The Cavaliers’ offense saw Hansen running out to the periter for a shot that was fiercely disrupted by Garnett, resulting in a miss, but Ilgauskas fought hard underneath the basket to secure the offensive rebound and flung it back to the outside.
Old Parker caught the ball and without hesitation, he shot.
"Swish!"
The sound of the three-pointer replaced the clang of the miss, turning the Quicken Loans Arena into an ocean of cheers.
This three-pointer was worth its weight in gold!
But before the cheer had a chance to die down, Ray Allen, with his exquisite off-the-ball movent, managed to get open in the corner beyond the three-point line after a series of cuts, and took Rondo’s pass for a decisive three-point attempt.
Ray Allen had earned the title of a T0-level shooter exactly for these critical monts – his clutch shooting quality was undeniable.
The lead was again reduced to a single possession.
O’Neal played a one-on-one inside and then passed the ball to Jamison; Jamison’s three-pointer missed, but the long offensive rebound was grabbed by Hansen.
Hansen charged directly into the paint and collided with Perkins, falling to the ground, but before hitting the floor, he managed to get off a shot thanks to his body coordination, earning himself two free throws.
Hansen didn’t get up imdiately from the floor, causing a stir in the arena.
If Hansen was injured at this point, the Cavaliers’ ga tonight would be dood.
The Cavaliers’ players quickly rushed over in concern.
After what seed like an eternity, Hansen was pulled up from the ground by his teammates.
He wasn’t hurt; he was just too exhausted to get up on his own.
Hansen went to the free-throw line.
As he took his position at the line and began to adjust, a chanting started to build in the arena, initially sporadic then gaining volu.
Under normal circumstances, these chants were reserved only for Jas, but now, they were for Hansen.
Jas looked back upon hearing the chant, and the fans behind him instinctively quieted down their cheers.
But as soon as he turned his head back to the court, the chanting rose again, this ti even more passionately.
"MVP! MVP!"
The chants were thunderous, but Hansen was shaking his head.
He wanted black fan value!
Were these cheers ant to move him?
Hansen took a deep breath, knowing that any emotional fluctuation at this ti could lead to a missed opportunity.
Once he had cald his mind, he made the first free throw with stability.
The second free throw was just as stable.
He made both shots!
The Cavaliers gained a precious five-point lead.
"Defense! Defense!"
Less than a minute was left in the ga; if they could stop the Celtics’ next possession, the Cavaliers leading by five points would virtually have the win.
The Cavaliers’ players were out of stamina but were still fiercely defending on the court.
This ti, the ball ended up in Pierce’s hands. Using Garnett’s screen, he lifted to shoot.
Hansen desperately leapt to provide the challenge.
Pierce’s three-pointer missed, but Garnett, with his excellent anticipation, successfully grabbed the offensive rebound and tossed it to Rondo in the corner.
Rondo wasn’t known for his threes, but he decisively took the shot.
And the ball sailed through the net. It was in!
At the crucial mont, the will of the Boston people moved the heavens.
A two-point ga, only half a minute left – the Celtics still had a chance!
Brown wanted to call a tiout, but Malone quickly grabbed his hand; the ga was too intense, the Cavaliers had already used all their tiouts!
"Play number 7! Play number 7!" Brown shook off Malone’s hand and yelled to the players on the court.
Play number 7, Hansen’s specific no-ball screen play, was so called because his jersey number was 77.
Williams nodded in acknowledgnt, bringing the ball up the court and starting to run down the clock.
Almost every fan in the arena was on their feet at this point.
If this shot went in, the ga would truly be over.
The cara focused on Hansen at this mont; he had hit the ga-winner against the Celtics in their last matchup. Would he once again make the critical shot?
At this mont, Hansen was surrounded by two people, with a third ready to provide defensive support.
The Celtics, of course, were no fools; having just been defeated by a buzzer-beater, how could they let him easily receive the ball?
With about 10 seconds left in the offensive ti, Williams started to prepare to pass the ball to Hansen, but Hansen’s constant running failed to shake off his defenders and get open.
With no other choice, Williams had to drive towards the inside, aiming to draw a foul.
At this juncture, just stepping on the free-throw line would an the Cavaliers had already won.
However, just like in Boston before, the referees did not blow the whistle, and Williams’ shot finally veered off the basket.
There was a fierce scramble under the basket, and once again, Ilgauskas snatched the offensive rebound!
Because there were no restrictions on the ’Hack-a-Shaq’ strategy at that ti, Brown had to use Ilgauskas in the final monts.
And then, his two offensive boards paid off!
Ilgauskas, after grabbing the rebound, quickly found Hansen who had shaken off the double team and was cutting into the paint, and swiftly passed the ball to him.
Hansen received the ball, but Garnett once again appeared in front of him and this ti completely blocked the angle for his front-facing floater.
Garnett’s mobility had greatly declined after a major injury last season, but he still put in all his effort, using his body ti and again to defend Boston’s paint.
Hansen didn’t stop, with both players charging towards the basket.
Just as Garnett thought Hansen was going to go up for a layup face-to-face, Hansen suddenly took a large step to the right to create distance, then leaped high, drifting to his side as he completed the floater.
Garnett had no chance to block it.
He could only hope that Hansen’s shot would be off, as such a drifting floater was very difficult to control.
But by the ti he saw the basketball pass its peak and start to fall, a look of horror had appeared in his eyes.
This shot was going in!
"Swish!"
The basketball went through the net obediently!
Having reached a bottleneck with the "Giant Slayer," Hansen could now perform a floating shot like Jamison’s in a ga!
The Quicken Loans Arena erupted into madness.
"Handso! Handso!"
Because his na was so cool, the fans chanted it so naturally.
At that mont, Hansen was Cleveland’s hero.
The Celtics called their last tiout.
With only the final 6 seconds left in the ga, unless it was a "Miller Mont," the outco was already decided.
The Cavaliers’ bench was also in a frenzy, with even Varejao standing up.
At this ti, Jas, sitting at the end of the bench, looked quite desolate.
This was supposed to be his team, yet there he sat like an outsider.
After the tiout, the Celtics’ last offensive play in the frontcourt, with the Cavaliers’ defense well-positioned this ti. Despite Garnett’s valiant effort in grabbing the offensive rebound, both Ray Allen and Rondo’s three-point shots went astray.
Jamison ultimately grabbed the defensive rebound, then imdiately flung it to Hansen, who had once again dashed past the three-point line.
After getting the ball, Hansen sprinted to avoid the chasing Celtics defenders.
Then, the buzzer sounded.
to 75!
The Cavaliers won, eliminating the Celtics with a 4-1 series, completing their revenge from two years prior!
At this mont, Hansen was extraordinarily excited.
He’d truly done it.
Especially now, recalling the MVP chants from the fans earlier, his blood was boiling.
Indeed, Cleveland did not need any so-called King!
He saw the scorer’s table, and his instincts were triggered.
He took three steps, quickly reaching the table, then with one leap, he jumped onto it.
After getting on it, he held the ball in his left hand, pointed to the court below with his right, and shouted excitedly,
"This is my house!"
This is my territory!
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