From sparring to superstar

Chapter 63 61. Use your brains! (full 400 monthly tickets plus more)

In the last match, Li Ao used this action to taunt Arenas, and the Wildcats fans who watched the live broadcast were deeply impressed.

Now seeing Arenas provoke Li Ao with the same action, the fans at the scene tried their best to cheer for Arenas!

Li Ao raised his chin slightly, glanced at Arenas out of the corner of his eye, and said loudly to his teammates: "Pay attention to defending Wright, he is the strongest player of the Wildcats, be careful of his inside attack! Actively pinch!"

Arenas' proud expression turned into indifference, and Gardner directly cursed a word starting with F.

The Trojans player who impressed the Wildcats players the most was Li Ao.

It's not because of his 33 points in a single game and 14 points in overtime last time he played against each other, but his defense.

The defense is dirty, but it doesn't count. There is no hurtful action. On the contrary, once Woods almost fell due to a slippery floor, this guy even helped him up.

But wretched!There are endless small moves to irritate the defender, only unexpected, nothing impossible.

Root - Olsen repeatedly reminded Arenas and Michael - Wright, the two victims, during the preparation phase, reminding them not to get on top.

Michael Wright's teammate Gardner is not worried, only Arenas.

Seeing that Shelby Jordan was replaced, Gardner was ready to feed Michael Wright. Arenas had already blown up Trey Pagnier. It was time to start playing. up.

Arenas scored 6 points in 4 of 10. At this time, if Li Ao came up and spammed Arenas directly, Gardner would not be worried. He has been with Arenas for so long, and he knows what kind of character Arenas is.

I didn't expect the bastard on the other side to say such a sentence!

As Gardner expected, after the ball was delivered, Arenas continued to ask for the ball at the top arc.

He can only pass the ball, he is sure, if he doesn't pass, this guy will definitely act in a fit of anger, and it will be in a fancy way, unpredictable!
Arenas was burning with anger, but he acted calmly, waiting for his teammates to move.

After the last defeat, he spent many days studying the video, studying how Li Ao defended him, just for today.

He has already understood Li Ao's strategy of defending him. The opponent's defense affects his shooting rhythm, so he doesn't care about the rhythm, just shoot as he likes!

Seeing Michael Wright go to give Richard Jefferson a flank off-ball screen, Arenas began to break through Li Ao!
Li Ao's first prediction was in place, and he gave Arenas a confrontation in time.

Arenas withdrew half a step, and used the front of his body to change direction and pull horizontally.

Li Ao moved quickly, with an advantage in both height and weight. When "Stress Level 1" was triggered, his speed was temporarily increased to 91, and his explosive acceleration was increased to 84. Although he failed to confront Arenas again, he kept up with the pace.

Arenas broke into the inside line, and Li Ao quickly retreated.

Arenas took a step horizontally at the free throw line, Li Ao moved laterally in time, and moved in place when Arenas grabbed the ball and took off!
Li Ao didn't take off to press up. He was too old to take off, and it was difficult to maintain the interference efficiency when he took off. He tried to get as close to Arenas as possible and raised his hands.

Arenas, who was anxious to get rid of the defense, didn't take off enough this time. Li Ao's defensive choice was correct, and the interference was in place!
However, Arenas is Arenas. He forcibly leaned back in the air, and when he threw the ball, his back was more than 45 degrees. After successfully throwing the ball, he fell back on the floor.

Li Ao struggled to take off when Arenas threw the ball, but he couldn't jump high enough, and the ball flew past his fingertips...in!
Li Ao was not discouraged when he heard the cheers from the fans for Arenas and the taunts to him.

He knew that he had reached his limit in defense, and there was nothing he could do if the opponent felt good.

And he doesn't believe that Arenas can score every goal of this kind of ball.

Li Ao was cheering himself up, but Arenas, who scored such a goal, did not continue to provoke, and ran directly to the backcourt after getting up.

Li Ao's shock on the defensive end was greater than his excitement for making such a difficult shot.

In the transition between offense and defense, Granville advanced to the frontcourt, broke through and launched an attack.

Li Ao went around to the right side of the free throw line to receive the ball, and passed the ball straight to the middle without stopping. Trey Pagnier went into the basket with Arenas on his head to catch the ball and made a throw!

