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Chapter 319 - 154. Teams Bound by ’Being Reversed’ _3

Chapter 319: 154. Teams Bound by ’Being Reversed’ _3

Duncan strove to keep up with Gerald Wallace’s pace, and Udrih, Ginobili, and Brent Barry were tightly guarding the opposing three shooters, no longer concerned about Zhang Yang on the other side.

Zhang Yang, facing Bowen’s defense, protected the ball and focused on adjusting the pace, seeing Gerald Wallace cutting in but failing to shake off Duncan, and started to post up!

With two strong steps, he strode forward, turned, and jumped!

No fakes, no frills, just a direct shot!

Bowen reacted immediately, but he was much slower to start, and seeing Zhang Yang’s determined expression as he jumped and lifted the ball, he decided to stop to avoid a foul. Jumping to contest and reaching out was unnecessary, so he simply turned his head to watch the basket.

Amid the crazy boos from the home fans, the ball thrown by Zhang Yang went straight into the net!

With 3.7 seconds left on the clock and the score at 83 to 81, Zhang Yang’s shot was the perfect game winner, putting the Bobcats ahead by two. Popovich called for another timeout!

Popovich’s mentality was exploding. How many times had this happened? Throughout his years as a head coach, had any team been beaten by game-winners more than his Spurs?

What about 0.4 seconds, what about 35 seconds, they all happened to them.

But he had to admit, Zhang Yang’s choice of post play was smart this time.

Even if it were the post-up master Payton at work, it wouldn’t be possible to fool Bowen with a fake. This straightforward style of play, taking advantage of physical fitness to momentarily shake off Bowen’s close defense and shoot, was the better choice.

Instead of choosing the more skilled post-up turning step-back jumper, he opted for a physical step-in turn-around jump shot. Popovich could see it wasn’t by chance that Zhang Yang made this choice—it was a definite targeting of Bowen.

That damned No. 8 used to play just like that, exploiting the fact that Bowen was slow on the explosive move and didn’t have a good vertical.

After going crazy, Popovich calmed down, adjusted the lineup, and set the play.

After the timeout, the Spurs had the ball in their frontcourt.

The Bobcats put out a lineup of Rondo, Alan Anderson, Gerald Wallace, Millsap, and Okafor.

Bickerstaff’s approach was just so wild, putting two rookies on defense for a crucial play.

Rondo had been thwarted in both scoring and playmaking tonight, but his defense on the floor was better than that of Felton and Zhang Yang.

Millsap’s boxing out had suddenly become very aggressive and effective, his role was to prevent the opponent’s put-backs.

Popovich’s game-winning play calls were quite standard by now.

Duncan inside, Horry in the corner, Finley on the weak side mid-range, Ginobili at the top to inbound the ball.

Barry took the ball from the referee, and as the official whistled to resume the game, his first option was to look for Duncan.

Down by two, an immediate alley-oop play would have been best, but Duncan, fronted by Okafor, couldn’t get the ball.

Barry looked to the top... Ginobili was fronted by Rondo! Wrapped up in Rondo’s long arms, Ginobili couldn’t find an opening to receive the pass, and Horry in the corner was covered by Millsap, leaving him no chance to get the ball either.

Barry was forced to pass the ball to Finley, and immediately dashed toward the inside...

Finley caught the ball, turned and launched a fadeaway jumper against Gerald’s defense. Gerald contested very well, and Finley’s mid-range shot missed!

Barry had anticipated that the veteran was unlikely to make the shot and had rushed inside directly after passing, but was blocked by Millsap who had aggressively recovered, unable to complete the put-back dunk!

The ball ricocheted towards the front of the rim, Duncan desperately lunged for it... Rondo got to the ball first, dodged away with a quick dash, and the final buzzer sounded.

The Bobcats players on the sidelines, clutching their hearts, immediately flooded into the field to celebrate the victory with their teammates.

Zhang Yang was really worried Ginobili might have beaten them with a game-winner; his heart also hung in the balance when Barry charged in... The two rookies played really well on defense!

What’s called talent? This is it! Knowing how to use your advantages at the crucial moment, calm and not stage-frightened.

However, defending so easily on the play was greatly thanks to Popovich’s ability to adapt on the spot.

If Zhang Yang knew Popovich critiqued their Bobcats’ last critical ball tactic setup as ’lacking technique and relying purely on ability,’ he would probably be speechless.

Popovich’s play call when down by two had Zhang Yang feeling like he had been cut with a small knife across his buttocks.

Pick and roll? None. Interchangeable positioning? None. Even the screens to link the pass were missing; it was about sequentially getting the ball to the right player to take the shot.

If there were 5 seconds, 8 seconds for the play, it would be fine; there would be time to move the ball around. With just over 3 seconds, Finley had to catch and immediately shoot against the defense, didn’t he?

At this moment, the gap between Popovich of now and a few years later was truly pronounced!

Duncan scored 24 points and grabbed 20 rebounds, going 10-for-20 from the field plus 4-for-7 from the line, Parker got 15 points and 6 assists, Ginobili 11 points with 4 rebounds and 4 assists, Barry 17 points, but they couldn’t beat Zhang Yang’s 29 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal on the other side. Felton ended with 9 points and 8 assists; Gerald Wallace 17 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks; and Okafor with 10 points and 14 rebounds.

The Bobcats played a last quarter scoring 28 to 18, overturning the Spurs with a score of 83 to 81!

...

When the Bobcats upset the Spurs with Zhang Yang’s perfect game-winner and the battle report came out, fans were not at all surprised.

Since McGrady scored 13 points in 35 seconds, marking the pages of basketball history, the Spurs have been tied to ’being overturned,’ unable to separate themselves from that image.

But the Bobcats’ record of 2 wins and 1 loss in their Texas journey surprised many fans.

At the beginning of their Texas journey, few had faith in them, even the local media in the Carolina region thought winning one game would be passing, and a complete defeat was the norm.

Not that people thought they weren’t strong; they were already seen as a rising powerhouse poised to take down a 50-win season. But since the 04-05 season, the Texas tour had been a nightmare for all teams.

When the results came out, the Bobcats had thrashed the Rockets by 31 points, narrowly lost to the Mavericks by 4 points, and nearly beaten the Spurs...

With expectations set low, their performance was surprisingly delightful!

And what surprised the fans even more—33 points against the Rockets, 23 points against the Mavericks, and exploding with 29 points in the final quarter against the Spurs, Zhang Yang averaged 28.3 points on his Texas tour!

Other young guards had dismal performances in Texas, with low scores one after another, but Zhang Yang was a burst of excitement in every game!

The California media, reporting Zhang Yang’s average score, titled it—Mid-range.