I am the Warden Chapter 40 The temperature has dropped
At 6 minutes and 49 seconds into the second quarter, the score was tied at 58. This score surge was simply terrifying!
In the past 6 minutes and 49 seconds, the Trail Blazers and the Kings played with a score of 22 to 24.
The Kings are in really good shape. When they are in good shape, this score is not that incredible.
Everyone knows that the Kings have an unparalleled offensive brilliance.
But the Trail Blazers also scored 58 points…
This has to do with the Kings' defense being in disarray tonight.
Looking at Liu Xiu who had provoked Peja again walking back, Morris Cheeks felt that he should say something.
"Jace, take a break first."
Liu Xiu nodded, but did not say in a show-off manner "I want to do what else".
He played for more than a quarter in a row. If he hadn't just had to stand on the offensive end for a long period of time before, he wouldn't have been able to play for so long in a row.
He knows what he should know - this is how Morris Cheeks evaluated Liu Xiu.
The two teams now have completely different ideas.
As for the Trail Blazers - the opponent played so well but we actually held on!
Although the Trail Blazers are also a 50-win team, the Kings are a championship-contending team, and the Trail Blazers have had a challenger mentality from the very beginning.
As for the Kings, if they hadn’t exploded, they would have been beaten by the opponent! How could the opponent be in such a good state?
…
After the timeout, the Kings sent out a combination of Bibby, Bobby Jackson, Doug Christie, Darius Songaila and Brad Miller.
The Trail Blazers sent out a combination of Damon Stoudemire, Derek Anderson, Reuben Patterson, Randolph and Rasheed Wallace.
The Kings made good adjustments and once again took the upper hand after the timeout, quickly taking the lead.
but!
The Kings played more impatiently than before.
Before, even when Peja was pissed off by Liu Xiu, the Kings were not too impatient and made adjustments when necessary. Only Peja's shot before Liu Xiu scored 2+1 was random.
But now, every time the Trail Blazers narrow the gap, the Kings are more likely to make the wrong decision.
The Trail Blazers attacked again, and the Flying Squirrel played against Bibby and broke through the free throw line and made a one-step jump shot, 71 to 74, and the Trail Blazers narrowed the gap to 3 points.
When it was the Kings' turn to attack, they became obviously impatient again, just like they did every time the Trail Blazers narrowed the gap!
Bobby Jackson threw the ball as soon as he caught it. Derek Anderson's height and wingspan advantage caused him great interference, and Bobby Jackson missed the three-pointer!
Brad Miller fouled while trying to rebound, and the Trail Blazers have the ball!
"Jace! Up, up, up!"
Maurice Cheeks took advantage of a dead ball to replace Derek Anderson with Liu Xiu for the last attack of the first half.
Although Liu Xiu didn't expect that he would be substituted on at this time, after resting for a while, he had recovered well despite his young age, and immediately took off his training suit and went on the court.
Watching Liu Xiu run onto the field, Maurice Cheeks said, "Kevin, I didn't expect that I would use Jace as a reliever."
Kevin Pritchard asked in surprise: "Huh? You didn't ask him to go up and post up?"
…
The Kings had the same idea as Kevin Prittach, thinking that Liu Xiu was substituted in to be used for back-to-the-basket play!
Just now, Brad Miller received his third foul in this game. In order to avoid Brad Miller from falling into a foul crisis with four fouls in the first half, Adelman replaced Brad Miller during a dead ball.
The Kings are so strong that it is obvious that Liu Xiu is afraid of Brad Miller, an outstanding inside player who can provide close-range help defense when he plays with his back to the ball.
Currently, the Trail Blazers' lineup is Damon Stoudemire, Liu Xiu, Reuben Patterson, Dale Davis, and Rasheed Wallace.
The Kings' lineup was Bibby, Bobby Jackson, Doug Christie, Darius Songaila and Divac.
According to normal logic, Liu Xiu would be the one who would drop to a low position and launch the attack.
After the timeout, when the Trail Blazers started their attack, Liu Xiu also went inside.
but!
The Kings' defense focused on using Liu Xiu's low-post back-to-the-basket shots to attract the defense and initiate offense, but the Trail Blazers did not play that way!
The little flying squirrel broke through!
The Kings reacted really quickly! A top team is not to be underestimated, and they quickly adjusted their defense.
Liu Xiu pulled out, and the Kings were initially concerned about his wing shots, but Liu Xiu ran to the high position!
When Liu Xiu ran to the high post and passed the free throw line, Doug Christie, who was switching to defend him, ignored him and blocked Reuben Patterson who was standing on the left side of the free throw line.
