The invincible kryptonite of basketball

The atmosphere in Kangda's locker room was somewhat dull.

Trailing by 20 points, the tournament has never seen anything like this.

And the opponent is still Duke, with 20 points, it is really unrealistic to want to turn over.

After all, the talent of this team is much lower. It is considered an extraordinary performance to reach the semi-finals. It is really not a shame to be eliminated here.

It's just that Walker, the core players, is still a little unwilling.

Cajon didn't know what to say at this time. In the face of the absolute talent gap, the role of tactics is very limited.

In the silent locker room, the atmosphere was indescribably oppressive.

After Calhoun asked the players to adjust their mentality, he and Ollie left the locker room first.

The team members either leaned on the chairs to rest, or sat there in a daze.

"We shouldn't lose in this way." Tang Tian said.

The locker room was originally very quiet. When he spoke, the other players all looked at him.

"We may not be able to win the game, but we shouldn't lose in this way." Tang Tian continued.

"Don, we've tried our best..." Smith said.

The other players all acquiesced. It's not that they are so far behind. It's not that they are in bad shape, but that their talents are really suppressed.

"Yes, maybe we have tried our best, but look at the more than 3 fans at the scene, some of them are students, some are children, some are families, and some are even elderly people. They came all the way from Connecticut, Do we really deserve them for losing in this way?"

The answer was obvious, but no one spoke.

"This is the only chance in life for all of us, Kemba, he played for three years before he had the chance to reach the final four stage, and a student, a total of four years in college, maybe we will all stay in school next year, but What if you don't make it to the semi-finals? Kemba will never have this chance again in his life. The same goes for everyone else, Alex, Jeremy, Rosek, Taylor, ask yourself, apart from tonight, Is there another chance that is so close to the final championship?"

Everyone was silent, but a lot of resentment could still be seen in their eyes.

Who would be willing!

"No more! This is our only and last chance! Yes, we did our best, really, but can't it be more? We gave 100% in the first half and we Just show 120% state in the second half! Not only for my only chance, but also for the fans who have supported us since the beginning of the regular season! More investment, give everything, not to win the game, Just to avoid any regrets!" Tang Tian's decibel kept rising as he spoke.

"Yes, we can lose, but we must not lose in this way!" Auriaqi raised his head and said.

"Fuck! I never believed that our strength would be so much worse than theirs!" Smith said and slapped the bench hard.

"That's right! Fuck Duke and those guys!" Holland shouted and stood up.

……

Tang Tian's speech was full of appeal, and every sentence was heart-warming, and he could clearly feel that the fighting spirit of the Kang University team members had returned.

At this time Walker got up and dragged Tang Tian out of the locker room.

"Tang, let's go find the old man." After Walker left the locker room, he dragged Tang Tian to the coach's office.

Tang Tian looked puzzled, he didn't know what Walker wanted to do, and he wouldn't say anything when asked.

After arriving at Cajon's office, knocking on the door and entering, I saw Cajon and Ollie looking at them suspiciously.

The last time Tang Tian knocked on the door alone, this time it was Walker and Tang Tian who came together, and looking at Tang Tian's expression, it seemed that Walker pulled him to come.

"Master, it's hard for me to have an advantage over Irving. My strength is inferior to his." Walker said.

When Walker spoke, the three of them, including Tang Tian, ​​looked at Walker in surprise.

It was the first time they had heard Walker speak like that.

"But I want to win, so I want to devote all my energy to defense in the second half and try my best to limit him." Walker then said firmly.

What Tang Tian said just now touched his heart. He stayed in the junior year just to win the championship, and indeed this was his only chance. If he wanted to win, he really just wanted to win.

"But the team needs you to score." Calhoun said.

Walker is the best defender among UConn guards. He averaged nearly 2 steals per game this season, which ranks among the best in the entire NCAA. But as Calhoun said, UConn needs Walker’s offense more. After all, people who score more After winning the game, even if Irving is really defended, it is impossible to recover the 20-point difference.

"No, no need." Contrary to Calhoun's expectations, Walker shook his head.

"I was terrible offensively in the first half, yes, maybe I can adjust it in the second half, but it will take time, we're running out of time, so it's better to leave the offense to Don, Don's open Three-pointers are our most stable scoring point, and we are so far behind, we can recover the point difference the fastest with 3-pointers." Walker continued.

If it were him in the past, who fell behind so much at halftime, what he wanted to do would definitely be to continue to try to score and then lead the team to reverse, but he remembered what Tang Tian said when he was struggling when he returned from injury, the real strength is to win Himself, in order to win, he has to become more rational.

Calhoun nodded thoughtfully after listening, what Walker said was indeed very reasonable.

"Kemba, I have wronged you." Calhoun finally nodded in agreement, but he did not forget to comfort Walker.

The performance in the first half was bad, and if he defended Irving with all his strength in the second half, Walker's data in this game will definitely not be very good.

It's okay if he wins, but if he loses, it will be broadcast live across the United States in front of so many scouts, which will definitely have a big impact on his draft market.

"No, coach, I just want to win." Walker said firmly.

Tang Tian also looked sideways at Walker at this time.

Walker's desire to win has really reached a level that borders on paranoia, and the paranoia is contagious.

After a 15-minute break, the starting players of both sides appeared one after another.

"Come on! Connecticut huskies!"

Although the team fell behind by 20 points, UConn fans did not give up. As soon as the second half came up, they cheered for UConn in unison.

Walker held the ball to the frontcourt. Unlike in the first half, he did not call Tang Tian for a pick-and-roll, but held the ball at the top of the arc to make tactical gestures.

The University of Kangda players began to run back and forth.

The arrangement of the bench on the basketball court will switch places in the first and second halves, but the bench will always be in the defensive half. Coach K has also become vigilant after seeing Kangda’s tactical adjustments.

