Curry held the ball through half the court and came to the top of the arc to organize.
Yi Jianlian quickly brought it up and set up a pick-and-roll for him.
After the pick-and-roll, Curry broke through inside, while Ah Lian bounced outside the three-point line.
Although Ibaka knew that Yi Jianlian was good at shooting, when Curry broke through, he subconsciously chose to help Westbrook defend.
Curry noticed this keenly, and suddenly passed the ball behind his back while walking and handed the ball to Yi Jianlian on the outside.
"woo~"
The crowd immediately marveled at Meng Shen's wonderful pass.
After receiving the ball, Ah Lian stretched out his bow and arrow, and shot a three-pointer.
The basketball draws a beautiful arc...
"Shua~"
Hollow into the net!
90:88, the Rockets were only two points behind.
Offense and defense transition.
Harden rushed to the basket and caused Yi Jianlian to foul.
After two free throws, the score became 92:88.
Rockets offense.
Curry repeated his old trick and once again started a pick-and-roll with Yi Jianlian outside the three-point line.
This time Ibaka did not dare to be careless and always followed Yi Jianlian.
But this also gave Curry a chance to break through.
Rockets No. 30 got rid of Cook's defense and accelerated toward the basket.
Thunder substitute center Collison arrived late and returned to the three-second zone to protect the frame.
But Curry's high throw just passed his fingertips, and the ball hit the backboard and fell into the net.
92:90, both sides are still inseparable.
Time came to the last minute of the third quarter.
Harden used his breakthrough to attract the Rockets' defensive attention, and then passed the ball to Cook in the corner.
The latter took action decisively.
bingo!
95:90.
Curry walked to the baseline, and while preparing to catch the ball, he looked up at the timer - there were 38 seconds left before the end of the third quarter.
[You can attack one!]
Curry thought to himself.
With this thought in mind, after receiving Yi Jianlian's serve, he accelerated his advance.
After arriving at the Thunder half, Curry found that Cook, who was guarding him, was waiting two meters outside the three-point line.
The next moment, the cute god collected the ball without hesitation and shot a three-pointer in the logo area!
Cook was shocked, but it was impossible to remedy the situation at this time.
The basketball drew a rainbow-like arc in the air. After flying for about a century...
Hollow into the net!
The ball turned the net upside down, and the entire arena fell into silence for a short time.
It wasn't until the fans reacted that the scene turned into a sea of joy.
“omg!skyfucker(KURItian)!!!”
"How dare he... This is a critical moment in the second round of the playoffs. What kind of confidence and big heart does he have to dare to take such a long three-pointer at such a moment?!"
"Look at Cook, he's still standing there stupidly. I'm afraid he didn't expect Curry to take such a 'hasty' move, haha."
"Cook himself is also a very good shooter, but he is only accurate in the conventional sense. Curry is 'abnormally' accurate!"
...
Rockets fans are full of praise for Curry.
With this super long three-pointer, the Rockets also narrowed the point difference to 2 points.
Moreover, this offense only took 7 seconds, and there were still 31 seconds left before the end of the third quarter.
In other words, after the Thunder completes the offensive round, the Rockets will still have a chance to make the final attack!
Harden looked at Curry, who was pointing his hands in the sky not far away in celebration, and frowned slightly.
For some reason, he suddenly felt that this fair-looking super shooter might become his old enemy in the future.
But now is not the time to let your imagination run wild.
Harden immediately calmed down and came to the baseline to catch the ball.
After dribbling the ball across half court, he lowered his center of gravity and quietly waited for the attack time to pass.
When there were only 6 seconds left in the 24-second attack time, Harden moved!
He used continuous crotch dribbles to close in on George's defense.
Every time he switches hands to dribble, he is accompanied by a fake movement of his shoulders shaking.
This made George afraid to act rashly, so he could only move in small steps, ready to react at any time.
With 3 seconds left, Harden suddenly changed his rhythm.
He kicked off the ground with both feet at the same time, accelerating towards the left.
George quickly moved sideways, trying to block Harden's way.
But Harden is extremely explosive (many people underestimate the speed of his first step because of his size). He reached forward with his shoulders and successfully suppressed half of George's body.
This directly caused Pickle to become passive.
Because in high-level games, once a defensive player is pressed, it is basically difficult to return to the defensive position.
