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Chapter 401 - 188. Key killer, first to get a triple-double!_2

Chapter 401: 188. Key killer, first to get a triple-double!_2

But the Toronto Raptors were happy to have him play that way; countering with their offense could wear down the opponent’s key interior player—a profitable trade-off!

After Okafor scored for a couple of rounds, Bickerstaff called a timeout for a rotation, putting in the combination of Millsap and Muhammad, assigning Felton to handle pick-and-roll offense, and deploying Alan Anderson and Matt Carroll on the wings.

Bickerstaff’s adjustment worked well. With Bosh off the court, the Raptors’ close-range defense was lacking, so they had to move early to block Felton, who was using screens, leading to shooting opportunities for the wings.

With both Okafor and Rondo out, the defense was even worse, giving the Raptors’ bench forwards and guards, Bargnani and Fred Jones, better shooting opportunities. Thanks to Ford’s drive and distribute offense allowing consecutive scoring, the Bobcats’ offense managed to keep up the firepower, going back and forth with the Raptors.

However, this also showed how effective Raptors head coach Sam Mitchell’s player rotations were, as he deployed players with great specificity. Mitchell didn’t rely on player power for rotation but matched Ford with Rondo and Felton with Calderon for better head-to-head efficacy.

No wonder he was a front-runner for Coach of the Year this season.

Halfway through the second quarter, the score reached a tie at 45.

Zhang Yang returned to the court after an official timeout, and in just half a quarter, though he scored only 4 points, he gave 3 assists!

His passes weren’t only when his teammates could score directly, but whenever he saw a teammate in a better offensive position, he would make the pass.

Even though he had only 3 assists, the rounds where he initiated the offense and passed the ball out, his teammates scored a total of 10 points! Along with his own 4 points, and combined with the 4 points from Rondo’s Drive Attack and fast-break layups, the Bobcats scored 18 points in the latter half of the second quarter!

The Raptors continued the offensive firepower of the first half, scoring 14 points.

The second quarter score was 31 to 28, and at halftime, the Bobcats led the Raptors 63 to 59, regaining a 4-point lead.

Zhang Yang played nearly 16 minutes in the first half, making 4 of 8 shots to score 10 points, with 4 rebounds, 7 assists, and 1 steal.

With only a 4-point lead, Bickerstaff felt a headache coming on. He wiped his forehead, well, his hair was long gone, so at least he didn’t have to worry about going bald.

During halftime, while the players did little things to relax and manage the mental pressure, Bickerstaff pondered for several minutes before deciding to make a bold move!

This was his usual style of improvisation.

In the third quarter, Bickerstaff deployed a lineup of Rondo, Zhang Yang, Matt Carroll, Jumaine Jones, and Okafor.

Facing Ford, Anthony Parker, Joey Graham, Bosh, and Nesterovic, Zhang Yang and Okafor initiated the offense with pick-and-rolls, with Jumaine Jones and Matt Carroll spreading out on the wings, and Rondo positioning to receive passes... just attacking!

To allow Zhang Yang to fully focus on offense, Bickerstaff reduced Zhang Yang’s defensive involvement, assigning him to guard Graham’s cuts on the wing, and converge for rebounds.

In the second half’s opening, they hit the Raptors hard, scoring a 14-to-7 run in 3 minutes and 16 seconds, stretching the lead to double digits at 77 to 66 over the Raptors!

But the Raptors had crawled out of the bronze pit. Though not quite champion material, they were gold and diamond tier players in the Eastern Conference. They withstood the psychological pressure without collapsing. Ford patiently waited for opportunities, and during a lull after the Bobcats’ several minutes of intense offense, the Raptors mounted a comeback with a 10-to-6 run in 3 minutes, narrowing the score to 76 to 83 and reducing the lead to 7 points.

When it was the Bobcats’ turn to attack, Matt Carroll took a three-point shot.

With the wind in their sails, or in garbage time, Matt Carroll was dead-on, but once the opponent gained momentum, his shots would become rushed, and he missed the three-pointer!

On the other side, Bosh hit a corner three, and the Bobcats called a timeout!

With 6 minutes and 58 seconds left, the score was 79 to 83, and the Raptors had cut the lead down to 4 points!

Sam Mitchell fully coordinated the rotations, adjusting tactics, and along with his players, provoked by "the bad kid Jack who instigated Kobe to score 83 points," fought back with a 20-to-20 run against the Bobcats in 7 minutes, keeping the gap close!

Bickerstaff was somewhat annoyed, wishing he had made earlier substitutions. At that time, they had just hit a climax, and it was hard not to look forward to further widening the lead, but the opposition was just too resilient.

Eastern Conference teams are tough in this regard; any team that can make the playoffs has decent pressure resistance.

After an official timeout, he substituted Zhang Yang, who had accumulated 5 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists in the half quarter, with a lineup of Felton, Alan Anderson, Herrmann, Millsap, and Muhammad. The initiative might have been lost, but it was not too late to mend the situation; an earlier rotation might have created better opportunities.

Felton played hard after taking the court, but still couldn’t withstand the Raptors’ onslaught as the fourth quarter began.

With 4 minutes and 22 seconds left in the final quarter, Bosh hit a long two from mid-range against Millsap, bringing the score to 102 to 101, with the Raptors overtaking the Bobcats by 1 point!

Bickerstaff called a timeout, bringing back Zhang Yang and Okafor, who had rested for more than 9 minutes of game time plus a quarter break.

He had played out all his cards. Felton, Millsap, and Muhammad fought fiercely, and the wing rotations from players like Derek Anderson, Matt Carroll, and Jumaine Jones also played hard, doing their best to create rest time for Zhang Yang and Okafor.