That had always been considered the most shaful battle in Jas’ career.
But compared to the ga at hand, that really seed like nothing.
The teams entered the intermission.
Differing from the usual routine, today it wasn’t Brown making the halfti adjustnts but Malone, and Jas wasn’t even in the locker room.
One could easily guess with their toes that Brown was off giving Jas so psychological guidance.
The results proved that while Brown might only be a utility man for the Cavaliers, he was a qualified one.
Nobody knew what he did, but by the second half, Jas’ state was clearly warming up.
During the beginning stretch of the third quarter, Jas scored two baskets and even pulled off a block against Pierce, shooting 9 for 2 and finally bringing his stats up to a presentable 10 points.
Hansen also found his shooting touch after halfti, sinking a three-pointer from the periter and steadily hitting a floater on a drive to the basket.
Together with O’Neal’s drawing power in the paint, the Cavaliers carried the montum from the previous ga into this quarter, scoring 30 to 20.
By the end of the third, they were leading the Celtics by as much as 13 points, with a score of 86 to 73.
If they continued at this pace, the Cavaliers were inches away from taking match point with a 3 to 1 lead.
At the start of the fourth quarter, Hansen and O’Neal were still resting off the court, while Jas was leading the team on the floor during this stretch.
With Jas’ state showing signs of improvent, he needed to pad his stats on the court a bit more.
How could 10 points be fitting for the "Chosen One’s" stature?
But Jas once again fell into a slump during this phase, either making a turnover or missing shots.
Under his "leadership," the Celtics continually cut the lead, narrowing the gap to within 5 points, forcing Brown to call a tiout.
At this point, Hansen was really speechless looking at Brown, because he was actually arranging for West and Jas to play together again.
This guy obviously wouldn’t deliberately antagonize Jas; it could only be said that his tactical decisions tonight were really dumb.
And maybe it was Jas’ overly dramatic performance that threw him off as well.
After the tiout, Hansen and Jamison continued to suit up, but this ti Rivers was on point, and he had Garnett switched in early.
Fortunately, Hansen regained his touch, stabilizing the Cavaliers’ lead during this stretch under his guidance.
After that, both sides gradually brought their main forces back in, and the situation beca incredibly tense.
With two minutes left in the ga, the Cavaliers were clinging to a 110 to 108 lead over the Celtics.
Rivers continued to employ the Hack-a-Shaq strategy at this point, sending O’Neal to the free throw line.
Amidst the interference of the Boston fans, O’Neal again made both free throws.
That brought his scoring to 26 points, mirroring his peak performance tonight.
Ray Allen’s three-pointer from the periter was off the mark, but O’Neal secured the defensive rebound. With less than a minute left in the ga, the Cavaliers had a great chance of sealing the win tonight.
Jas started calling for the ball to attack.
This scene reminded Hansen of Christmas Day, when Brown put Jas in for the last attack.
If Jas could score a "clutch shot" now, the post-ga dia coverage would have sothing to hype up.
However, dreams are full and reality is skinny.
Jas’ performance tonight, at such a crucial mont, just wasn’t there. He drove in only to et a blockade, and the ball was cleanly stripped by Garnett.
The Celtics launched a fast break, with Rondo scoring on a layup and bringing the score difference back to just 2 points.
Now only 30 seconds remained till the end of the match.
Brown didn’t call a tiout, and Jas attempted to hold the ball again, but this ti Hansen suddenly found himself back on Christmas Day, shouting that familiar phrase to Williams, "Give that damn ball!"
Hansen held the ball briefly to let the ti dwindle, then ultimately shoveled it inside. O’Neal bulldozed his way to a foul and stepped to the free throw line.
The Cavaliers were leading now, and with O’Neal feeling it, wanting to clinch the win was as simple as feeding him the ball.
O’Neal stepped up to the free throw line, and if he made both shots, the Cavaliers would have been sure to win.
O’Neal wiped the sweat from his hands. At such a mont, both his physical and ntal strengths were truly being tested on his free throws.
His first shot hit the front of the rim but luckily crawled in.
However, his second shot still veered off.
You couldn’t expect O’Neal to perform like Jordan at the free throw line; going 8 for 10 earlier was already an exceptional performance for him.
Garnett grabbed the defensive rebound, and the Celtics called a tiout.
Now the Celtics had a chance to drag the ga into overti.
After the tiout, as Rondo advanced to the frontcourt, the Celtics started their strategy.
Brown’s judgnt was that the Celtics would set up Pierce, their biggest heart, but Rivers proved to be on point again this ti. Utilizing Pierce as a decoy, he set up Ray Allen with a play.
Jas had a clear defensive lapse at that mont, actually losing track of Ray Allen.
Hansen was drawn to the weak side by Pierce, and it was too late to think of helping on defense.
Ray Allen, swift as a flash, tied the ga miraculously with 3 seconds left on the clock.
"Damn!"
The North Shore Garden Arena erupted, Brown called a tiout, but Hansen couldn’t help but let loose an expletive.
Tonight, he and O’Neal were like two n floundering in the water, desperately swimming towards shore, but underneath them, Jas was like a water ghost, each hand pulling on one of their legs.
This was truly fucked up!
"I’ll take the ga-winner," Hansen said directly to Brown as soon as the tiout was over.
And interestingly enough, this ti he stood between Brown and Jas, cutting off the possibility of Jas snatching the tactics board.
Brown looked at Jas, who said nothing.
In the end, Brown nodded his head.
Jas had played miserably tonight; if they lost the ga again, it would be another "milestone of sadness."
So winning was always better than losing.
After the tiout, the arena was filled with distracting noise.
"Stick to him! Stick to Han!" Thibodeau shouted from the sidelines, bypassing Rivers, to his players on the court.
Though just an assistant coach, Thibodeau’s judgnt of the ga tonight was clearly more accurate than that of Rivers, the head coach.
Hansen was chased from front and back, unable to find an opportunity.
At that mont, he couldn’t care less, and after a counter run, he forcefully shoved off Ray Allen, who was closely following him.
The referees didn’t blow the whistle; they chose to leave the ga in the hands of the players.
After shoving Allen off, Hansen forcefully shook off Pierce, then sprinted towards the sideline.
Williams’s pass ca just in ti, and Hansen, receiving the ball, rapidly took the shot before Garnett could reach him.
The ball flew into the air, and the red light at the edge of the court had already lit up.
Although it was an extre shot, Hansen’s whole motion was fluid, and more importantly, his gaze was devoid of any sign of nervousness or panic. Instead, it seed to reflect a Bloodthirst-like desire.
It was as if such a scene was tailor-made for him!
The basketball spun toward the basket, and as the ball reached its peak and began its descent, fans in the arena couldn’t help but reach out and clutch their heads.
Because the trajectory of the ball seed very accurate.
As the basketball began to fall, Hansen had already turned around with his hands held high.
"Swish!"
The sound coming from behind was the sweetest sound in the world.
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