks' unique black gentleman's uniform, shouted expectantly.

Nelson glanced at Fordson and had no other choice but to nod.

"yeah!"

Fordson roared excitedly.

Although his knees are failing and his condition has declined a lot, with the encouragement of Zhao Dong, the fighting spirit in his heart is still there, and he does not want to end his career. He also wants to prove himself.

Barkley was wrong. The pressure on the Lakers is not very great, but very, very, very great.

After hurriedly leaving the court, the Lakers returned to the visiting team's locker room. The atmosphere was very heavy. No one spoke, even O'Neal, who usually likes to make mischief in the locker room, remained silent.

Phil Jackson observed the locker room and began to summarize the game. He said: "Everyone worked hard tonight, everyone did a good job, and they played very unitedly..."

"But we still lost." O'Neal muttered.

Phil Jackson nodded and said: "It's either win or lose. We didn't bite at the last critical moment. We need to do better in the next series.

Back at home, we have the home court advantage, we can definitely do better, and we still have a great chance to come back.

We must win all three home games. "

The morale was boosted and Phil Jackson breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the atmosphere in the locker room had improved a little.

Next, he began to really summarize the game.

"On the defensive end, we tried our best. The continuous extreme defense against Feilong cost us too much physical energy. This tactic has pros and cons. It is worth studying whether to continue."

Phil Jackson noticed that it was precisely because too much energy was invested on the defensive end that the Lakers were unable to invest more energy on the offensive end. This mainly refers to O'Neal.

For example, O'Neal participated in the entire defensive double-teaming of Zhao Dong, which consumed a lot of his physical energy and reduced the offense at the basket.

The same goes for others. Dozens of double-teams and the physical energy consumed can completely wear them down.

And this is why the Lakers only conducted 9 five-man double-teams and 5 four-man double-teams against Zhao Dong tonight, because they don't have more physical strength to do this kind of extreme defense.

Back then, the Pistons used extreme defense against Jordan. With the dirty moves of those bad boys, they could only hold on for half the game and couldn't hold on for the rest of the half.

"But the bigger problem we face is..."

Speaking of this, Phil Jackson looked at O'Neal.

O'Neal was startled, but quickly realized what he was doing, and his face became embarrassed.

"...killing tactics." Phil Jackson continued.

One hour after the game ended, both teams held press conferences.

"Coach Nickerson, you continued to execute man-killing tactics against O'Neal in the third quarter. Have you regularized this tactic?"

At the Knicks press conference, a Los Angeles Sports reporter asked angrily.

"If necessary, I will." Old Nelson said with a smile.

"you?"

The reporter was furious.