NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 138

In G1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Knicks finally met an opponent who could score consecutive goals in response.

Compared to the 76ers and Hawks, the Pacers' offense is much better and they are extremely flexible on the defensive end.

The big man Rick Schmitz was tossed back and forth after the start, but he still spared no effort on the defensive end, strictly enforcing double teams when encountering pick-and-rolls.

At the end of the third quarter of the game, Ewing looked ugly. The first two rounds of the series had not fully exposed his shortcomings, but tonight he was a little stretched.

Seeing that the third quarter was about to end, the Knicks were still 3 points behind, and the New York fans at the scene shouted loudly again:

"Let's go Knicks! Let's go Knicks! Let's go Knicks!"

The Pacers' starting lineup only rested for 2 minutes in the middle of the third quarter. Larry Bird also did not dare to be careless and regained the main force at the end.

Mark Jackson is still leading the defense throughout the game. They have successfully slowed down the Knicks tonight. After the number of rounds has been reduced, the players who have received positive feedback are becoming more energetic on defense!
Holding the ball in his left hand, Li You came to the left wing. Ewing quickly lifted up, pulled Rick Schmitz out, and immediately followed the false screen at the three-point line.

Rick Schmitz reacted half a beat too late this time. Li You twisted slightly, flicked his wrist, and sent a pocket through ball.

"Oh!"

After breaking through the defense, the fans really cheered. Ewing caught the ball in the paint area, right in front of the basket, and threw the ball in!
At 66:66, the Knicks equalized again.

Ewing's face was still very ugly after completing the goal. This was his first sports game score in the 3rd quarter.
In the NBC commentary box, seeing the two sides tied again, Bob Costas smiled and sighed:
"Compared to last season, the Knicks have actually made a lot of progress this year. In some games where they fell behind, the whole team was more patient."

This time Rick Schmitz received the ball with his back in the low post on the right side. After releasing the ball with his left hand, he hit it with a bang, and everyone in the Pacers pulled away.

Approaching the paint area, Rick Schmitz quickly turned toward the baseline, switched to his right hand, and used his height advantage to complete the hook shot.

Dale Davis struggled to squeeze towards the basket. Oakley had been raped several times by the opponent and was already impatient. The two of them fell to the ground before they even got close to the basket.
The old guy tripped his opponent, and Ewing twisted back to the basket to protect the rebound. No one in the Pacers complained, but instead sped up their retreat.

Larry Bird, who was on the sidelines, had an angry expression on his face, pointing at Oakley and complaining loudly to the referee:
"This is not the first time, you have to call for such a foul!"

"."

Bennett-Savaldo didn't react at all, and the three referees tonight were particularly lenient.

Sprewell, who was rotated in early, advanced very quickly. Chris Mullin delayed his start and immediately passed the ball to Li You who was following up when he reached the top of the key.

In the third-line fast break, Ewing and Oakley were still behind. Li You caught the ball and immediately swung right and left. After releasing the ball with his left hand, he quickly crossed and broke through.

Mark Jackson is very experienced in defense. He immediately gave his body to his side. The two collided. Li You took a step back, then suddenly exploded the ball and quickly completed the change of direction under the crotch.

The moment he switched to his right hand, Li Youshun pressed his shoulder to break through, losing half his position. Mark Jackson quickly turned around and slid to the left rear.

He made a concealed pull, but Mark Jackson was staggered by Li You's sudden ball-explosion step.

Completely clearing up the shooting space, from the right wing, Li You converted a three-pointer and made a quick jump shot!
"Shua!" The three-pointer hit the net hollowly!

66:69, with 3 seconds left in the third quarter, the Knicks took the lead for the first time in this game.

The three-back lineup worked. Jeff Van Gundy on the sidelines clapped his hands excitedly and kept shouting for the players to retreat.

The cheers at the scene grew louder and louder, and Larry Bird once again signaled the players to hold on.

Mark Jackson raised his head to protect the ball after halftime, controlling time on the right wing.

At the last moment, Reggie Miller relied on Rick Schmitz's screen to run back and suddenly bounced out of the center.

He came to the top of the arc, received the pass, and after a feint, he deceived Alan Houston's defensive focus. Reggie Miller released the ball with his right hand and once again broke through and went straight to the basket.

There was a sudden stop in the paint area, Alan Houston struggled to block the shot from his side, and Reggie Miller quickly made a jump shot!
The basketball knocked twice on the rim, and finally slipped out of the rim.
The four players on the inside huddled together, and after a burst of scrambling, the game time ran out in the third quarter.