Chapter 1 Three-point shooter is online

Lamb and Tang Tian's cross-running, Oriachi and Smith's high and low pick-and-roll.

Lamb's running position restrained most of Duke's defensive attention on the field. After all, he was the second scoring point of UConn.

At this moment, Tang Tian quietly slipped to the bottom corner on the right.

Walker sees the pass and throws it away.

After Tang Tian received the ball, he shot directly without hesitation.

"Shh!"

After the ball whirled through an arc in the air, it fell steadily into the net pocket.

Tang Tianxia hit a three-pointer as soon as he came up in the first half!

The UConn fans at the scene cheered constantly, and this three-pointer was quite refreshing!

"Ryan, don't worry about other people, follow your people." Coach K reacted quickly. He immediately realized the change in UConn's tactics and reminded Kelly loudly.

Tang Tian doesn't average many points per game, but he is the player with the highest three-point shooting percentage so far in the tournament.

Many coaches don't realize this, but Coach K is very well prepared before the game.

In Duke's offense, Irving went to the frontcourt to give the ball to Smith and then ran tactics. He didn't attack as hard as he did in the first half.

With Duke's tactical cooperation, Smith gave the ball to Singler, and Singler leaned sideways on Tang Tian's layup.

"boom!"

But as soon as the ball was released, a hand came out from the side, and a slap slapped his hand out of the court.

Oriachi!

Singler's face was full of surprise. Auriac was still under the basket one second ago, so why did he leave the penalty area the next second?

When did he move so fast?

Duke's sideline ball, Smith's breakthrough, and Kelly's air cut to the basket, he has already thrown off Roseke Smith.

Smith raised his hand and passed the ball in.

"Snapped!"

But as soon as the ball was shot, it was cut off by Lamb in front of him!

After Lamb steals the ball, a dragon rushes to the frontcourt, and after confronting Irving, the latter's thug fouls.

There were constant whistles on the scene. After Kangda came up in the second half, both offense and defense have improved significantly!

Coach K frowned at this moment.

His insight is very strong. In the two consecutive waves of defense of UConn just now, the players seemed to be on stimulants. Oriachi's movement speed and Lamb's concentration were not like their usual abilities. .

It feels like playing 120% of the state.

These guys, what the hell happened at halftime?

Lamb made two free throws, and UConn beat Duke in a 5-0 spurt as soon as the second half came up.

"Kyrie." Coach K made a tactical gesture to Irving at this time.

Owen nodded, and went to the frontcourt to signal his teammates to pull away.

UConn’s defensive concentration is too high now, and Duke will suffer when playing tactics. Coach K is repeating the same trick, making Irving play singles like in the first half.

Efforts have an upper limit. In the face of absolute talent difference, the improvement rate will not have much effect. After Owen plays several times in a row, the morale of Kangda will drop back, and this defensive state will naturally disappear. .

Irving continued to change directions ahead of time, and Walker clung to him with all his strength and did not give room for a breakthrough.

Owen dribbled the ball behind his back, and after shaking out a little space, he took another crotch and changed direction in front of his body.

A series of dribbles dazzled the eyes. Although Walker was following up very hard, Owen still grabbed the space and broke through.

Irving went inside to meet Oriachi's small lever, causing the latter's thug to foul.

There was a burst of cheers from Duke fans at the scene. Irving is Duke's simplest and most effective nuclear weapon.

Irving made two free throws and Duke still led by 17 points.

Kangda's offense and Tang Tian's running position did not get a chance. Whether it was Kelly or the substitution after the pick-and-roll, Tang Tian was closely followed.

Duke won't give him the chance to be open like before.

After Tang Tian saw it, he took the initiative to pick and roll for Walker, and after dismantling it, Walker took the ball and went in to kill.

He was very aggressive, and seemed a little irritated by the ball in front of Irving.

Duke's defense shrunk in under Coach K's yelling. At this moment, Smith ran to the outside and set a pick-and-roll for Tang Tian.

Walker didn't take a shot after breaking into the penalty area. After slipping around, he directly threw the ball out with his hands.

When Tang Tian caught the ball, it happened to be the space Smith blocked for him. The opportunity was fleeting, and he shot decisively without hesitation.

"Shh!"

With the sword in hand, Tang Tian made two consecutive three-pointers!

The cheers of the University of Kangda fans exploded.

They remembered Tang Tian's 7 points on 21 shots in the regular season against Georgetown University, and Tang Tian's three-pointer that beat North Carolina when he scored 16 of 8!

Their three-point shooter is already online!

Coach K was obviously taken aback at this moment.

He knew that Tang Tian would be Kangda's offensive point in the second half, but judging by the posture, this was not only the offensive point, but also the main offensive point?Even Walker's offense is covering for him?

He didn't wait for Irving to dribble the ball for half court, and directly reached out and called a timeout.

"Mason protects the penalty area, and the others keep an eye on that Tang. Don't, don't give him a three-point shot!" Coach K spoke at a significantly higher decibel than before.

Back from the timeout, Duke's offense, Irving continued to eat Walker alone, consecutive crotch picks and early changes of direction, and then a sudden Shammgod.

Walker still didn't follow Irving, and this time Irving went directly ahead of Oriachi's defense and scored a quick layup.

The point difference returned to 16 points again.

Walker took the ball to the frontcourt and continued to play tactics.

This time Tang Tian was really stalked, no matter how he used the pick-and-roll to move, Duke didn't give him a chance.

This is the limitation of open three-pointers, and it is also the biggest difference between Novak, Ray Allen, and Thompson. Gram, it must be a shot that runs to a good position and waits to catch the ball.

It may seem like a subtle difference, but open three-pointers and three-pointers with the ball are two completely different concepts.