66:65, the Suns trailed by one point and the Bulls attacked.
"Bang!"
Jordan brazenly took another three-point shot, but unfortunately missed this time.
Wang Tiejun protected the backcourt rebound and the Suns attacked.
"This is Old K's 15th rebound today. If it weren't for his strong offense and rebounding, with the Suns' perimeter condition today, with so many mistakes and poor touch, the point difference would have been more than ten points." Su
Qun said.
"We are all tired. It is certain that our condition has declined." Zhang Lili said.
This time, after Perry advanced a few steps, he quickly moved the ball when Ron Harper came forward. After three passes, the glider finally advanced the ball to the frontcourt.
Seeing Old K moving toward the basket, Drexler shot a three-pointer without hesitation.
"Bang!"
Missed, the ball hit the basket and bounced.
"I'll do it!"
Wang Tiejun and Kerry jumped up at the same time, using their powerful tonnage and force to bounce the latter away in the air. With one hand, he pushed the ball back into the basket with a bang.
"yeah!"
The home fans immediately raised their arms and cheered.
Albert said: “Rebounds, secondary offense, and low-post offense are the three areas where the Suns have an absolute advantage.
As there are fewer and fewer people available inside, the Bulls are getting worse and worse in these three aspects. Fortunately, the Lightning retired with injuries and the Suns made more mistakes on the outside, so the Bulls still have a chance."
"brush!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ron Harper hit a long two-pointer.
"Be careful! Don't let up on the outside defense. No matter how many defenses there are, you have to fight against it." Zhang Lili also became anxious.
68:67, the Suns were one point behind, and the Suns attacked.
Perry caught the ball and bypassed Ron Harper. Jordan suddenly came over to press him, and he quickly passed to Person.
At this time, Wang Tiejun squeezed past Kerry, went directly to the basket, and shouted to Person in the frontcourt: "Ball!"
"Whoosh!"
Person in the backcourt threw the ball over without paying any attention.
Kerry stepped forward to steal the ball, but was pushed away by Wang Tiejun's elbow. At this time, the ball fell.
"Bang!"
Wang Tiejun's right elbow was stuck against Kerry. After taking off, he caught the ball with his left hand. After landing, he rose again and smashed the ball into the basket.
Kerry committed four fouls and no longer dared to commit any more. If he was beaten, the Bulls would be completely finished.
"Cory, you stay in the backcourt." Phil Jackson shouted to Blount.
Blount participated in the full-court press and was unable to execute the slashing tactic. This meant that the intensity of the Bulls' full-court press was reduced. The two inside defenders guarded the backcourt, and Jordan and three other outside players were responsible for pressing.
The consequence of this is that the Suns face less defensive pressure on the outside and advance more smoothly.
68:69, Bulls attack.
Pippen took a shot on the head of the glider and missed the mid-range shot. Wang Tiejun protected the rebound.
With the Bulls' interior collapse, he is now a unique force at the basket. His control over backcourt rebounds has reached the strongest level in the Finals, and his control over frontcourt rebounds has also become stronger.
"Green, take advantage of your opening and make a bold move." Westphal whispered to AC Green who was passing by.
Green nodded. He understood what the coach meant. Old K had already controlled the rebound. If he failed to make a shot, Old K could grab the offensive rebound and make a second attack. If he made a shot, Old K could rest.
The time can also reduce the chance of old K being cut.
When he came to the frontcourt, he pulled to the right blocking area, near the right bottom corner, waiting for the pass.
Sure enough, the ball was passed over, and he took the ball and hit a wide-open mid-range shot.
Although Jordan above tried his best to help defend, Person was stretched to the three-point line. The distance was a bit wide and he couldn't make up for it.
68:71, the Suns lead, the Bulls attack.
Next, the two sides went back and forth, and the game continued until the 9th minute of the final quarter, which was also the most critical and tense last three minutes.
101:101, the two sides were tied, and the Suns called a timeout.
Now the Suns have one timeout left, and the Bulls also have one, both long timeouts.
Zhang Lili wiped the sweat from his forehead. His whole body was already soaked. Firstly, it was the hot weather, and secondly, he was nervous.
After taking a sip of water, he cleared his throat and said: "The situation now looks very anxious, and the two sides are tied again.
The Bulls had been beaten up inside by the Tiejun, but their outside attack was crazy. Under the leadership of Jordan, they actually withstood the Tiejun's low-post attack.
This is also the reason why the Suns felt inaccurate on the outside today. They were probably too tired and made too many mistakes. Jordan and the others made a lot of fast breaks.
Fortunately, the Tiejun's offense was good and their rebounding control was very strong. Otherwise, the Bulls might have pulled the game back today."