Liu Xiu went all the way from the left side of the three-second zone to the top arc, with no obstacles between him and the Flying Squirrel who was trapped in the breakout!
"Pashmi!"
The little flying squirrel couldn't do anything now and was about to be intercepted. He heard a voice behind him and hurried over.
Then, he turned around and saw Liu Xiu - this rookie, why was he going there instead of going to the two corners to provide support!
The Kings players thought so too.
Liu Xiu was unguarded at the top of the arc. Doug Christie, who was closest to him, hesitated and didn't make the move. He instead stared at Reuben Patterson, who had a 41% shooting percentage at the high left side of the free throw line.
Then……
Liu Xiu slowly adjusted himself at the top of the arc and took a three-point shot...and it went in!
The Kings players are going crazy!
This guy can still get in!
Is it so outrageous to hit them?
It's not that the Kings players don't learn their lesson. Liu Xiu didn't shoot much in the second quarter, and he took a long break before coming back. He only made 5 three-pointers in the preseason and summer league... and now he is still going to the top arc, not the direction of long shots before.
Leaving players open and blocking the players who pose a greater threat is what the defense should do.
Who would have thought that Liu Xiu could actually get in!
From Liu Xiu's slow and cautious shooting movements, it was obvious that he was prepared to take a chance.
But it went in!
4 out of 4 three-pointers!
With Doug Christie missing a buzzer-beating pull-up jump shot, the Trail Blazers and Kings were tied at 74 at the end of the first half and went into halftime!
…
He made 11 of 14 shots in the first half, including 4 of 4 three-pointers, plus 1 of 1 free throws, scoring 27 points!
At halftime, Liu Xiu realized that he had broken Anthony's record .
Anthony scored 30 points in that game, which is the highest single-game score for a rookie so far this season.
break!
Of course this record must be broken! Although it may be broken again soon, something that can be broken must be broken.
But in fact, he himself did not expect that he could perform like this.
Of course, the coaching staff didn’t expect this, and neither did the opponents…
Judging from the Kings' performance tonight, if it weren't for Liu Xiu's outrageous 7 of 8 open shots, including 4 of 4 three-pointers, the Trail Blazers would have collapsed!
During the halftime break, the Trail Blazers coaching staff had a thorough discussion of tactics regarding this point.
Make good use of Liu Xiu's fixed-point shooting threat, reduce Liu Xiu's physical consumption and allow Liu Xiu to stay on the court for more time.
For a playoff-level team, if it has one more pitcher with super stability, its strength can be raised to a higher level!
On the other side, on the Kings side, Adelman guessed the adjustments the Trail Blazers were making, which was a normal operating idea.
During the halftime break, a top team like the Kings with strong execution capabilities can make sufficient adjustments.
After the start of the second half, the game became difficult for both sides to control.
In the second half, the Trail Blazers sent out a combination of Liu Xiu, Derek Anderson, Travis Outlaw, Randolph and Rasheed Wallace.
The Kings sent out a combination of Bibby, Doug Christie, Peja, Massenburg and Brad Miller.
The Kings really focused their defense on Liu Xiu. Liu Xiu knew that he had to adjust his start time for two seconds in order to shoot accurately, but the Kings didn't know that.
It is much easier for the Trail Blazers to play 4 on 4 on offense than 5 on 5.
Liu Xiu really didn't shoot. He just created space. In order to avoid his teammates' attacks, Liu Xiu could even not touch the ball during the offense and just be a spectator to contain Bibby.
But the Kings now dare not let Liu Xiu go at all. Even though Liu Xiu did not participate in the offense for two or three consecutive rounds and let Derek Anderson push the ball, they still did not let him go.
It’s really not the Kings’ fault for going too far - they left Liu Xiu open 8 times and he scored 7 goals!
And Liu Xiu... after coming on in the third quarter, he played good defense and was very focused on offense, waiting for his chance. Even if the opponent never left him open, he was still waiting for the chance.
He knew very well that he couldn't do much more. At this point in the game, when the opponents started to target him for shooting, his shooting ability was "gone". Therefore, he had to seize the opportunities when they came so that he could continue to provide help to his teammates!
At this time, the Kings were fighting with Randolph's low-post back-to-the-basket play, Tianzun's all-around scoring methods, Derek Anderson's all-around offense, and Travis Outlaw's impact...
The Kings were indeed in good shape tonight. After the start of the third quarter, the Trail Blazers relied on Liu Xiu to hold down one man and started a 4-on-4 mode, but did not gain any advantage.
