Chapter 130 It’s not a banquet, why are you waiting for me?
Jordan said: "The Hornets' bench lineup is really bad. P.J. Brown and Magloire's playing time will obviously be increased. The two of them can still match up with Wolverine. The other forward substitutes have no ability to match up with Wolverine and were completely crushed."

"Poor Hornets, they don't even have a real center backup. The Hornets management can compete for the worst operation of a sports team this year." Michael Brin complained.

"The New York Knicks got that honor last season, and they didn't make the playoffs," Van Gundy said.

So actually, the Hornets are a pretty good team, even though their bench is really bad, but they at least made the playoffs.”

"Haha..." Both Michaels laughed.

The second quarter continued, the Hornets' main players were not in full swing, and the Knicks still had the upper hand in the next three minutes.

The Knicks still used He Zhongqiu as the main attacker, and the Hornets used the "Hack-a-Shaq" tactic, but He Zhongqiu's free throws were very good today, making 4 of 3 free throws in three minutes.
After half of the second quarter, the Knicks led by 36 points, 43:7.

Next, both sides replaced all their main players and fought hard in the second half.

There is a 15-minute break at halftime, but He Zhongqiu had no intention of saving his energy. He continued to attack and frequently went to the basket to take position.

The Hornets couldn't defend and had to continue with the "Hunter-Shaq" tactic. In the second half, He Zhongqiu made 3 of 2 shots and 5 of 3 free throws, scoring another 7 points.

However, the Hornets' outside line was still sharp on the offensive end, scoring 12 points in half a quarter.

At the end of the first half, the score was 48:56, with the Knicks leading by 8 points.

Zhang Heli said happily: "The Knicks can't defend against the Hornets' outside attack, and the Hornets can't defend against the Mid-Autumn's inside attack. After all, the inside attack is of higher quality."

Xu Jicheng smiled and said: "Zhongqiu scored 14 points in the second quarter and 19 points in the first half. It was really difficult for the two inside players of the Hornets to defend him."

Sun Zhenping smiled and said, “Usually Kurt Thomas would pull PJ Brown out, and Zhongqiu would only have to deal with Magloire, a third-rate center, plus Mashburn’s double-teaming.

But he was almost always in the basket in the second quarter. His offensive speed after receiving the ball at the basket was much faster than that in the two-point area, and the quality of Mashburn's double-teaming on him was not high. "

Zhang Heli nodded and said, "So Magloire can only use more fouls to stop Zhongqiu's attack under the basket. He has four fouls now, and Mashburn also committed two fouls during the double-team.

Although his strength is not that good, he is the only true center of the Hornets. If he goes down, the Hornets can only use a power forward to replace him. Even if Zhongqiu is not physically fit in the second half, he still has a big advantage in the interior. "

In the live broadcast booth nearby, Michael Brin asked, "Michael, how do you think the Hornets should play in the second half to have a chance of winning?"

Jordan thought and said, "The 8-point gap is not that big. The Hornets need to maintain and further improve their offensive efficiency on the outside to have a chance of winning.

But this is difficult. Although Baron Davis is good, his shooting percentage is not high enough, and his mid-range shots are not accurate enough. "

Fan flipped through the stat sheet and said, "Davis's shooting percentage in the regular season was 41.6%, and it was higher in the first round, at 44.6%.

Mashburn's regular season rate was 42.2%, and the first round series rate was 43%. David Wesley's was 43.3% and 40.3% respectively.

Michael Breen said: "Davis performed well in the first round, his hit rate was very high, and Mashburn's efficiency in the first round was also good. They both averaged 20+ points per game in the first round."

Xiaofan smiled and said: "Michael, you can't compare them with you. Compared with the efficiency of the Knicks' perimeter, they are already very outstanding."

Jordan laughed and nodded, saying, "But Wolverine is very efficient in the paint. The three of them are not efficient enough from the outside to make up for the disadvantage in the paint. If they can't improve, I think the Knicks will advance."

“The disadvantage inside is really huge.”

Fan nodded and said, "Magloire only averaged 3.5 points per game under the Wolverines' defense. In the regular season, he averaged 10.3 points per game. Just this point alone caused the Hornets to lose 6.8 points per game.