Oakley clapped his hands with a smile, and was even in the mood to challenge the Pacers:

"Farke, why can't you make a shot?"

Reggie Miller went 5-for-4 in the first half, but in the third quarter it became 5-for-2. He could break through to the basket without fouling, and he was still solid in the mid-range during emergency stops.

Dale Davis received several elbows in one game, and he was a little excited at this time, but he was quickly pulled away by the Pacers.

The Pacers' main points in the third quarter came from Dale Davis and Chris Mullin, and they will not blow up at this time.
Back on the bench, Li You still looked calm. The opponent's defensive intensity was declining, and no one could sustain a whole game without making mistakes.

Rick Schmitz made 5 of 1 in a single quarter. He was frustrated on the defensive end and stretched his hips on the offensive end.

Jeff Van Gundy was loudly telling the substitutes what to pay attention to after coming on the bench. Ewing took a breath and drank heavily while holding a water bottle in his arms.
In the three quarters, he made 12 of 3 shots and 4 of 4 free throws. He only scored 10 points in total. He attacked the basket and took advantage of the situation.

Noting that the two teams were still rotating extensively, Doug Collins sighed again in the commentary box:

"It seems that the head coaches of both sides are very confident in the strength of their rotation lineups. Considering that the inside attack is blocked in the third quarter of the game, such substitutions can also allow the big men to adjust their condition."

Rick Schmitz and Ewing both worked hard. Bob Costas glanced at the technical statistics and didn't say much:

"Sprewell is in good shape. If we can continue the feeling we had in the first three quarters, maybe the Knicks can further widen the point difference."

Although Sprewell received another cold reception during the halftime break, as long as he goes on the field to play, he will exert his full strength.

At the beginning of the fourth quarter of the Pacers, Antonio Davis hit two irons under the basket, and Sprewell made consecutive shots and free throws, immediately helping the Knicks widen the point difference!

"Wow!"

At 66:73, Sprewell made two free throws, and Madison Square Garden was completely boiling.

The Knicks' tactics were not complicated, allowing Sprewell and Larry Johnson to clear one side for singles.

Kurt Thomas and Ben Wallace were waiting for a piece of cake under the basket, and they rushed to grab rebounds together.

The last quarter lasted 3 minutes and 42 seconds, and Larry Bird finally requested a timeout.

Sprewell, who walked to the bench, raised his hands excitedly, signaling for the scene to be louder.

At 70:78, the rotation of the lineup widened the point difference, and Jeff Van Gundy also happily kept applauding.

After the main lineup returned, the Knicks simply started the singles mode. Larry Johnson was replaced in the second half of the quarter, and Sprewell continued his highlight performance.

After receiving the ball in the right block, facing Chris Mullin's defense, Sprewell released the ball with his right hand and immediately crossed over to break through and go straight to the basket.

The Pacers' interior began to shrink, and Sprewell quickly threw the ball toward the left corner when he broke through to the lower right side of the basket.Li You used Oakley's cover on the left wing to get rid of Mark Jackson's defense, ran to the left corner, and immediately feinted after receiving the ball.

Mark Jackson, who was pursuing the defense, flew directly in front of Li You, and finally watched the three-pointer hit the net!

The cheers at the scene grew louder and louder, and Bob Costas in the commentary box also raised his volume:
"Wonderful cooperation, Sprewell's breakthrough can tear apart the Pacers' defense. His performance tonight was even better than Houston's."

"Especially when facing Reggie Miller, he showed great defensive aggression."

Doug Collins watched the Knicks simply break through and score the ball, and Li You attacked more without the ball. He sighed for a while:

"It can't be limited. Sprewell can make sudden passes. Lee's off-ball offense is also very good. The Knicks' three guards successfully turned the game around."

The Pacers still did not give up. Reggie Miller kept running back and moving continuously. This time he bounced to the left wing and hit a three-pointer against Alan Houston's defense!
"Shh!"

Seeing Reggie Miller clapping his hands and cheering, the stadium was booed again.

Sprewell took the ball from the baseline, and Li You quickly ran forward, stood at the free throw line, and made tactical gestures. Ewing immediately reached the top of the key.

Ewing faked a screen, Sprewell took the ball in his right hand and broke through on the right side. Li You screened the gorilla at the free throw line and suddenly bounced to the left wing.