However, it is always difficult to maintain continuity in a high level of competitive performance or explosive performance that is much higher than usual.
The Trail Blazers kept holding on, and in the middle of the third quarter, finally, the Kings missed three consecutive shots!
This was the first time for the Kings, who had been in hot form, in this game! The worst time for the Kings was when they just missed two consecutive shots. The Kings' shooting percentage in the first half was a terrifying 65%!
In these three rounds, the Trail Blazers seized two opportunities and reversed the score!
Although the Kings took the lead again through team offense, it was not as difficult for the Trail Blazers to overtake the score as in the first half. In the second half of the third quarter, if the Kings were not careful, the Trail Blazers would be able to overtake the score!
This means that the situation of the game has completely changed. In the first half, Liu Xiu scored 27 points with 11 of 14 shots. The Trail Blazers were not able to overtake the score many times, but they just kept close to the score and were not defeated by the Kings.
In the second half, especially in the second half of the third quarter, Liu Xiu had been replaced by the Little Flying Mouse.
But at this time, the Trail Blazers were able to seize the opportunity from time to time to overtake!
At 11 minutes and 26 seconds into the third quarter, the Kings passed the ball out of bounds and the Trail Blazers had the ball in the backcourt. Maurice Cheeks again replaced Liu Xiu, who had rested for half a quarter.
Damon Stoudemire, Liu Xiu, Reuben Patterson, Dale Davis, Rasheed Wallace.
This lineup is exactly the same as the one the Trail Blazers used in their last attack before the end of the first half!
There are 34 seconds left. Theoretically, the next attack will be the Trail Blazers' last attack in the third quarter!
The game continued and the Trail Blazers served from the backcourt.
The Flying Squirrel received the serve and advanced. After Liu Xiu reached the frontcourt, he did not run to the sideline, nor did he serve as a containment point throughout the first half of the third quarter. Instead, he cut into the middle!
This style of play is the same as the last attack in the first half!
The players on the court for the Kings are Bobby Jackson, Doug Christie, Peja, Darius Songaila, and Brad Miller.
Seeing Liu Xiu coming out from under the basket and running towards the high post, this time, Peja, who was defending in that area, chose to follow him, and Doug Christie was also ready to make up for the top arc... Suddenly, Liu Xiu turned around and ran back!
Dale Davis pulled out from the inside and blocked Peja who turned around to chase. Liu Xiu rushed to the left edge of the three-second zone. The Flying Squirrel passed the ball, and Liu Xiu caught the ball and made a jump shot...and it hit!
With this ball, the Trail Blazers caught the Kings off guard!
103 to 100, the Trail Blazers extended their lead to 3 points!
The Trail Blazers had already taken the lead in the previous round and the Kings made a mistake, so they were extra focused on defending this ball, but they failed to do so.
The Kings didn't want to go into the final quarter with a disadvantage. They were in such good form, with 74 points in the first half! They scored 40 points in the second quarter, such a crazy performance. Going into the final quarter after falling behind in three quarters was a huge blow to their confidence.
With 74 points in the first half, in the third quarter, the last attack, the Kings "only" scored 26 points.
In the third quarter, the Kings' condition has returned to normal. No, not just returned to normal. Their playing condition in the first half was not much different from that in the first half. From 6 minutes and 25 seconds in the third quarter to now, the Kings have only scored 9 points!
However, the Kings players did not have this awareness. They felt that if they did not tie the game and enter the final quarter, they would be a failure.
In the last 18 seconds of the third quarter, the Kings attacked with only a three-pointer in their sights!
The Princeton system's running position and passing and cutting are still smooth. Peja received the ball on the left sideline and had a chance to pass the ball. Bobby Jackson was running to the top arc, and Brad Miller was in the high pick-and-roll. Bobby Jackson immediately had a chance to use the off-ball pick-and-roll... But! When Peja saw Liu Xiu, he thought of his own score.
He scored 26 points, including 8 in the third quarter.
But Liu Xiu scored 29 points!
cast!
Vote yourself!
Peja was totally unable to resist the temptation to tie Liu Xiu's personal score with one shot, and he took a three-point shot against Reuben Patterson's defense... Reuben Patterson made a great interference!
Peja missed the three-pointer!
The ball hit the basket and bounced out. Although it was grabbed by Brad Miller, a long whistle had already sounded when he grabbed it.
After three quarters, the Trail Blazers led the Kings by 3 points with 103 to 100 and entered the final quarter!