Another loss is rebounding. Magloire averaged 30 rebounds in 8.8 minutes per game in the regular season, but in the first round, he averaged only 33 rebounds in 5.6 minutes per game.

Michael Breen said: "At the four position, P.J. Brown and Kurt Thomas performed equally. In the interior, the Hornets' main disadvantage is the five position. The difference is too big. They only lose on this one point."

At this time, in the home team's locker room, He Zhongqiu was sitting on a chair, breathing heavily and sweating profusely.

Ten minutes later, although his breathing had calmed down, his strength had not recovered much, which was different from the previous situation.

He felt something was wrong. How could his physical recovery be so slow?
"Could it be that my physical strength is completely gone and collapsed?"

"It's over, it's over. We can't lose this crucial match!"

At this time, Don Cheney came to his side and said, "Wolverine, in the next game, you can decide whether to attack depending on the situation. We have an 8-point advantage..."

"Hmm? Did Old Tang see that my stamina has collapsed? That won't do. It would be so embarrassing."

He nodded in response, his thoughts wandering.

Then Don Cheney continued to tell him that if the situation on the court was good, he should focus on rebounding and defense and save his energy for the final quarter.

But if the outside offense is weak, he can decide whether to strengthen his personal offense depending on the situation.

When Don Cheney said this, Alan Houston felt mixed emotions.

There is no doubt that head coach Don Cheney has given the Wolverines offensive autonomy on the field.

And this power has always belonged to him since Ewing left, and even a madman cannot take it away from him.

He only hoped that this was temporary, but when he thought of Wolverine's performance in the first round of the series, he felt a little desperate and felt that this power might not be returned.

Soon after, the third quarter began.

He Zhongqiu's physical condition was not good enough, so he just slacked off on the offensive end and focused his main energy on defense and controlling rebounds.

In this quarter, the Hornets' three outside players attacked frantically. Because they had rested for 15 minutes, they still had enough strength to hold on, and He Zhongqiu didn't attack much. After the third quarter, the score was 71:75, and they had recovered 4 points, with a gap of 4 points.

He Zhongqiu only scored 3 points in this quarter, made 3 of 1 shots, 2 of 1 free throws, and all three attacks were close to two points and he threw one in.

But he grabbed five rebounds, blocked a layup by Magloire, and stole the ball from P.J. Brown.

"The tactics in these two quarters were good. The offense of the mid-range shooting king and the madman was also okay. They were in better shape than in the previous games of the series." Xu Jicheng praised.

Sun Zhenping said: "Zhongqiu played for 22 minutes in the first half and 10 minutes in the third quarter, so he has played for 32 minutes.

Although we didn’t attack much in the first and third quarters, we consumed too much energy in the second quarter and may not have enough energy now.”

Zhang Heli analyzed: "Zhongqiu's physical strength should be able to hold on, and he intentionally controlled his physical consumption in the third quarter.

All in all, I think we should thank Don Cheney for not letting Mid-Autumn attack much in the first quarter, so his energy was preserved. "

The final quarter began soon. The Hornets had no chance and had to fight hard with all their main players on the court.

The Knicks only led by 4 points, but they were forced to use all their main players.

The two sides fought for half a quarter, and everyone was in a low health state. Both of them were in a bad state, and their performances were average. The score was 79:82, and the Knicks were still leading by 3 points.

During this half quarter, He Zhongqiu still did not make the main attack.

The Hornets called a long timeout and then the game continued.

The Knicks put veteran Charlie Ward on the court, while point guard Ellis rested.

"Bang!"

Mashburn missed the shot again, He Zhongqiu grabbed the backcourt rebound and the Knicks attacked.

"He was very tired, his technical movements were a little deformed, and he couldn't jump anymore," Jordan said.

"Mashburn averaged 40.5 minutes per game in the regular season and the first round of the series. Now he has played 40.5 minutes and is the first scoring point. He has also invested a lot on the defensive end and has reached his physical limit." Xiao Fan said.

"ball."

After one and a half quarters, He Zhongqiu's physical strength recovered a little. This time he entered the basket forcefully, trapped Magloire behind him, and Charlie Ward, who was two steps outside the top of the arc, immediately lobbed the basketball in.

"Magloire already has five fouls. Does he dare to foul again?" Zhang Heli asked.