Sprewell quickly threw the ball to Li You after checking. Without making any adjustments after receiving the ball, Li You faced the defending Mark Jackson and quickly made a jump shot from outside the three-point line!
"Shua!" The three-pointer hit the net hollowly!

79:88, with 3 minutes and 42 seconds left in the game, the Knicks still maintained the lead.

After completing the attack, Li You and Sprewell high-fived to celebrate, and then called on their teammates to retreat again.

Unlike other teams, Reggie Miller has the ability to suddenly score consecutive points. The closer to the final moment, the less careless he can be.

As long as Sprewell and Alan Houston defended Reggie Miller, they all defended three points.

After continuously hitting the ball outside the defensive three-point line, Reggie Miller clapped his hands in frustration, saying that time was running out.

Rick Schmitz finally scored consecutive points under the basket, but was still unable to narrow the point difference to 5 points.

Watching the game time passing by, Larry Bird folded his arms and looked thoughtful on the sidelines.
In the end, 88:96, after four quarters of fierce battle, the Knicks successfully protected their home court.

The outstanding performance of the rotation lineup was the key to the team's reversal of the game. Ben Wallace and Kurt Thomas cheered and celebrated with the atmosphere group. The two of them took up a lot of time in the starting lineup tonight.

Sprewell also kept pumping his fists at this time to vent his excitement.

出场33分钟，16中8，罚球7中6，22分4篮板3助攻1抢断1失误。

As the sixth man on the team, scoring 6+, no one can ask for more.

出场38分钟，李佑16中8，三分线外5中3，罚球5中5，砍下24分4篮板6助攻1失误。

Li You scored the highest score in the game, and NBC immediately interviewed him on the sidelines after the game:
"Lee, congratulations on your first victory in the Eastern Conference Finals. Can you talk about Sprewell's performance?"

Many of the media present knew what Sprewell was saying in the midfield, and they naturally would not let this hot spot go by at this time.

After taking the microphone, Li You didn't care about the other party's teasing, but said with a smile:
"We really need Sprewell to play his own style. No team can refuse the sixth man to contribute 22 points!"

"As long as they maintain this performance, the Pacers will be the real headache. They are in big trouble!"

"."

The cheers at Madison Square Garden still didn't stop. Ewing was walking towards the tunnel and was in a bad mood. He made 14 of 4 shots and his efficiency was too low.
Fortunately, everyone was in a state of winning and smiling, and no one cared about the gorilla's statistics.

The post-game press conference was the time for Jeff Van Gundy and Larry Bird.

Both young head coaches showed confidence during interviews.

Larry Bird even boasted in front of the New York media:
"We have found the key to victory, and we will finally get an away victory!"

"."

While the New York media was still mocking Larry Bird for being arrogant, after a day off, the Knicks overturned in G2 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

At the end of the third quarter, the team still led by 3 points, but as Ewing limped back to the locker room, in the last quarter of the game, the Pacers relied on a second rebound to complete the counterattack.

36 seconds before the end, Rick Schmitz grabbed an offensive rebound, and Reggie Miller hit a three-pointer to open the score.

In the end, 90:86, the Pacers won an away victory.

"Shh!"

Looking at Reggie Miller who raised his hands in the air and cheered in celebration, the New York fans present booed wildly.

A large number of media reporters came to the locker room immediately after the game, preparing to interview Jeff Van Gundy.

The bald young coach who returned to the locker room early had already received the news from the team doctor, and his face looked a little ugly at this time.

"Jeff, can you talk about Pat's physical condition? He failed to play in the fourth quarter. Did he suffer from a serious injury?"

Seeing reporters all handing microphones to him, Jeff Van Gundy frowned and said seriously:

"We are still unable to confirm the specific injury situation. Not playing in the fourth quarter is for the sake of Pat's health. We have to be responsible for the player's body."

"."

Everyone in the Knicks gathered around Ewing at this time. After a period of rest, the gorilla was still limping.

"I feel like there's nothing wrong with me. I just have some pain in my feet. It shouldn't have much impact."

The team doctor did not inform Ewing of the specific injury, and the Gorilla was still very optimistic at this time.

In the playoffs, players will have some minor injuries. Seeing Ewing's statement, everyone started to comfort them.

Li You felt that this scene seemed familiar. Seeing Ewing who still didn't care, he shook his head secretly:

"Perhaps this one has no choice but to withdraw."

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(End of this chapter)