I don’t know whether it was intentional or unintentional, but D’Antoni seemed to have selectively ignored that the opposite number 36 of the Trail Blazers was only 22 years old, which was 3 years younger than Harden, but the gap between them was so huge.
On the court, Harden saw that the head coach indeed had no instructions and knew that the team had no intention of suspending the game. He immediately understood that he could only rely on himself from now on.
Mosaic offense, Harden advances directly from the backcourt with the ball.
At this time, the veteran Brewer, who was almost exhausted, suddenly rushed to the basket and asked Yi Jianlian behind him for the ball.
Harden suddenly jumped up, smashed the ball in from Batum's head with both hands.
In the short corner area on the left, Wang Zelin couldn't catch the ball no matter how fast he reacted. When he turned around, he saw Brewer receiving the ball, then turning around and bypassing Yi Jianlian, sending the ball up the board and hitting a goal.
94:91, the Trail Blazers were 3 points behind.
The veteran showed his strength at the critical moment and caught all the Trail Blazers players off guard.
Offense and defense transition.
Lillard took the initiative to play a pick-and-roll with Wang Zelin. Lillard used the screen to pass Harden, directly pulled up and shot a three-pointer.
Unfortunately, the shot was thrown a little too hastily, and it hit the neck of the basket and bounced high.
Under the basket, Capela occupied a favorable position in advance. Looking at the basketball close at hand, his face lit up and he tried to take off with both feet.
"boom!"
Behind Capela, Wang Zelin flew up, intercepted the basketball in the air in advance, and then violently slammed it into the basket.
After a violent vibration, the mosaic basket was smashed.
This scene made the white uncle in the audience behind the backboard jump up excitedly and celebrate wildly.
Around him were Blazers fans who were also too excited to control themselves.
93:94, the score difference returned to one point.
"It's time for you to change your tactics, James. Do you really think you can guard me by yourself? That's ridiculous!"
Wang Zelin ignored Capela who was being pinned down, winked at Harden, and became provocative.
The unwilling Mosaic players launched a fast break aggressively, but this time, Harden learned to be honest and did not choose a long shot from the outside.
The movement of Ariza, Capela and others created some space for Harden.
Wang Zelin, who needs to always pay attention to help defend the basket, was a little hesitant by Ariza and Capela's cuts, so when Harden got the opportunity, Wang Zelin actually didn't have much chance to make amends.
Then, people in desperate situations can always bring out the huge potential contained in their bodies. God knows how fast Wang Zelin ran to cover up the defense just now. In the "safe distance" Harden thought he had, Wang Zelin rushed in front of him.
, it’s a big blow to slap the head in the face!
"Oh! Wang's iconic volleyball shot! This is his fifth shot in this game! He is omnipotent on the court!"
"Hey, hey, Portland boys, run, it's time for our counterattack!"
Under the constant urging of the home commentator, Barton made a direct swooping action in order to fight for the rebound. He got ahead of everyone and collected the basketball that was sent to the center circle by Wang Zelin in advance.
"Return to defense! Come back to defense quickly!"
D'Antoni jumped to his feet and yelled excitedly on the sidelines.
On the other side, Coach Terry also stood up suddenly from the coaching bench, watching the next ball with excitement and anticipation.
At this time, Lillard came to Barton's side, took the ball, and advanced forward.
Except for Button, who struggled to get up, the other nine players from the two teams started almost at the same time, but Lillard was still faster and positioned further forward, leaving behind Mosaic defender Marcus Thornton.
It seemed like a very close step, but it was enough for Lillard to throw away his opponent.
With a long spear all the way, Lillard seemed to be in no one's land, easily reached the Mosaic team's basket, and completed a one-handed gliding dunk.
The blow of this goal also announced that the Trail Blazers finally achieved a lead.
95:94, it’s easy for both sides to attack and defend!
Seeing that the team's lead was reversed, D'Antoni immediately requested a timeout.
After entering the final quarter, the rhythm of the game is completely controlled by the opponent, and he must win (this chapter is not over yet!)
Chapter 802
Lost Harden
Interrupt this momentum, otherwise, everything will be in vain.
The Rose Garden was boiling, and within a few minutes of the final quarter, the Mosaic team was forced to call a halt to the game.
The balance of victory has officially tilted towards the Trail Blazers!
What about Harden?
As the leader of the Mosaic team, his eyes were full of confusion at this moment. He couldn't figure it out. He was clearly leading by more than 20 points before, so why was he suddenly overtaken by his opponent while playing hard?
Harden said he couldn't understand.
Looking at Pioneer No. 36, whose eyes were still filled with murderous intent, the bearded man felt an inexplicable fear in his heart.
Is that guy really his nightmare?
Am I really unable to win against him?
God, can you answer me?
No one expected that when the game came to an anxious moment, when the Mosaic team went from leading to falling behind, James Harden, the leader of the Mosaic team, had little fighting spirit.
At this moment, all he could think about was confusion.
…
After returning from the timeout, Coach Terry put Aldridge back into the lineup, and the Trail Blazers returned to the field with all their main players, beating the Mosaics 9:0.
The score difference suddenly widened to 10 points, but Harden, the leader that Mosaic fans longed for, chose to pass the ball again and again when the team needed it most.
Harden seems to be under a curse. As one of the top five scorers in the regular season this season, he seemed to have lost his scoring instinct at the decisive moment.
In the second half of the final quarter, Harden's playing style was really like a traditional point guard, with his main responsibility being to organize the team.
However, this is not the Harden that fans want to see.
Dude, what the hell are you doing?
We really need you to score!
Countless Mosaic fans and Harden fans roared wildly in front of the TV. Unfortunately, this did not change the fact that Harden scored two points on 1-for-2 in the final quarter. After the score reached 30 points, there was no more in the following time.
Scores are recorded.
Although he later sent 4 assists and controlled the mistakes very well, with only one, he could not reverse the decline...
In the 45th minute, Wang Zelin also scored his 30th point of the game, plus 18 rebounds, 6 blocks, 4 assists and 1 steal, strongly extending the lead to 18 points...
116:101, the Trail Blazers reversed their decline in the final quarter and completed a dramatic comeback from being 20 points behind in the early game.
In the last quarter, the Trail Blazers scored 33 points together. Wang Zelin scored 13 points alone, plus 2 blocks, 2 assists and 1 steal. His offensive and defensive dominance was fully enhanced at the critical moment.
As for the Mosaic team, the team only scored 11 points in the last quarter.
Among them, the performance of the team's star James Harden was particularly disappointing. Although he sent 4 assists in the final quarter and grabbed 2 backcourt rebounds, he only had only one score when the team needed it most.
2 points are credited.
How ridiculous is it that a super scorer who averaged nearly 30 points per game in a season only managed 2 points in the final quarter.
It can be said that the Mosaic team was overturned at the last moment, and it was inseparable from Harden who lost himself in the final quarter. He needs to bear the biggest blame for losing tonight.