Mashburn, who was double-teaming from the free throw line, rushed in front of He Zhongqiu in two steps. At this time, He Zhongqiu had just received the ball and landed. He and Magloire behind him formed a double-team.

The next moment, He Zhongqiu, with the ball raised high in both hands, threw the ball with both hands and passed it to Charlie Ward at the top of the arc.

"Wide open space." Michael Brin shouted.

"brush!"

Charlie Ward jumped high and took a three-point shot. The basketball drew an arc and went into the net without hesitation.

"At the critical moment, at the critical moment, He Zhongqiu assisted Charlie Ward to make a three-pointer. Now it is 79:85 and the Knicks are leading by 6 points." Zhang Heli shouted excitedly.

The Hornets no longer had the energy for a fast break and advanced to the frontcourt, where Byron Davis took over the ball.

But he was also in a low health state, and his high-speed cut-in speed slowed down a lot. The double-teaming of Alan Houston and Madman caused him to make mistakes, and Madman stole the ball and switched from offense to defense.

"ball."

He Zhongqiu crushed Magloire into the basket again, demanding the position and the ball.

The Hornets had to shrink and defend, so that the Knicks had more space on the outside. The mid-range shooting king with the ball in one step on the right wing three-point line suddenly jumped up and shot.

"brush!"

A splash appeared and two points were made.

"Haha, at the critical moment, the king of central shots also became accurate." Xu Jicheng said happily.

"In this way, if there is a basket from the outside, Zhongqiu will only be responsible for containing the defense under the basket." Zhang Heli said with a smile.

"The C-level shooter and Madman have had more rest time than the Hornets' three main players on the perimeter, so they should be in better shape," said Sun Zhenping.

As soon as he finished speaking, David Wesley made a three-pointer.

82:87, the Knicks are still leading by 5 points.

Next, the mid-range shooting king and the madman each missed a shot, and the Hornets took the opportunity to catch up by two points, 84:87. With three and a half minutes left in the game, the Knicks called a timeout.

Ewing looked at Wolverine, very surprised.

During the halftime break, Don Cheney handed over the right to attack independently to this young man, but this young man did not make any attack in these two quarters. This kind of endurance is very unusual and extraordinary. He could only admire him.

"Wolverine, do you think the situation is still under control?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Of course it's still under control. Aren't we always leading?" He Zhongqiu blinked and said calmly.

"what?"

Ewing and everyone who heard it were all stunned.

Especially Don Cheney, he regrets now that he should not have given the right to independent attack to Wolverine. He trusted the wrong person!

He couldn't help but complain in his heart, you unreliable guy, we are only leading by three points, one three-pointer can make up for it, and you idiot are still sitting so calmly, thinking that the situation is under control, what control!

"how?"

He Zhongqiu looked up at the score on the screen. Yes, we were leading by three points. The situation was still under our control, 84:87. We had the advantage.

I remember when I was trying to scam people, for the best effect, I always kept the distance between my body and the car to three centimeters. If the distance was too large, it would be easy to be seen through. Three centimeters was very safe, and three centimeters was definitely safe too.

"Wolverine, don't worry about the three-point advantage. There are still three minutes left. You should attack with all your strength, OK?" Don Cheney said seriously.

"Zhongqiu, are you acting? In fact, you know that the situation is a little out of control." Wellington Philip said in a low voice in Mandarin.

"I'm not out of control, so what am I acting?" He Zhongqiu looked confused.

Philip looked at He Zhongqiu's expression. Damn, his acting skills were getting better and better. He had no choice but to remind him, "Be careful not to capsize in the ditch. Carelessness can lead to failure."

"OK."

He Zhongqiu nodded immediately.

Phillip continued to ask in Mandarin: “Zhongqiu, are you tired?”

"How is that possible? I can still beat a tiger to death now."

He Zhongqiu patted his chest and warned, "Wellington, even though we are all familiar with each other, you can't make up rumors about me."

Philip rolled his eyes. He bet that Wolverine might have some physical problems and was trying hard to hold on and couldn't fight anymore.

He guessed right. He Zhongqiu's physical strength was almost exhausted, and his health bar was only 5% at most.

He Zhongqiu is holding on, and the Hornets are actually the same. Their physical problems are even more serious than those of the Knicks.

The other main players of the Knicks all have rest time, but the main players of the Hornets have very little rest time and are all holding on.