But George did not give up, but moved sideways with all his strength, trying to remedy the situation.
Unexpectedly, Harden's right shoulder suddenly leaned forward and gently pressed against George's chest.
The next moment, Pickle flew backwards, while Harden dribbled the ball back from his hips, followed up with a step back, and retreated directly outside the three-point line!
George fell to the ground, very embarrassed.
anklebreaker!
The fans at the scene couldn't help but scream in exclamation.
George is a first-defense player, but he was knocked to the ground by the Thunder's young sixth man?!
This was really beyond everyone's expectation.
Harden glanced at George lightly, adjusted his rhythm, and then slowly took action.
The basketball left his fingertips and spun at high speed, drawing a beautiful arc in the air...
"Shua~"
Hollow into the net!
At 98:93, the score difference returned to 5 points again.
In this attack, Harden successfully consumed 23 seconds of attack time, leaving only 8 seconds for the Rockets.
George quickly got up from the ground, his face a little ugly.
Curry saw it.
In the transition between offense and defense, after holding the ball through half court, he passed the ball to George to take on the final attack!
Facing Sefolosha's defense, George first made an in&out feint with one hand and then dribbled the ball under his hips, causing the former to take a step back.
Then, Paojiao mobilized all his body functions and performed a left-hand crossover!
Sefolosha was completely shaken away.
George took a lucky step and shot a fadeaway jumper...
"Shua~"
The ball went in and the light came on, and the score was fixed at 98:95!
After scoring the goal, George shook his fist.
Anyway, at least he responded!
............
During the break, Shen Fei and Stern chatted one after another.
"These three young men from Thunder are really surprising."
"Especially this Harden. I thought he was not as talented as Kevin and Russell. But after looking at it today, I really don't know for sure."
Stern said with a slight sigh.
"Well, he scored 25 points in the three quarters, which is currently the Thunder's highest score."
"For a second-year rookie to perform like this is already extraordinary. It can be said that Harden alone supports the Thunder's bench."
Shen Fei did not hesitate to praise Harden.
"He and Curry can be regarded as unexpected blessings in the 2009 draft. Although they were both highly selected, the Thunder and Warriors received a lot of criticism when they selected them."
Stern recalled.
Neither Curry nor Harden are known for their physical talents, so there is naturally some controversy about being high draft picks.
But now, they have shown their talents in high-level competitions!
"Tell me... if you put these two into a team, will there be a wonderful chemical reaction?"
Shen Fei asked with a smile.
"Oh? You want to trade Harden? But he's playing so well now, so the Thunder can't let him go, right?"
Stern asked rhetorically.
"That's impossible to say."
Shen Fei said meaningfully.
Stern looked puzzled, hoping to hear more explanations, but Shen Fei didn't say anything more and turned his attention back to the court.
............
At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Thunder immediately put on its strongest lineup - Westbrook, Harden, Durant, Ibaka, and Perkins.
Obviously, when they saw the chance to win, they decided to give it a try without any effort!
But the Rockets are still rotating the lineup step by step.
Jeremy Lin, Tracy McGrady, Danny Green, Ben Wallace, Greg Oden.
This lineup is both offensive and defensive, and its paper strength is not inferior at all!
The game restarts.
Rockets offense.
Jeremy Lin used the screen to pass Westbrook, and then used a jump step to wipe out Ibaka, who was covering the defense.
Ibaka did not give up and continued to follow Shuhao, preparing to send a chase.
Unexpectedly, Brother Hao flicked his wrist and passed the ball into the air.
The next moment, Oden appeared out of nowhere and caught the basketball in the air...
"bang!"
An O'Neal-like two-hand violent attack on the basket sounded the clarion call for the Rockets' counterattack!
98:97.
The Rockets trailed by just one point.
In the transition between offense and defense, Danny Green pressed hard on Durant.
Westbrook forced a pass, but Green took the lead and destroyed the ball.
McGrady reacted the fastest, quickly controlled the ball, and immediately launched a counterattack.
Harden rushed over decisively, trying to use a tactical foul to disrupt the Rockets' fast break.
But t-mac will not give him such a chance.
With a smooth behind-the-back dribble, McGrady neatly avoided Harden's black hand and continued to move forward.
Approaching the penalty area, t-mac found the Thunder's last line of defense, Durant, standing in front.
