Swish!
Bang!
Bruce stepped to the free-throw line to take the technical foul, making one of two shots.
The sudden increase in the size of his hand, while greatly improving his ball handling, change of direction, and layup skills, was a major disruption to his shooting touch; he had to readjust.
Fortunately, after missing the second free throw, Stanford still had possession.
Bruce received the ball at the top of the three-point arc, and while dribbling, he could clearly feel his body becoming more agile.
On one hand, he was happy about this, but on the other hand, he was frustrated: Just how bad is my agility?
Only adding 4 points to agility and it feels so obvious?
Brooks, who is super smooth, came up again.
As Brooks approached, Bruce quickly changed direction to the left, and as his body lunged to the left, he deftly spun around, leaving Brooks’ defense behind.
Although the play was somewhat unexpected, and Brooks’ defense was already poor, his agility was undeniably effective.
After shaking off Brooks, he quickly penetrated the paint.
Oregon’s newly substituted reserve forward, Tinsley, rushed to cover.
This big man, who had caused a stir on the Stanford campus, was an extremely slow forward.
So, just as Bruce stopped abruptly in front of him, Tinsley’s body swayed slightly.
And as Bruce quickly crossed over, flashing from left to right, his ankle became slightly knotted.
In his attempt to chase, he suddenly fell heavily to the ground with a thud due to uneven weight distribution.
Tinsley’s disheveled appearance caused the entire arena to erupt in the loudest roar of the game.
Amidst the deafening roar, Bruce easily scored a layup.
The DJ immediately shouted out the name of Stanford’s biggest hero of the game in a high-pitched voice: Bruce… And before he finished speaking, the entire audience of over six thousand people responded in unison: Bruce eeeee!!!
This kind of roar is the treatment only superstars receive.
When the Time Warner cameras captured this superstar, a slightly shy smile was clearly visible on his face.
“That’s just how Chinese people are, it’s in their nature.
They’re always shy and introspective when faced with overwhelming praise,” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said.
“But when they need to step up, they unleash unimaginable energy.
My teacher once told me about the ‘water’ theory, and I think Bruce li on the court is that type of player.
He can be as calm and gentle as water.
But he can also suddenly become fierce, suddenly unleash a torrential downpour!” Abdul-Jabbar’s words drifted a bit.
He was talking about personal charisma.
Sitting next to him, Jonny Wallson sighed helplessly, looking up.
They were supposed to be promoting Oregon, weren’t they?
How did it suddenly turn into a Bruce li rave show?
So… all that Nike sponsorship money went to Bruce li?
He was annoyed.
And while he was annoyed, Brooks was also getting annoyed.
Back in half-court, he suddenly realized he couldn’t get past bruce’s defense as easily as before.
This guy seemed to have suddenly figured it out; although he still felt Bruce struggling to keep up, Bruce’s lateral movement was significantly faster than before… which made him very upset.
Finally, he forced a jump shot.
Bang!
The ball missed.
Fortunately, Malik Hairston drove to the basket, overpowering Frank Benson to score.
After scoring, Hairston turned and told Brooks, “I’ll guard him now.” With game time dwindling and their key interior player, Mattilenen, fouled out, both Hairston and Coach Altman felt things couldn’t continue like this.
Hairston volunteered to switch, determined to shut down Bruce at the source.
Hairston’s defensive ability was indeed superior to Brooks’, as was his physical strength .
However, the unfortunate thing was that Bruce didn’t engage him directly; he would quickly call for a screen from Scott as soon as he reached the frontcourt.
The countermeasure to this big man guarding a smaller player was simple: drive.
Oregon’s interior defense weakened drastically without Mattilenen.
Although center Skinner provided support in the paint, Bruce wasn’t solely focused on scoring.
He could help the team through passing, making Thompson, who Brooks switched onto, the biggest winner, as well as Scott, who repeatedly received passes from Bruce and drove straight to the basket.
In retrospect, Oregon’s two superstars were indeed invaluable talents.
Despite Bruce’s best efforts to provoke Brooks into a one-man show, Hairston completely took over the ball in the final minutes.
He dominated on the wing against Thompson’s defense, and Brooks occasionally scored with his individual skills.
So, although Stanford held a 6-point lead with three minutes remaining thanks to efficient teamwork, Oregon, with their star player, quickly recovered.
They exploited Stanford’s lack of a ball-handler, steadily chipping away at their lead.
With 21 seconds left, Brooks, using Hairston’s screen, sank a difficult three-pointer.
78-77.
Oregon took a one-point lead.
The entire arena fell into a deathly silence.
Worson, in the broadcast studio, excitedly shouted “Long live Brooks!!” “The great Aaron Brooks saved Oregon, and now they’re in the lead.
Barring any surprises, they’ll stay in the lead.
Stanford’s roster flaws are obvious; they lack a ball-handler, and while their number 10 point guard is excellent at passing, his scoring ability is questionable.
Moreover, he’s showing signs of fatigue; you can clearly see his exhaustion.” “There’s no suspense.
Oregon will take this win and stride confidently towards the tournament.
They will become the most legendary team in the Pacific Division this season, having overcome the absence of two key players and going winless from mid-December to the end of January to make it to the tournament!” Watson was incredibly excited, even more so than the Oregon bench.
Meanwhile, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar pursed his lips slightly.
He glanced at Bruce li’s stats for tonight: 15 points, 18 assists, 1 steal, and 3 turnovers—a brilliant performance.
If only he could hit a game-winner, it would be perfect.
He thought to himself.
At the same time, the Stanford bench was silent.
They were facing the problem of their final offensive possession: game-winners are always the domain of superstars.
But the problem now was, Stanford didn’t have a superstar.
Bruce has ball-handling skills, but his offensive game is very weak, and his stamina is nearing its limit.
Other players have shooting ability, but their ball-handling skills are questionable; if they get the ball stolen, it’s game over.
Most importantly: whoever takes the final shot will be blamed.
Everyone knows the emotions of Stanford fans; having been subjected to so much pre-game stress, they simply cannot accept defeat at home.
If the game-winning shot fails, the pressure from the entire campus will instantly overwhelm them.
Therefore, everyone is exchanging glances, maintaining a profound silence, awaiting Coach Jamie Lin’s instructions.
“Let me do it.” Bruce, who had been sitting on the bench with his head down for a long time, suddenly raised his head, his eyes incredibly firm.
Looking at Coach Jamie Lin, who clearly showed doubt and worry, he said ‘forcefully,’ “I am the biggest contributor to this game; I dragged the game into the final seconds, so it is right for me to take the final shot!!” Jamie Lin knew Bruce wasn’t a domineering person; he was simply trying to give everyone a way out.
But selfishly, he really didn’t want Bruce li to take the final shot.
Based on Bruce performance in the past two games, he could easily stay at Stanford next season.
However, if he misses that final shot, things could get complicated.
After all, the outcomes of being a team hero, a team contributor, or a team villain are drastically different.
If he makes the game-winning shot, he’ll be a superhero, and staying with the team will be no problem, but the probability is extremely low.
Even if he doesn’t take the shot, he’ll still be a team contributor; as he said, he brought the game to the final seconds.
He won’t be criticized, and people might even praise him for his brilliant plays, greatly increasing his chances of staying.
But if he misses, the blindly angry students will forget his previous contributions and vent their anger on him, treating him as a villain.
At that point, it will be incredibly difficult for him to get Coach McHani to retract his public statements.
However, Bruce li’s eyes were so resolute: they even reminded Jamie Lin of the ancient poem, “The wind howls, the Yi River is cold, the hero departs, never to return.” Finally, after much hesitation, Coach Jamie Lin nodded.
Okay …