As Brooks dribbled quickly up the court, Bruce li immediately stepped up to defend.
→He spread his arms, trying to get into position.
But Brooks was unimpressed, thinking Bruce was wasting his time.
The first half had already shown that this guy, apart from being faster in a straight line, lacked the explosiveness, coordination, and lateral movement of his opponent.
So… what’s the difference between going past someone like that and going past a paper doll?
Brooks launched an attack, suddenly changing direction to the left, sticking to his usual pattern.
But… this time, Bruce li was prepared.
After being outmaneuvered by Brooks several times in the first half, he had learned from his experience and adopted a half-step diagonal lateral movement.
When Brooks changed direction to the right again, Bruce moved in, blocking Brooks’ path.
This surprised Brooks.
But he quickly adjusted his dribbling posture and calmly took a step back.
Before Bruce li could fully close in, he suddenly lunged forward.
Bruce li quickly retreated.
At that moment, Brooks quickly pulled up for a jump shot, and Bruce li attempt to block was a beat too slow: his explosiveness and agility were indeed inferior to Brooks’.
Swish!
The basketball fell into the net.
A smug smile appeared on Brooks’ lips as he glanced at Bruce li.
It was as if a superior being was looking down upon a inferior one.
“Even if you defend with all your might, it still has no effect on me.
Talent is talent.
God favors black people,” Brooks said proudly.
Arrogance emanated from him; he believed all of Bruce li efforts were in vain, because talent determined everything.
Bruce didn’t respond, but simply turned and took the basketball, then dribbled forward with incredible speed.
As he sprinted to the top of the three-point arc, the Oregon players assumed he would continue with a screen and penetrate the paint, so their defensive focus shifted unnaturally towards him, including that of Mattirennin in the paint.
However, at that moment, Bruce li suddenly changed direction, and before anyone knew what he was doing, he slammed the ball towards the basket… By the time Brooks turned his gaze, Scott had already grabbed the ball and leaped up, slamming it into the hoop.
At the moment of his dunk, defender Mattirennin’s eyes were still fixed on Bruce li profile: he hadn’t expected Bruce to suddenly pass the ball.
At the same time, Coach Altman’s furious shouts came from the sidelines; he couldn’t tolerate Mattirennin’s repeated lapses in concentration.
Coach Altman’s vulgar and offensive language left Mattirennin looking frustrated and angry.
He vented all his frustration on Bruce li.
Throughout the game, Bruce li had made him uncomfortable; Bruce li consistently and skillfully evaded his defense, turning his paint into a playground for easy access.
As a tough defender, he was determined to teach bruce a lesson.
Meanwhile, Bruce li was responding to Brooks’ comments from the previous possession: “God favors everyone.
He gave you better talent, but he gave me the best brain.
Did you see that dunk?
I can still influence the game in my own way.” Bruce li always spoke with a smile, his gentle demeanor like giving an academic presentation.
Brooks was never a studious person, and he hated Bruce Li’s gentle, polite, and articulate tone.
Besides, this was a basketball court, this was his domain, what was a nobody like him bragging about?
So, back in half-court, he used a quick change of direction to shake off Bruce li defense, and then completed a beautiful pull-up jump shot while making a high-speed breakthrough.
When the basketball went in, Brooks immediately retorted, “Are you trash-talking me?
Remember, this isn’t a college entrance exam; your brain is just for show.” He even patted his head as he spoke, as if to emphasize: Is this thing even useful?
Bruce li maintained his smile; he liked Brooks’ performance.
But his appreciation was certainly different from that of Time Warner commentator Jonny Watson.
After Brooks made two consecutive baskets, Watson shouted “Great shots!” and began to sing his praises: “Brooks is just too amazing!
His consecutive difficult shots allowed the entire California audience to appreciate his unparalleled shooting ability.
He needs to go to the NBA right away; the NCAA stage can no longer accommodate his talent.” He showered him with praise.
Between sentences, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar quietly added, “Just now, Oregon’s second and third leading scorers were in dominant offensive positions.
Brooks’ two shots were poorly timed, and if this continues, it’s easy for the other players to lose motivation.
Besides, I think Brooks is just being stubborn with Bruce!” Stubborn?
Did he hear that right?
Watson felt like he was out of his mind.
“Why would Brooks be stubborn with Bruce?
They’re not even in the same league,” he retorted helplessly.
He even started to wonder if Abdul-Jabbar was senile: Brooks had clearly been attacking Bruce li like he was invisible, a blatant one-sided massacre, and he was saying it was just a stubbornness?
That was a complete distortion of the truth.
Meanwhile, on the court, Bruce li once again delivered an outstanding performance.
This time, he didn’t pass the ball directly into the paint from the perimeter.
Instead, he used Frank Benson’s screen to cut into the paint.
Furious, Martyrenen quickly moved to defend, but just as he was about to make contact, Bruce li suddenly stopped and made another shooting motion.
Martyrenen instinctively shifted his weight upwards, and at the same time, Bruce had already passed the ball hand-to-hand with Frank Benson, who was cutting in from the left.
Benson received the ball and immediately jumped for a layup.
Martyrenen, out of position, rushed to defend, but it was too late; he committed a foul.
And it was a 2+1 foul.
This infuriated Martyrenen; he even clenched his fists in anger.
He was furious, feeling incredibly humiliated by being repeatedly outmaneuvered by Bruce that night.
He had to teach this guy a lesson.
He gritted his teeth, staring at Bruce li back, and silently vowed.
Meanwhile, Bruce was still smiling as he ‘discussed’ Brooks: “I believe that the brain is absolutely not just for show on the court.
I just proved it… playing with your brain can also help the team.” Brooks sneered.
After Frank Benson made the free throw… He charged down the court again and hit another pull-up jumper over Bruce li.
“Your so-called help is just relying on your teammates, while I…
score directly over you.
Stop arguing with me; your mouth will never bring you victory,” Brooks said, his tone even bordering on annoyance.
This made Bruce li believe his plan was about to succeed.
So, he decided to score himself this possession, forcing Brooks down the path of ‘seeking victory alone.’ Only by breaking up Oregon’s three-pronged attack on offense could Stanford have a chance of winning.
But Bruce li didn’t know that Martyrenning was already waiting in the paint, his eyes red with rage, and in his anger, he was capable of anything.