The Lakers were struggling to keep up, and the point difference kept narrowing.
Wei Guo broke through and passed the ball to Walton, but Walton missed a mid-range shot.
Big Ben squeezed in front of Wei Guo...
Using his positioning advantage, Ben Wallace snatched the defensive rebound from Wei Guo – that was really tough.
During his time with the Pistons, Ben Wallace was provoked by Wei Guo countless times, and he had never been seen to fight for rebounds so aggressively... In the game where Wei Guo broke the single-game rebounding record, Ben Wallace only managed to grab 7 rebounds.
The Pistons launched a fast break!
Hinrich made a long pass to Gordon, who received the ball, broke through from the baseline, and pulled up to avoid Ariza's block.
"Whoosh!!!"
Looking back at the moon... Gordon put the ball into the basket.
After that basket, there were only 17 seconds left in the third quarter.
85:81!!
The Bulls are down by 4 points.
Catching up requires not only defense but also offense. In one quarter, the Bulls reduced their 18-point deficit to 4 points. The Lakers scored only 22 points in the third quarter, while the Bulls scored 36!
17 seconds left!
Pass the ball to Wei Ge... This is Gentry's usual tactic.
Wei Guo controlled the clock, with only 3 seconds left. Wei Guo took a step back and did a backheel move. Remember this move... The referee stared wide-eyed before he could see clearly that Wei Guo did not collect the ball when he took the step back. Moreover, after shaking off Noah, he collected the ball and took a step back to the right before shooting.
"Whoosh!!!"
The basketball went into the net.
88:81!!
The Lakers lead by 7 points.
The 17 seconds had just elapsed... Noah jumped up and shouted, "Double dribble! This is a double dribble!"
"No..."
The referee shook his head and patiently explained, "I saw it very clearly. Wei Guo did not touch the ball when he stepped back, so this was not a double dribble."
......
Wei Guo's buzzer-beating three-pointer gave the Lakers a much-needed breather.
Losing by 14 points in a quarter is a rare occurrence, not only with the Lakers, but also with the Knicks and Trail Blazers. The Bulls seemed to be on fire in the third quarter.
Cummings said, "They should really install surveillance cameras in the away dressing room to see what exactly happened during halftime."
This was a joke, of course you can't do that. Installing surveillance cameras in locker rooms is illegal everywhere, let alone in the NBA. Even though they're all rough guys, they don't want to be filmed with their chests and butts exposed. If that gets uploaded online, it'll become a scandal.
Cummings was simply curious what magic had been cast on the Bulls, making them so dominant in the third quarter.
The Bulls are full of fighting spirit.
Although Wei Guo made a buzzer-beating three-pointer, they still outscored the Lakers by 11 points in the third quarter. If they can win by another 11 points in the fourth quarter, they will secure the victory.
I'm confident now...
Confidence often leads to victory.
The Lakers only had a 7-man rotation, and Cummings only played 3 minutes, but his scoring ranked third on the team, behind only Wei Guo and Bynum, so his importance is self-evident.
......
Kobe and the other three were unaware that the team was facing difficulties.
Gentry requested a complete week-long vacation, during which he was not allowed to watch live broadcasts or even sports news, and was to wait until he returned from his vacation to continue the fight.
They had absolute trust in Gentry.
At this hour... the four of them are still soaking in the bathtub, looking at the stars.
......
The Lakers started their attack at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
The Bulls double-teamed Wei Guo, who passed the ball to Turiaf, who broke free of the defense and cut to the basket.
"Throw it!"
Wei Guo urged Turiaf.
This is the Lakers' tactical code. Urging teammates to shoot is a way to mislead them; the real meaning is to get Turiaf to pass the ball so he can do an alley-oop!
As expected...
The Bulls players' attention shifted to Turiaf, assuming he was about to shoot.
Turiaf tossed the ball above the basket!
Gordon shouted, "This is a pass, not a shot."
In fact, everyone else reacted as well, but it was too late. The basketball was already over Wei Guo's head. He simply jumped lightly, grabbed the basketball, and completed the dunk.
90:81!!
The Lakers lead by 9 points.
With a little more effort, once the point difference widens to double digits, the Bulls don't have many players who can shoot three-pointers. With Wei Guo guarding the low post and Bynum on the team, it will be very difficult for the Bulls to catch up.
Bulls on offense!
Gordon passed the ball to Luol Deng, who backed down Wei Guo in a one-on-one situation, but couldn't move him at all... it was like hitting a wall!
He wanted to use his footsteps to get past Wei Guo!
Half-turn...
The moment the movement was completed, Wei Guo reached out and snatched the ball from Luol Deng's hands. This steal was dangerous and could easily result in a foul. If the steal failed, Luol Deng would get past him. However... Wei Guo anticipated Luol Deng's move and had absolute confidence in this steal.
The Lakers quickly launched a fast break, and the young Bulls caught up.
Wei Guo dribbles the ball slowly!
Pete felt a pang of panic, sensing what was about to happen. "Keep an eye on Wei Guo, don't let him shoot those long threes."
Everyone has their own playing habits, and Wei Guo is no exception... Whenever he slowly dribbles the ball across half-court, he's looking for his touch, preparing to score with a long-range three-pointer.
Xinliqi turned around and approached Weiguo!
Wei Guo wouldn't give Hinrich a chance. He was at least three steps away from the three-point line and was ready to shoot, raising his hand to throw the ball toward the basket.
"Whoosh!!!"
The basketball went into the net.
93:81!!
The Lakers lead by 12 points.
This point difference gives the Lakers a great deal of security; by avoiding mistakes, they can basically maintain the point difference until the end of the game.
The Lakers have too few players to rotate with.
By the fourth quarter, the players' stamina was also waning, so Wei Guo took on too much responsibility on offense, leaving his teammates to focus their energy on defense, barely managing to achieve a balance.
Gentry analyzed that the Bulls' players are still too young... they don't know how to fight tough games. As long as the point difference is kept in double digits, it won't take five minutes to wear down the Bulls' players' spirit, and then Wei Ge can easily reap the rewards.
The game unfolded exactly as Gentry analyzed...
The Bulls scored a goal, and Wei Guo scored a goal back, but they couldn't close the gap and couldn't stop Wei Guo. The young Bulls players gradually became anxious.
Even Da Ben doesn't know how to appease his teammates!
Hughes knows a bit, but sitting on the bench... he can only say a few words like "play steadily," "don't rush," "there's still time," and "there's still a chance," etc. Without close communication, these words seem very empty.
Pitt was completely bewildered...
Time ticked by, and with the game nearing its end, the Bulls players finally gave up.
"Beep!!!"
The whistle blew, and the game ended.
119:103!!
The Lakers narrowly defeated the Bulls by 16 points at home.
......
Match statistics:
Wei Guo: 61 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks
Luol Deng: 27 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
......
The Lakers have won 19 straight games since the start of the regular season.
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