After the timeout, the game continued and both teams continued with their previous lineups.

Knicks offense.

Charlie Ward controlled the ball two steps outside the arc, waiting for He Zhongqiu to get into position.

"Damn it, are you forcing me to attack?"

He Zhongqiu really didn't have the energy to get into the basket, so he could only position himself in the low post on the left wing, and then Charlie Ward lobbed the ball in.

He caught the ball, and Mashburn, who was double-teaming him at the free throw line, was one step away, with his hand almost reaching his body, so he immediately turned around and slipped to the bottom.

Magloire, who was also low on health, turned around to defend, but was a beat too slow and was allowed to enter the paint area by He Zhongqiu in one step.

Then he took the ball, jumped up, and made a layup.

"Clap clap clap..."

Although there was no dunk, there was still warm applause in Madison Square Garden.

"it is good."

Zhang Heli shouted loudly.

"The critical moment still depends on Mid-Autumn Festival." Xu Jicheng said excitedly.

"It seems that Zhongqiu is still in good physical condition." Sun Zhenping said with a smile.

"Hoo ho..."

He Zhongqiu was breathing heavily and felt like his lungs were on fire.

"Hehe, hoho..."

However, when he saw that the five Hornets guys were breathing harder than him, he felt that he was still okay, and his confidence increased, and he was able to play two overtimes.

84:89, Hornets attack.

Byron Davis couldn't force his way through anymore, so when he reached the three-point line on the right wing, he called for a pick-and-roll from PJ Brown, and then broke through again.

"Ouch, it broke in." Zhang Heli exclaimed.

"Kamen!"

He Zhongqiu returned to the basket and stared at Byron Davis who was rushing towards him with the ball, with a powerful aura bursting out of him.

"This murderer!"

Intimidated by He Zhongqiu's momentum, Byron Davis' heart trembled, and he braked instantly. Then he stopped quickly one step outside the right waist position and made a mid-range shot.

"Bang!"

The basketball shot missed and was caught by He Zhongqiu.

"Beautiful! Byron Davis missed the open mid-range shot, and Zhongqiu grabbed the backcourt rebound." Xu Jicheng said happily.

"It seems that Zhongqiu's physical fitness is indeed good and he is full of energy. Davis doesn't dare to rush in." Sun Zhenping said with a smile.

"Ha ha……"

The other two burst into laughter.

If He Zhongqiu heard this, he would probably smile bitterly.

He is not full of energy, but full of spirit, but no physical strength.

Who made his mental will reach level 96 while his physical strength was only level 88?

After fighting for so long, I have lost all my physical strength, but my spirit is still good. It's just that I look strong on the outside but am weak on the inside. I just scare people with my aura.

This state is commonly known as a paper tiger.

Back to the offensive end, everyone was waiting for He Zhongqiu to take his position.

"This is not a banquet, why are you waiting for me? Just do it on your own!" He complained in his mind as he moved to the low position on the left wing.

"Bang!"

This time he missed the rebound, Magloire blocked him, and Mashburn, who came down to double-team, grabbed the backcourt rebound and the Hornets attacked.

"Wolverine, go to the basket, go to the basket." Don Cheney shouted sharply.

He Zhongqiu nodded while panting, and said in his heart, If I had that strength, I would have gone in long ago. Why would you still howl there?
The Hornets made a fast break and Byron Davis made a layup.

86:89, Knicks attack.

He Zhongqiu tried to get under the basket, and he found that it worked, because Magloire offered no resistance at all and was pushed away by him.

At this time the ball was thrown in, he jumped with all his strength, but only jumped about a foot high, but still caught the ball.

Magloire, who was panting, didn't even jump. He just stretched out his hands and tiptoed his feet. He couldn't jump at all. His physical condition was worse than his.

"It seems that there is no worst now, only worse!"

At this time, Mashburn pounced on him again. He turned and took a step to the right side of the basket, increasing the distance between him and the two defenders. He jumped from the right side of the basket and sent the ball to the backboard. The basketball bounced and hit the basket. He jumped again and made a tip-in.

"Ticker, good, it went in. Three goals in a row at critical moments, it was a great play." Zhang Heli shouted happily.

"We have to play under the basket at critical moments." Xu Jicheng nodded.

86:91, Hornets attack, 102 seconds left.

(End of this chapter)