Su Qun nodded repeatedly and said: "From the middle of the third quarter to now, within ten minutes, Old K has grabbed a total of 4 offensive rebounds. His control over the rebounds is too strong."
Zhang Liji said with a smile: "So even though the Bulls are attacking very fiercely now, they still can't lead the Suns because the Tiejun controlled the rebounds.
Although the Suns make far more mistakes on the outside than the Bulls, their rebounding advantage means that the Suns are not inferior to the Bulls in terms of possession of the ball and shots.
Now that the Bulls have fought hard to this extent, they are no longer able to survive.
Look at Pippen, he was already fighting on the move. He was facing off against the glider the whole time. The two of them are superstars and they didn't dare to be careless. It was very consuming.
Jordan was not much better than Pippen. Person, a rookie, played very actively. Even without the ball in his hands, he was still running with all his strength. He used his running without the ball to walk Jordan around, which almost consumed the remaining physical energy of Jordan.
.
And now it's the last three minutes. As the leader of the team, no matter how tired Tiejun is, he should stand up and make a splash to seal the victory in one fell swoop."
"But what if the bull chops him?" Su Qun asked worriedly.
Zhang Lijia smiled and said: "Actually, Old K's free throw percentage is more than 60%, so he is not too afraid of this tactic. If the Bulls cut him, the biggest possibility is to lose one thousand to themselves and kill eight hundred enemies. Of course, I am too tired now.
It will also affect the feel, which depends on his ability at critical moments."
"That's right."
Su Qun was startled and couldn't help but nodded.
"Old K, it's time, go to the basket and kill them." On the bench of the Suns, Westphal stared at Wang Tiejun and shouted in a deep voice.
"Coach, leave it to me." Lao Wang gasped and nodded in a deep voice.
"Get up and take action as quickly as possible," Westphal warned.
Next to the Bulls bench, Phil Jackson was arranging defensive tactics.
At this time, all the players are relying on their will to play. They can no longer play pressing tactics and have no physical fitness at all.
Pippen had cramped just now, and Kerry couldn't run anymore and was walking to play. Jordan, who was so physically capable, didn't dare to be so devoted on the defensive end in the final quarter.
"Ron, you must lock Perry down. With your strength, I believe you can do it."
But at the No. 1 position, Ron Harper has no problem with his physical fitness, so Phil Jackson gave him the defensive task on the outside.
He still hopes to cut off the passing and receiving lines between the Suns and Old K as much as possible, even if only once.
With only three minutes left, even one success could bring victory to the Bulls.
The timeout ends, the game begins, and the Suns attack.
The Suns replaced rookie Person and replaced veteran Dan Marley. Thunder rested for almost two quarters, and now there is no problem with his physical condition.
Perry caught the ball and quickly passed it to Dan Marley, who came back to take over.
Jordan knew very well that in the last three minutes, Old K would definitely exert his strength, so he could not watch Dan Malley push the ball across the half court and immediately pounce to stop it.
It's just that Dan Malli was physically stronger than him. He turned around and passed him, then supported him with his left elbow, accelerated and forced his way past the center line.
From the high post, Wang Tiejun saw Dan Malley crossing the center line, immediately turned around, bypassed Kerry and rushed into the paint area.
At the same time, Dan Malley, who had just crossed the center line, pushed with one hand and passed the ball.
This one-handed pass was far from accurate, but he believed that Old K could solve the problem.
Wang Tiejun rushed to the position one step in front of the basket. The ball was almost there and deflected to the right side of the basket. Blount, who was in the low post on the right wing, had already rushed in and was ready to jump to grab the ball.
He immediately turned around and stuck Blount behind him. When the ball fell, he rose into the sky, grabbed the basketball with his right hand, and threw it towards the basket.
Blunt behind him did not hesitate and pulled hard with both hands.
"Bang!"
"Beep!"
The sound of bombing baskets and whistles sounded at the same time.
"yeah!"
At the critical moment, the score was two plus one, and the whole audience suddenly burst into flames.
"yeeeees!"
Albert roared excitedly and shouted: "Blunt committed 4 fouls, Kerry committed 4 fouls, the Bulls should be careful, you have no inside players to replace."
"As long as the ball can be passed to the basket, Old K can succeed. The advantage is too great." Kevin Harlan shook his head.
"The opponent is too weak, and the internal strength of both sides is completely unbalanced." Albert nodded.
Wang Tiejun stood on the free throw line again.
"This is Old K's 19th free throw. He has hit 11 of them before, with a shooting percentage of 57.8%. If this ball can be made, it will be 63.1%. Based on his shooting percentage, this free throw was made.