A bold idea appeared in Maddie's mind.
The next moment, he threw the ball toward the backboard.
Durant didn't know why, and his eyes were attracted to basketball.
Then, he saw an elegant man in white appearing in the sky...
"bang!"
Tracy, the white horse spearman, grabbed the rebounding basketball and poured the ball into the basket with both hands!
98:99.
The Rockets overtook the score!
And this McGrady's signature self-throw and buckle also brought the atmosphere of the scene to its peak.
The fans first shouted MVP, and then shouted uniform slogans when the Thunder attacked:
"Defense!!!"
"Defense!!!"
"Defense!!!"
...
Amid the deafening sound, Westbrook got the upper hand!
He single-handedly broke into the Rockets penalty area, facing Ben Wallace's defense, and tried to dunk forcibly.
Westbrook knows that if he can complete a dunk on a big team, the momentum will return to the Thunder.
Therefore, he chose to believe in his talent and went ahead without hesitation!
result...
"Bang!"
There was a crisp sound, and Ben Wallace's big hand accurately pressed on the basketball.
The next moment, Westbrook felt a huge force coming towards him through the basketball, and then he lost his center of gravity...
Ben actually dribbled Westbrook with the ball and knocked him to the ground!
Turtle fell heavily to the ground.
But even so, he still hugged the basketball tightly.
Ben Wallace was unforgiving, and stretched out a pair of big iron-like hands toward Westbrook.
Westbrook reacted quickly and threw the ball immediately.
Oden reached out to block it, but accidentally hit the ball in front of Durant.
KD retrieved the ball and then shot a three-pointer...
bingo!
101:99.
This ball was like a muffler, causing the Toyota Center to become silent for an instant.
After Westbrook saw the goal, he jumped up like a carp, as if someone else had just been hit hard on the ground.
Seeing this, Su Qun couldn't help but sigh: "Today's luck seems to be on the Thunder's side. The ball was almost blocked, but the ball went in and went out by mistake and ended up in Durant's hands."
Yang Jian nodded: "This may be the God of Basketball's reward for the bravery of these young players from the Thunder. They really did their best today!"
............
In the following time, the two sides reached a deadlock again.
The two teams went back and forth, but the point difference remained within one round.
As time goes by...the Rockets are deploying their troops, while the Thunder are going all the way, and have been beating five core players to death.
Soon, the game entered the last two minutes.
The score at this time was 117:115, with the Thunder leading by two points.
During a defense, Perkins suffered cramps and became the first person to "fall".
Thunder coach Brooks had no choice but to replace him with Collison.
At the same time, Durant and others' physical condition also reached the limit, but they still gritted their teeth and persisted.
At this stage of the game, what we are competing for is willpower and star ability!
Rockets offense.
Yao Ming hit Collison in the low post and succeeded in a fadeaway jumper.
117 square meters!
During the transition between offense and defense, Durant faced George and forced a shot...
Missed!
Griffin jumped high and grabbed the rebound.
The Rockets launched a counterattack!
During the fast break, McGrady drove straight into the basket and was eventually fouled by Ibaka.
t-mac stood on the free throw line, and amidst the cheers of MVP, he made two free throws steadily.
117:119.
The Rockets lead by two points!
There is only one minute left in the game!
Brooks called a timeout.
After the timeout, the Rockets made substitution adjustments.
Ben Wallace replaced Yao Ming, and Danny Green replaced Curry.
Mark Jackson's substitution intention is very clear, which is to strengthen defense and maintain the victory!
Harden serves.
Westbrook used the cover to step out and successfully caught the ball.
Eager to make a contribution, he made a lucky move and shot a zombie jumper...
Even if his physical fitness reaches the limit, Westbrook's jumping height is still considerable.
Danny Green jumped up hard but failed to block the shot.
But he still interfered with Westbrook's vision, and the latter's shot missed.
At the critical moment, Ibaka stepped forward.
He knew it would be difficult to get the rebound when surrounded by Griffin and Ben Wallace, so he found another way and slapped the ball to the outside with one palm.
The basketball was impartial and fell into the hands of Harden, who had just served the ball and walked into the court.
Brother Deng did not hesitate and decisively shot a three-pointer...
"Shua~"
The basketball hits the net!
120:119!
The Thunder overtook the score again at the last minute.