Basketball Legends: Strikers Are King

“Well done!”

As soon as a few people came off the stage, Vogel praised them by name and said,

"Ensuring defense is the most important thing."

"But the offense did not fall behind and continued in the fourth quarter."

Although neither George nor Qi Tian scored many points in the third quarter, their defensive contributions cannot be reflected in scores. George sent three steals and Qi Tian also had one. The team defended the opponent for six minutes without scoring.

It's what the head coach values ​​most.

"only……"

Vogel's words attracted the attention of George and others,

"In terms of player rotation, the first few quarters were a bit too aggressive. In the fourth quarter, you guys should take turns to rest."

Hill, George and Qi Tian looked at each other and nodded in understanding.

In the third quarter of the game, the starting five played the entire quarter, which put higher demands on their physical strength.

Hibbert is better. Pachulia, who is facing him, has almost no offensive ability. He only needs to fight against his opponent and grab rebounds, but his physical strength is also the weakest among the starters.

West and George faced Horford and Josh, Qi Tian defended Korver, and Hill faced Teague. None of them were good matches, so Vogel decided to rotate more frequently in the fourth quarter.

After all, it is a showdown between playoff teams. Even if one side is behind, it does not affect the emphasis on the opponent. The Pacers and Hawks did not choose a regular substitute lineup to start the fourth quarter.

The Pacers directly deployed Augustin, Qi Tian, ​​George, Hansbrough and West in the fourth quarter;

The Hawks also fielded Teague, Lou Williams, Stevenson, Horford and Anthony Tolliver.

Both teams have three starters and two substitutes.

"Coming, coming!"

Eagles fans have adjusted their mentality and are ready to continue cheering for the home team.

It's just a 12-point disadvantage, and it's not too big in a real fight.

"Atlanta, come on!"

The Hawks players naturally worked hard and planned to reverse the score. West's inside shot was blocked by Horford.

Fortunately, Lu Wei's three-pointer did not hit. George and others took advantage of the fast break, and Qi Tian received the pass and hit a jumper.

"79-65."

"Seven, seven!"

"seven!"

The Pacers fans chanted Qitian's name in an orderly manner and cheered for him.

West's interior defense on the court was not comparable to Mahinmi's in the second quarter. He continuously defended Tolliver and Horford's attacks, but Qi Tian and George continued to fight and failed to expand the score.

The Eagles took the opportunity to catch and shoot with Lou Williams, barely chasing the score.

The emphasis on opponents led the coaches of both teams to choose short rotations, and only a few of the substitutes could be trusted to play.

Vogel let Hill, Hibbert and substitute Stephenson come on after three minutes of rest, replaced Augustin, West and George, and once again replaced with a lineup of three starters and two substitutes;

The same goes for the Hawks on the other side. Josh, Korver and Ivan Johnson came on to replace Horford, Stevenson and Tolliver. There were still three starting lineups on the field.

Qi Tian could already clearly feel that he was out of breath, and his fatigue would make his shots less confident than usual, but he believed that the same was true for his opponent.

Now is the time for perseverance.

Sure enough, Qi Tian blocked Ivan Johnson. Although Ivan Johnson grabbed the offensive rebound, Korver's jump shot from the outside went wide.

But Teague rushed to the basket and grabbed the offensive rebound and made a tip-in.

Stephenson responded by assisting Hansbrough to score.

"81-69."

The score difference was still firmly maintained, which gave Pacers fans some peace of mind.

However, the offensive rhythm of the two teams suddenly broke. In the next three minutes, only Hill and Teague scored jumpers to help the score increase.

Qi Tian and Korver's three-pointers both ended in a blackout.

"Substitute!"

Vogel requested substitutions again, replacing Qi Tian and Hansbrough with George and West, who had rested for three minutes, leaving only substitute Stephenson on the field.

But it doesn't matter, the high imitation version of the defensive lineup has given Vogel the confidence to accept the game.

The Eagles, who were still 12 points behind, made a desperate move and directly replaced all substitutes.

Appearing in the lineup at the critical moment again, Stephenson was extremely excited and wanted to score ten or eight of his goals to directly kill the game.

But shooting percentage has never been related to the intention of the shooter. Stephenson's jump shot is iron-clad.

"Chance!"

The game time has passed halfway, and the Eagles know that their chance to take the lead lies in these last few minutes, and every offense is very important.

Teague made a wonderful pass to Korver who was cutting through the air. After Korver attracted the defense, he passed the ball to Horford inside. Horford forced a layup and West jumped up to block the shot.

"Dangdang, swish!"

"Dudu!"

The sound of the basketball hitting and the referee's whistle sounded at the same time, Horford scored 2+1!

"83-74."

Stephenson's willingness to defend is very strong, but Korver's off-the-ball movement is obviously better. He received a pass from Josh and hit consecutive long-range three-pointers.

The Pacers, on the other hand, were led by Hibbert and Stephenson made mistakes, watching their opponents chase points.

"83-80."

In just two minutes, the situation suddenly changed, and the Eagles actually managed to close the gap to 3 points before the last 4 minutes.

"ohhhh!"

Eagles fans raised their arms and roared, cheering for the team that launched a 9-0 offensive wave.

Then the two sides exchanged blows. Teague assisted Korver and hit a jumper, narrowing the point difference to 1 point. Then he stole the ball from George. The Eagles fans were already going crazy.

"Go ahead, Eagles!"

"Kick them all!"

Seeing Teague turning around for a fast break, George also got angry.

"Do you really think my face was slapped in vain?"

He burst out with astonishing speed, and at the moment Teague made a layup, he blocked the ball from behind, which cheered up the somewhat silent Pacers fans.

But Hibbert's offense still delivered a blow, and the defensive Pacers' weaknesses were fully exposed.

Their offense is really constipated. When the opponent hits the magic ball, they have no ability to chase points.

Vogel had no choice but to replace the long-awaited Qitian.

Qi Tian lived up to the expectations of fans and coaches. After Teague hit a three-pointer, he received a pass from Hill and made a long three-pointer.

"86-85."

And there are only the last 21 seconds left in the game.

The Hawks called a timeout to set up their tactics. After coming on the court, Teague took control of the ball, with Lou Williams and Korver running on both sides to prepare for the response.

Horford set up a pick-and-roll and indeed helped Lu Wei find an opportunity.

But Qi Tian quickly bypassed the screen and blocked Lu Wei's shot the moment he took action!

Although the fans were shocked into a cold sweat, the Pacers relied on steady free throws and made three of four free throws under the opponent's foul tactics to escape.

"89-85."

The Pacers won two consecutive games.