Lin Yu steadily hit the extra penalty, 77:70, leading by 7 points. It seemed that with Lin Yu's efforts, the Cavaliers were gradually taking away the victory of the game.
Aaron Afflalo came on the scene after Lin Yu's free throw. On the offensive end, he had little performance.
Facing Lin Yu's high-pressure defense, Billups chose to pass the ball this time because there was an excellent opportunity inside, and Big Z missed Antonio McDyess.
McDyess, who could no longer fly over the wall, succeeded in a layup, and the score gap narrowed to 5 points.
Flip Saunders knows very well that if the Pistons, who are already behind at this moment, want to recover the score, they must defend well, and Aaron Afflalo is the last trump card in his hand.
"If Aaron can limit China Lin one-on-one, we still have a chance."
On the sidelines, Flip Saunders looked serious. He said something to his assistant and then turned his attention to the court.
During the Cavaliers' offensive round, Delonte West controlled the ball in the frontcourt, and Lin Yu had already noticed his new opponent.
Aaron Afflalo, this is an acquaintance. It is not that Lin Yu is familiar with the current Aaron Afflalo, but that he is familiar with the future Aaron Afflalo.
This guy is a 3D wing player, and was once dubbed the Kobe Bryant Killer. He has strong defensive ability on the wing and has certain low-post singles abilities.
At this time, Afflalo was just an average rookie and had little playing time with the Pistons.
"So, Flip Saunders has revealed his final trump card."
Only when there is no other way will the head coach bring on a specific player deep on his bench in the hope that this player can do something specific.
Regarding Afflalo, Flip Saunders hopes that Afflalo can limit Lin Yu, who scored 10 points in a row in the third quarter, one-on-one.
Lin Yu realized this, and his competitive spirit exploded. Flip Saunders hoped that Afflalo could guard Lin Yu, and Lin Yu had to break Afflalo's defense on the offensive end.
The Cavaliers' offense, James' singles, and the Pistons flanked James without hesitation.
On the flank, Lin Yu was marked one-on-one by Afflalo.
He chose to start the mode of taking over the game at this time, which lasted for three minutes. After James was flanked, he took the initiative to ask for the ball and received the basketball immediately.
In the singles on the flank, Lin Yu took a step in and then pushed forward with his back.
Then he suddenly turned around to face the frame, made a fake shot, and continued walking to the left.
Aaron Afflalo has little defensive experience, but he wins because of his excellent physical fitness and quite a lot of momentum. Lin Yu walked in, and he immediately took two steps to his right.
Lin Yu turned around again at this moment, suddenly changing direction to the right.
He accelerated and just squeezed Afflalo away.
It seemed that Lin Yu got the space to take action, but Afflalo relied on his physical fitness to press him again.
However, when Afflalo rushed at him desperately, Lin Yu made a sudden stop and stepped back, and the young Aaron Afflalo was completely shaken away.
Whoosh!
The basketball hit the net without any suspense!
Lin Yu, who scored the goal, gradually retreated and shook his head secretly. Aaron Afflalo was still too young. This guy would only use his body to make up for the mistakes he made on the defensive end.
But obviously, he can make up for one, two... but he can't make up for them all.
"79:72, a 7-point score difference, China Lin is too strong, he has scored 12 points in a row!"
Next, the Pistons' offense faced Lin Yu's marking. Billups had a hard time. He once again chose to pass the ball. However, after Richard Hamilton left the field, the Pistons had more and more opportunities on the offensive end.
The less.
Seven or eight seconds later, the basketball returned to Billups' hands. He made a strong shot against Lin Yu, but he missed and the basketball hit the frame and popped out.
The Cavaliers grabbed the rebound and launched a counterattack. The fast sprinting Lin Yu unstoppably defeated Aaron Afflalo's defense and succeeded in another mid-range shot.
Scored 14 points in a row! The score gap also widened to 9 points, and Flip Saunders' adjustment failed.
#
With 3 minutes left before the end of the third quarter, Mike Brown replaced Lin Yu. The guy nicknamed Bread came up and patted Lin Yu on the shoulder somewhat naively, and praised: "You played well, Lin."
!”
Lin Yu was also in a good mood and made a joke: "Is it just good, Mike?"
Mike Brown smiled: "Haha, it's perfect!"
In the third quarter, Lin Yu's personal performance can indeed be described as perfect. He almost dominated both offense and defense. On the defensive end, he restricted Chauncey Billups who had already exploded. On the offensive end, he scored 19 points in a row.
The Cavaliers also relied on Lin Yu's explosion to instantly widen the score gap.
At the end of the three quarters, the Cavaliers led the Pistons by 11 points.
In the fourth quarter, Lin Yu, who had already scored 36 points, continued to produce steadily. After scoring another 7 points, the Cavaliers sealed the victory.
In the end, the Cavaliers defeated the Pistons 117:102, taking away an away victory and avoiding the losing streak that almost came.
After the game, Lin Yu scored 19 points in the third quarter. Lin Yu, who dominated both offense and defense, was directly praised to another level.
"What I must say is that Zach Lowe's pre-season prediction was so wrong. China's Lin is at least one of the top three superstars this season. He is too strong!"
"Oh my God, he scored 19 points in the third quarter and dominated the defensive end. He was simply a god in this game!"
"He seems to be possessed by Michael Jordan at his peak, and Detroiters can't stop him at all."
"In the new season, he ranks first in the scoring list per game. He scores high points in a row. He always stands up to score at critical moments. He scored 8 points in a row at the last moment. Now he scored 19 points in the third quarter..."
"Perhaps, Zach Lowe's pre-season prediction was only wrong in one thing, that is, he misestimated Lin Yu's strength, which caused a butterfly effect and the Cavaliers' strength was also underestimated."
"Without Lin Yu, the Cavaliers' strength would indeed be worse than last season, but because of Lin Yu, the Cavaliers seem to be stronger this season."
"..."
Lin Yu couldn't hear the praise from the sidelines. He only knew that he scored another 43 points in this game, one point higher than his score against the Warriors, another season high.
He continues to rank first in points per game, and the gap is getting wider and wider.
#
"Hey, Lin, congratulations. You are the best in the game again. Can you tell us about this game and why you broke out in the third quarter? Was it because the time had come, or did the team need you to break out?"
Doris Burke's post-game sideline interviews, her questions are always silly.
Lin Yu's answer was somewhat honest: "I am always making various preparations. When the team needs me to score, I can immediately stand up and score. Timing is one thing. I have been working hard to maintain a hot streak."
The state of things is another aspect.”
Then Doris Burke asked a somewhat sensitive question: "So, do you think the Cavaliers are relying too much on you at critical moments?"
Lin Yu could only say that this question was a good one.
But his answer was: "No, I can only say that compared to my teammates, I am the one who is more likely to break out at critical moments. If I don't break out, I believe there will be other teammates who will step up and lead the team."