Root Olsen on the sidelines was amazed again.

In the last match, he admired Li Ao's supporting performance of 6 assists in a single game.

After a lapse of more than a month, the Trojans played better together, and this rookie, who is as young as Arenas, has done a better job of supporting him.

What is Reiki?This is... wait!
wrong!This is the opponent's player, he appreciates a hammer.

He felt like he was going to suffer. As soon as the Chinese rookie came on the field, the Trojans' team's offense was immediately activated!
When it came time for the Wildcats to attack, Arenas continued to play singles.

He couldn't believe how it was possible for a player to improve so fast, and how could that guy's defense improve so much in just one and a half months during the season.

Even if he is a genius like Arenas, his personal ability has not improved much in the past month or so. His performance is better than the beginning stage, mainly because he is more adaptable to NCAA games and finds a position when he is playing without the ball. awareness raising.

This is all he has, how could others have made such great progress.

coincide!

Must be a coincidence!

After preparing himself mentally, Arenas regained his confidence and asked him to beat Li Ao, and to pay back Trey Pagnier's pie-eating score.

Then...he was followed by Li Ao again!
He could only continue to forcibly lean back and shoot... This time the hand didn't feel so good, and it hit the basket on the neck with a "clang" sound!
The White Mamba held off Michael Wright's rush and received the rebound.

Li Ao grabbed the number on his jersey and ran to the front court while shaking it. The fans boos and cursed at the scene.

Thanks Trey Pagnier!

Only Tre Pagnier irritated Arenas at the beginning and consumed Arenas' best physical strength in a short period of time, so he could defend so effectively.

He thinks this is considered 'teamwork', right?

Arenas also started to use his brain, and shouted to Li Ao: "Do you only know how to pass the ball? Do you dare to play one alone?"

Li Ao replied easily: "I'm not like you, I know it won't work and I still insist on it."

This brain is worse than not moving!Look for anger!Arenas kept up with Tre Pagnier.

Granville continued to break through and attack, and Tre Pagnier also continued to cut.

Seeing Arenas' free-for-all defense, Woods had to focus on cutting Trepagnier.

Li Ao seized the opportunity to come to the right side of the three-second zone, received the ball, turned left, and made a hook shot without leaving the ground...

Richard Jefferson followed closely, but Li Ao shot the ball too fast and didn't interfere!
It feels good, the ball hit the inside of the basket, wiped it and fell into the basket!
15 to 18, the point difference narrowed to 3 points.

When it came time for the Wildcats to attack, Gardner didn't care about Arenas' gestures for the ball.

Contrary to Gardner's expectation, Arenas didn't cuss and stand on his hips at random if he couldn't get the ball as usual, looking like he was watching a show.

This time Arenas honestly went to stand a little lower outside the 45-degree three-point line and pulled Li Ao away.

Arenas wanted to show his 'privilege' in the team.

But the opponent was Li Ao, the first opponent he cared about and was so hostile to after he entered university. He forced himself to be more rational, and he couldn't let the other party look down on him.

Although I don't know why, Gardner was very excited, and the 4V4 team started to attack!

With Arenas as his teammate, the Wildcats are unique in terms of 4V4 teamwork.

However, the cooperation was not as smooth as Gardner thought it would be. When the striker had a clear advantage, the cooperation was not very good.

Arenas played singles for several minutes in a row, and his teammates ran well at first, but later they simply found a support point to watch the show, at most rushing to grab it, and the running position felt exhausted.

Richard Jefferson catches the ball in front of the rim with Charles in front of him.

He turned around and took a step back, and made a shot from one step inside the free throw line... "哐"...it hit the right side of the basket, and the iron was crisp.

Granville grabbed the rebound and pushed himself up the court. He seized the offensive opportunity and shot a close-range throw...Miss, Woods protected the rebound.

Although the opponent did not score, Root Olsen, who was sitting on the sidelines, leaned back in his chair discouraged.

This ball, that is, no progress.

It looks like a brainless breakthrough shot, but it is actually a part of teamwork!
The white mamba is effective in controlling the movement, Trepagnier has a good grasp of the timing of cutting in against Arenas, Li Ao's performance in finding opportunities to shoot and respond is good, Charles's flank cover and pie-eating positions are very good, grid Lanville also has a good grasp of whether to shoot or pass when launching an offense.