The probability is even greater." Su Qun analyzed.
Zhang Lili laughed after hearing this.
"brush!"
Su Qun really hit the target, and Lao Wang made the free throw.
101:104, the Suns lead by 3 points, the Bulls attack.
At the critical moment, Jordan was very decisive. Dan Marley's hand was on his face, but he could not stop his shot.
"brush!"
The water splashed and the three-pointer hit.
"It's so strong! This is Jordan's fifth three-pointer today, two in the first half and two in the third quarter. He made a total of 5 of 10 three-pointers, with a shooting rate of 50%, which is equivalent to a two-pointer.
The shooting rate of 75% is no less efficient than the Tiejun in the low post, which is one of the reasons why the Bulls can hold on to the score." Zhang Liji shook his head and sighed.
104 draws, the Suns attack.
"Crack!"
At the critical moment, Ron Harper made a crucial and fatal defense in the backcourt. When Perry was about to pass the ball to the glider, he quickly stepped in and completed the steal.
"yeah!"
The few scattered Bulls fans at America West Arena burst into cheers and were very excited.
"Yeah yeah!"
Everyone on the Bulls bench jumped up, and even Phil Jackson raised his fist excitedly.
"brush!"
Ron Harper drove to the basket and hit a layup, giving the Bulls the lead.
"Ron, you did a great job!" Jordan shouted excitedly.
"Sweep! Sweep! Sweep..."
At this time, countless home fans stood up and began to cheer for the Suns.
"Elliot, don't worry about it, just hit the ball quickly!"
Kevin Johnson couldn't sit still. He sat on the bench and watched his teammates play. He was more nervous than when he was playing on the court. He formed his hands into a trumpet shape and shouted loudly to Perry on the court.
"It's okay, Perry, let's come again." Lao Wang shouted loudly.
Perry nodded, and his nervousness relaxed a little.
As a marginalized person, and it was the last minute of the finals, the pressure on him was too great. If he made another mistake, his psychology would probably collapse.
106:104, Suns attack.
At the last moment, not only did Ron Harper start the strongest defense, but Jordan also returned to the strongest defense again. The two chased Dan Mulley and Perry without any chance to catch the ball.
Five seconds were about to pass, but fortunately, the glider suddenly retreated in time to catch the ball, averting the crisis.
Pippen couldn't run anymore and couldn't keep up.
The glider held the ball and advanced to the 50-degree position of the three-point line on the left wing. When he saw Old K entering the basket, he jumped directly without hesitation and shot a three-pointer over Pippen's head.
If he hits, it's a three-pointer. If he doesn't, Old K is already moving towards the basket and grabbing offensive rebounds is guaranteed. This is what he thought, and the fact is as he expected.
His shot was extremely decisive, and the tired Pippen failed to make timely defensive moves.
"brush!"
Decisive shots often lead to higher hit rates. He hit a key three-pointer to help the team overtake the score.
"Beautiful! The role of the glider is very important. It depends on the performance of the superstars at critical moments." Zhang Lili praised in admiration.
At 106:107, the Suns took the lead, with 115 seconds left in the game.
The bull moved forward, but not very fast. He was almost out of breath from exhaustion and could not move any faster.
As soon as the ball reached the frontcourt, it was handed to Jordan on the right wing.
Jordan caught the ball and hit Dan Marley with his back, but was double-teamed by low-post AC Green.
Because Blount was very weak, Green did not guard him much. Most of the defensive attention was on Jordan, and his defense was very timely.
Jordan turned around and shot a fadeaway jumper in a double team, and the ball flew toward the basket.
"Can it win?" Countless people were thinking at this moment.
"Bang!"
It's a pity that Jordan is really not a god. He was too tired and his aim dropped. This time he forced a shot from double double team and failed to hit.
Wang Tiejun got a backcourt rebound and the Suns attacked.
Ron Harper chased Perry closely to prevent him from catching the ball smoothly, but Jordan really had no energy left and could only watch Dan Mulley drop back to catch the ball.
Wang Tiejun stood outside the paint area, and when the ball passed the midline, he suddenly moved toward the basket.
The first time was unsuccessful. Jordan almost made a turnover on Dan Mulley and the ball failed to pass in. He came out immediately and then entered the paint area for the second time.
But this time, Dan Malley's ball came in.
"Bang!"
Wang Tiejun directly caught the ball in the air and then completed an alley-oop dunk. Clifford Robinson failed to keep up with his rhythm, and the same was true for Blount who was assisting in defense.
"Old K, it's so easy to score. Who left you with no one inside?" Su Qun shouted excitedly.
106:109, the Suns lead by three points, the Bulls attack, and there are 80 seconds left in the game.