Chapter 273 The Western Conference Finals Begins 4

Author: Different Sparks

Chapter 273 The Western Conference Finals Begins 4

Oden's position created favorable conditions for Middleton to catch the ball and blocked Thompson who was guarding him. However, after receiving the ball, he was still entangled by Thompson who was bypassing him, and Thompson was very close.

Middleton, who was facing the basket sideways, couldn't find any chance to take a shot.

At this time, Yi Jianlian, who had served the ball, ran to the weak side at a 45-degree angle. David Lee followed Yi Jianlian all the time. Grant screened for Middleton, but Barnes, who was covering the defense, was

Continue to haunt Middleton.

It is obvious from these actions that Cole also guessed that Da Zhuang definitely wanted to give priority to three-pointers, so he defended the outside very tightly.

At this time, Oden also pulled out from the inside and continued to cover Middleton.

At this time, basically everyone thought that Middleton should end the offense with this ball. In fact, Dazhuang did arrange it this way. The reason why this game can be entangled with the Warriors until now is because Curry and Thompson

To achieve this with full firepower, the biggest contribution is Middleton's performance on the outside.

So far in the game, Middleton has made 8 of 12 shots from beyond the three-point line, a 66% three-point shooting rate. It can be said that in Cole's eyes, Middleton is an absolute target that must be guarded and defended.

.

After Oden was in place, Middleton was also in a posture to use Oden's pick-and-roll to complete the shot. At this time, all the Warriors' defensive attention was attracted by Middleton.

At this time, Middleton, who had used the pick-and-roll to turn around and face the frame, jumped up. Thompson, Barnes and David Lee all pounced on him, but Middleton's next action caused these three people and Cole on the sidelines to jump.

He was shocked, because Middleton jumped up and took a shot, but instead of shooting, he threw the ball in the air towards Yi Jianlian, who was completely open on the weak side.

David Lee, who was originally guarding Yi Jianlian, was completely out of position. The closest person to Yi Jianlian was Curry.

After receiving the ball, Yi Jianlian quickly completed the shot before the opponent's defensive player pounced.

After the basketball flew a certain distance, it accurately fell into the basket.

While the Timberwolves fans and Da Zhuang and others in the stands were celebrating each other, the referee on the field made a gesture that made Da Zhuang very angry.

The referee signaled that it was a two-point ball, and Yi Jianlian stepped on the line the moment he took the shot.

Although Da Zhuang had been protesting to the referee, the referee still insisted on his decision after watching the video.

The screen on the court is also constantly replaying the moment of Yi Jianlian's shooting.

But to be honest, this ball is really suspected of stepping on the line.

Da Zhuang also shook his head and felt helpless. At this critical moment, two points and three points are two completely different concepts. If it is a three-pointer, for the Warriors, their next offense must only be a three-pointer.

ball, otherwise they would have to bet on the Timberwolves' free throws after completing their offense, and then attack after the free throws. Now that it is two points, the Warriors have a lot more options.

And the most important thing is that there is no timeout in Da Zhuang's hands.

At this time, the score became 94 to 92, with the Timberwolves leading by two points, and there were only 29 seconds left in the game.

If the Warriors' next attack time is more accurately controlled, the Timberwolves will still have 5 seconds to attack in the end, but without a timeout opportunity, the Timberwolves will only have 5 seconds to complete the attack from serving the ball in the backcourt.

Cole also applied for a suspension.

"Focus on defending the opponent's three-pointers. Remember, you must follow closely, don't defend at all, and play man-to-man coverage throughout the court, especially Steph and Klay. These two are the key defensive targets. Once the opponent picks and rolls the screen,

If there is a misalignment, you must stick to it as soon as possible and don't give the opponent a chance to turn around easily, understand?" Da Zhuang explained to the team members while holding the tactical board.

A regular pause of 60 seconds passes quickly.

Players from both sides returned to the court again.

David Lee served the ball from the sidelines and handed the basketball to Curry. However, Dinwiddie defended him very well. Curry handed the ball back to David Lee. At this time, the Timberwolves defense appeared on the court.

There was a loophole, and LaVine, who was replaced on the court, did not notice the opponent's screen when he was guarding Thompson, and Barnes suddenly hit him full of arms.

This allowed Thompson to easily get rid of the defense. At this time, David Lee's pass also handed the ball to Thompson. Dinwiddie and Grant, who were closest, pounced directly towards Thompson.

But at this time Thompson passed the ball, and the basketball flew directly from the left to Curry, who had moved to the right. Although Yi Jianlian, who was closest, tried his best to stretch his right hand to complete the block, he still failed.

Block Curry's shot.

Soon everyone's eyes were on the basketball flying in the air.

In the end, accompanied by the sighs of tens of thousands of Timberwolves fans present, the basketball accurately fell into the basket.

Cheers immediately erupted from the Warriors bench, and Curry on the court spat out his braces in excitement.

The big man on the sideline also grinned helplessly. To be honest, LaVine's experience in playing this ball was really good, so it was blocked tightly by the opponent's pick-and-roll, which caused the defensive loopholes to become wider and wider.

94 to 95, the Timberwolves were one point behind, and there were only 11 seconds left in the game.

There was no way to call a timeout, but the time was much longer than expected. The Warriors also had no timeout. Now the two head coaches can only trust their players on offense and defense.

Both of them stood on the sidelines with their arms folded, with very serious expressions on their faces.

The Warriors also adopted a full-court press defensive strategy against the Timberwolves. Dinwiddie received the ball after using Grant's screen, and then dribbled the ball into the frontcourt under the interference of Curry. Time passed little by little.

When Middleton saw this situation, he immediately stepped forward and completed a cross move with Dinwiddie. The basketball was directly handed over to Middleton by Dinwiddie.

At this time, there were only 4 seconds left. After receiving the ball, Middleton accelerated and then made an emergency stop to gain himself a little space to take the shot. Then, without any hesitation, he directly completed the take-off shot.

Thompson, who did not touch the ball, turned his attention to the basketball after landing, like everyone at the scene.

Finally, the basketball flew for a certain distance.

Bang! The sound of the basketball hitting the rim made the Timberwolves fans at the scene sigh again.

Although Oden grabbed the rebound, the red light came on and time was up.

95 to 96, the Timberwolves lost this game by 1 point, and the big score between the two sides also became 1 to 1.
Chapter completed!