Chapter Thirty-Four Overtime and Another Defeat
Li Tian hit a three-pointer, leaving only 8 seconds of attack time for the Hornets. Fans thought that the Grizzlies were in sight of winning this game.
Hornets head coach Byron Scott called the final timeout.
"Paul, the next last attack is very important. You will initiate the last attack. Tyson, you are always ready to grab rebounds under the basket and be prepared for your teammates to miss three-pointers; everyone else, let me float." From outside the three-point line, as long as there is a chance, shoot a three-pointer, you must be quick, understand?" Scott arranged the final attack.
The Grizzlies arrange their last defense.
"Paul, when you are under the basket, you must block their center and don't give him a chance to rebound;
Guy, Lee, all of you have to be outside the three-point line to prevent them from shooting three-pointers. Navarro, you have to interfere with Paul and don't let him catch the ball. Stoudemire, you have to interfere with their mid-line serve. So that they can make a five-second violation. Do you understand?"
"Grizzlies, come on!" roared angrily, and several people came on the field together.
According to Mark's arrangement, the Grizzlies players performed their duties.
Paul kept running on the court, constantly using pick-and-rolls between teammates, trying to get rid of Navarro's pursuit.
West stepped forward to help Paul pick and roll again. The tall West blocked Navarro who was chasing Paul.
Gay, who was defending West, failed to cover Paul in time.
Stoudemire kept waving his hands, trying to stop Stojakovic from serving from the center line.
Mark did not expect that Stojakovic was serving from the center line. When Stojakovic got the ball and was about to serve, Li Tian could no longer switch defenses with Stoudemire.
Stojakovic saw that Paul had run out of position and threw the ball to Paul.
Paul received the ball, adjusted slightly, and signaled his teammates to start running. At this time, Gay ran over to cover Paul.
Small against big, this is Paul's best skill.
The teammates were completely separated, not giving the rest of the Grizzlies a chance to come over and defend.
Other players on the Hornets team are ready to catch the ball and force a shot at any time.
Paul, constantly dribbling with his hips and crossing steps.
Gay is too tall, making it difficult to defend Paul. In addition, Gay is too heavy and cannot keep up with Paul's speed.
After the cross step, Paul shook Guy up.
There were three seconds left on the clock, and Paul, who was able to get away from Guy and get space to shoot, could no longer be depressed.
Shot directly from outside the three-point line.
The moment the three-point shot was taken, Gay failed to step forward and block the shot.
The entire FedEx Arena was completely silent, and the audience was watching the trajectory of Paul's three-pointer.
Some spectators drew crosses on their chests, apparently praying for Paul to make a three-pointer.
Things tend to go against expectations, and Paul's three-pointers hit steadily.
Paul hit the last shot to tie the score and the score came to 114-114.
There was only the last second left in the game. The Grizzlies had no timeouts and could only serve from the backcourt.
Without enough time to communicate with his teammates, Gasol signaled everyone to take action immediately after receiving the ball.
Serving from the baseline, Li Tian blocked Gay's defender, and Gay had an open opportunity.
Gasol directly used his strength and made a long pass to Gay who ran out of space.
Guy didn't expect that Li Tian would help him block West. The moment the ball came over, he was a little stunned.
After almost making a mistake in catching the ball, Paul pushed past Navarro and ran directly towards Gay.
Gay also realized that he had missed the best opportunity. If he passed the ball, others would no longer have a shot.
Direct shot, three-pointer or rebound.
The FedEx Arena was completely in a state of excitement. Everyone believed that Gay had defeated the Hornets.
The arena became a sea of joy, and everyone was dancing and celebrating.
The Grizzlies players also started celebrating.
Paul yelled, "His shot timed out."
The Hornets head coach also found the referee and asked to review the video.
FedEx Arena is quiet again.
The referees were watching the replay nervously, frame by frame, and were also waiting for news from the replay center.
Everyone is staring at the big screen in the arena.
After a while, the referee came to the technical table and said something to the technical table staff.
Seeing the referee's invalid gesture, the fans collapsed and kept shouting.
"Black Whistle" "Black Whistle" "Black Whistle".
But the referee still made an invalid penalty.
The Grizzlies players also fell silent.
"Don't be discouraged, everyone. We just missed the timeout. We still have a chance to win this game. Let's keep our spirits up and win this game. This is at our home court."
Mark boosts the morale of Grizzlies players.
Li Tian was once again placed on the bench.
"Li, you are too tired. You should rest first during overtime to avoid injuries."
Li Tianmeng is confused. I have only been playing for 20 minutes, but I am already tired? His face is full of questions and helpless.
The Hornets' overtime lineup and starting lineup did not make any changes.
Instead, the Grizzlies lineup changed to "Gasol, Gay, Miller, Navarro, Stoudemire."
In overtime, West showed off his power again under Gay's defense.
He hit 3 of 5 and once again dominated the overtime.
On the other hand, for the Grizzlies, Gasol shot 1-for-2 and Miller went 1-for-1. The most puzzling thing is that Gay, who almost completed the buzzer-beater, actually shot 0-for-3, which was unacceptable to the fans.
A double serve in overtime led to a low score of 6-4.
The Hornets challenged the Grizzlies away from home, 120-118. The Hornets won the Grizzlies with a slight advantage of 2 points.
The Hornets' record has reached 8 wins and 2 losses, closely following the Spurs, ranking second in the Western Conference.
The Grizzlies have 2 wins and 6 losses, and are once again at the bottom of the Western Conference. It feels like the Grizzlies will compete for the lottery pick again.
The fans could not accept the team's defeat, and there was a lot of abuse at home.
The Grizzlies players could not accept this defeat. They all walked to the locker room with their heads down in despair.
Fans threw trash and shouted "Fuck!"
Lost again, the Grizzlies have been on a losing streak.
In addition, the Grizzlies' schedule is too annoying. They have always played back-to-back games. The Grizzlies, who have only played eight games, have already experienced two away games in a back-to-back game, and will experience the third away game in a back-to-back game tomorrow. Already.
After the Grizzlies players lost the game, they had to rush to Dallas for the next back-to-back game.
The players didn't even have time to rest, so they drove to the airport and rushed to Dallas overnight.
After overtime, the main players dragged their exhausted bodies to the airport.
Watching Gasol carry his luggage feebly to the waiting room.
Only Li Tian still looked a little angry. The only thing the others wanted was to end this annoying away game and return to Memphis.
Li Tian helped Gasol carry his luggage and prepared to board the plane.
After the plane took off, everyone lay down directly and started to sleep.
Li Tian is no exception. Although he is not tired, he must rest so that he can maintain good condition for the next game.
Chapter completed!