The team's offensive performance was great!
And against the strongest frontcourt scorer, Brusenthal hasn't played yet!

On the other hand, on their Wildcat team, that genius broke down the team's offense once.

This is not the first time this season that one hand has been played more times than can be counted.

To beat those underdogs, you can still rely on your personal ability to fight hard.

But the Trojans, the No. [-] team in the league...

Root - Olsen wants to ask the opposite head coach if he has a son, he misses Mike Bibby.

Talent, Mike Bibby is indeed not as good as Arenas, but he has a good brain!

...

The situation on the court, as Root Olsen predicted, quickly tilted in the direction favorable to the Trojans.

Trey Pagnell and Li Ao took turns to irritate Arenas and successfully turned the Wildcats' offense into the strongest singles on the inside and outside.

Gardner really wanted to connect the offense, but after playing a few rounds, he found that their current teamwork was not as good as letting Michael Wright and Arenas take turns playing singles.

But the longer the two played in singles, the less the teammates moved on the offensive end, and the audience changed.

If it is to play the Golden State Bears, the Sun Devils, or even the Bruins, Arenas and Michael Wright may be able to overwhelm each other by relying on their personal abilities.

If you rely on two people to gain the lead in singles, you can also rely on team defense to win.

But against the Trojans...

After Arenas rested for a few rounds, his physical strength recovered for a short time, and he had to admit that Li Ao had made great progress, played more cautiously, and his offensive efficiency improved.

Michael Wright also played the White Mamba with ease.

But the two of them took turns, and they could only compete with the Trojans' team offense.

When the Trojans replaced Charles with Brusenthal, the situation completely tilted towards the Trojans!

At the last moment of the first half, Li Ao made a long two-pointer, Brusenthal made a turnaround hook, and Bai Mamba made a three-pointer. They scored a wave of 7-2, making the score 51-40. Successfully opened the point difference to double digits at the end of halftime!

In these few rounds, Arenas and Michael Wright both ate zero eggs, and the Wildcats only got two points from the bench Luke Walton.

There was no rest at halftime, and the two of them stopped moving for the last few minutes!
In order to take advantage of the victory, the Trojans also let Granville and White Mamba play the entire first half, so that the opponents did not dare to replace the two stars.

However, the Trojans focus on team offense. Their two stars consume much less energy than the opposing two stars, and they performed much better at the end of the first half.

Looking at the score, Li Ao put his hands in... without pockets, so he put his hands on his hips.

Their overall strength is stronger, and the team plays better with them. Although they are not dominant in terms of state, they are not at a disadvantage either. Their strategy execution is still in place.

Tonight, win for sure!

Looking at Arenas, who threw the towel on the floor and walked into the tunnel, Li Ao somehow understood why Arenas shot 48%+41% in his sophomore season and led his team to the finals of the Crazy Three He won the runner-up at the age of 19, but he couldn't even make it to the first round.

The problem is not talent or ability, otherwise the Warriors would not have given Arenas so much playing time in his rookie season. You must know that the Warriors had Larry Hughes, a big player with the ball at the time.

It was because the Warriors allocated too much ball rights and playing time to Arenas. After the end of his rookie contract, Larry Hughes tore up his face with the Warriors who dug him out, and followed the old Jordan without looking back.

Being superior at the slightest disagreement, conceited, and getting angry for no reason... so many flaws are enough to make most teams avoid them like tigers.

If Arenas is like Duncan, entering the NBA is perfect, then no matter how bad his personality is, no matter how bad his court habits are, no one cares.

But in his situation, at the age of 19, it actually hindered his draft stage.

In the second half, Root Olsen did not sit still and encouraged the players to counterattack.

Arenas is naturally the vanguard.

But the counterattack effect is average!
The Trojans played very steadily and insisted on team offense. Even if the Wildcats once relied on a desperate impact to close the point difference, the already very confident and steady Trojans persisted. Open the gap again.

Fighting and fighting, Arenas started acting like a demon again.

The reason... Li Ao's offensive end is very simple today. He scored 6 points in the first half and only scored 4 points after two-thirds of the second half.

(End of this chapter)