When all of the Suns' starters returned, the team was already down by 9 points.
35:44!!
In just over four minutes, only Wei Guo scored 6 points.
Barbosa and Hunter, who came off the bench, combined for 5 turnovers, which allowed the Spurs to score 8 points.
......
“I never realized before that Stoudemire was so important.”
"They keep making mistakes, Wei Guo can't even receive the ball, how can we play like this?"
"When the tide goes out, you see who's been swimming naked; the Suns' young bench players aren't up to the task in tough games..."
"I miss last season!"
"Yes... This time last year, Wei Guo had Hill, Mourning, and Stockton by his side, all of them capable of fighting tough battles."
"The Suns can't get past the Spurs on just Wei Ge alone."
......
Fans are worried for the Suns, as their repeated mistakes are demoralizing.
There are 7 minutes and 31 seconds left in the second quarter!
Nash drove to the basket and made a behind-the-back pass to Wei Guo.
Bowen reached out and grabbed Wei Guo's shoulder...
Even so, it couldn't stop Wei Guo from pulling up from the spot and slamming Bowen down with a two-handed dunk!
"Beep!!!"
The referee's whistle blew.
The referee raised his right index and middle fingers, "Goal! Penalty 1 goal!"
"That's not right!"
Bowen turned to the referee and argued, "I grabbed Wei Guo before he even received the ball. That should be considered a foul beforehand, so the goal shouldn't count!"
This is a common tactic used by the Spurs, especially against O'Neal, where it has proven very effective. However, Wei Guo's free throw percentage is too high, and fouling him is not difficult to stop him from scoring, so this tactic is rarely used.
The referee pointed to the free-throw line, signaling for Wei Guo to take the free throw.
Bowen wanted to argue, but the experienced Barry pulled him away. Bowen's foul was quite serious, and continuing to argue with the referee would have resulted in a technical foul, which wasn't worth it.
Wei Guo stepped up to the free-throw line, while Marion and Richardson had already returned to the backcourt to prepare for defense, and Nash and Johnson stood on either side of the free-throw line as if to give a signal.
"Whoosh!!!"
The free throw was made.
38:44!!
The Suns are still down by 6 points.
......
Spurs are on offense, Ginobili is dribbling.
Wei Guo slowly retreated to the backfield.
Muhammad set an off-ball screen for Duncan, who received the pass on the right side and prepared to finish the attack with a bank shot.
suddenly...
Wei Guo appeared in front of Duncan.
*Smack!!!*
A solid block! Wei Guo swatted the ball out of bounds.
Holy crap!!!
"Awesome!!!"
Holy crap!!!
The Suns' bench erupted instantly, with Cummings and others jumping up and waving towels. Although Wei Guo had already delivered four blocks, this one was a block on Duncan!
Duncan was stunned for a moment!
Fortunately...
This was Duncan's normal expression; no one noticed that Duncan was lost in thought.
After the Spurs inbounded the ball, Barry launched a long-range three-pointer, which missed, and Marion grabbed the defensive rebound.
The Suns quickly launched a fast break...
Nash drove to the basket and passed the ball to Wei Guo on the right side. Wei Guo then passed the ball to Marion outside the three-point line and turned his face away. Marion then used his signature shooting motion.
"Whoosh!!!"
A three-pointer swished through the net.
Wei Guo walked over and gave Marion a high five in celebration, asking curiously, "Where's the gum in your mouth? Did you swallow it?"
When Marion came on stage, he was chewing something. Wei Guo thought it was chewing gum, but when Marion stopped chewing, Wei Guo thought he had swallowed the gum.
"I was chewing coffee, not gum."
"Chewing coffee dry?"
"Um..."
"He's a ruthless person."
Wei Guo shrugged and ran back to the backcourt to prepare for defense. Both of these offensive and defensive plays were successful, and the Suns were only down by 3 points. At this rate, they should still be able to lead at the end of the first half.
......
There were even more empty beer bottles at Stoudemire's feet.
When a teammate makes a good shot, he'll yell excitedly and chug a bottle of beer... When a teammate makes a mistake, he'll pound the floor in frustration and chug a bottle of beer... When the Spurs make a three-pointer, he'll curse and chug a bottle of beer... When the Spurs make a mistake, he'll gloat and chug a bottle of beer...
Before he knew it, Stoudemire had become drunk.
......
The first half has ended.
57:56!!
The Suns went into halftime with a one-point lead.
This score...
Popovich could accept it, because they took the lead in the second quarter.
First quarter: 29:27
Second quarter: 28:29
As the second half began, the players' stamina started to decline. As long as the Spurs could contain Wei Guo and not be contained by him, they would definitely win this game.
The home team locker room.
It's very deserted...
Gentry didn't make soup; that was during the regular season's leisure time. The playoffs required a more intense atmosphere, so he simply told the players to take advantage of the time to rest, recover their strength, and prepare for the second half of the game.
......
The second half of the game has begun.
Nash was like a commander on the court; when he received the ball, he would wave his hand and say, "Come on, give it your all!"
The Suns players quickly ran up the court...
After fifteen minutes of rest, everyone's energy had recovered considerably.
Before the Spurs' defense could get into position, Nash suddenly tossed the ball over the basket—a move that looked all too familiar... and sure enough!
A handsome young man, 2.16 meters tall, flew into the air, grabbed a basketball with one hand, and spun it 360 degrees.
"Bang!!!"
A 360-degree alley-oop dunk!
This shot instantly ignited the entire stadium...
The commentator exclaimed excitedly, "Oh my God, just kill me! That was incredible..."
"mVp!"
"mVp!"
"mVp!"
The waves of noise grew stronger with each passing moment.
59:56!!
The Suns lead by 3 points.
It's obvious...
Wei Guo was also very satisfied with this powerful dunk, shaking his shoulders as he returned to defense, looking quite smug.
The Spurs are on offense.
Popovich shouted, "Don't let the opponent interfere, get the ball to us!"
"boooo~~~"
"boooo~~~"
"boooo~~~"
The audience made strange noises again, disrupting the Spurs' offense.
Several passes of the ball...
Bowen received the ball and made a layup!
Having just completed a powerful dunk, Wei Guo felt full of energy. He chased down to the basket and slammed the ball against the backboard.
A spiked hat!!!
Wei Guo grabbed the basketball and flung it sharply towards the frontcourt. Joe Johnson, who had already run to the frontcourt, received the pass from Wei Guo, dribbled twice, and jumped from just inside the free-throw line.
"Bang!!!"
Another one-handed dunk.
61:56!!
The Suns showed a strong offensive drive in the second half, with two powerful dunks extending their lead to 5 points.
......
"San Antonio Spurs request a timeout."
......
Popovich didn't want to call a timeout so early, but he had to.
The Suns are on fire...
This timeout is not for tactical planning, but for adjusting the players' mentality.
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