However, looking up at the score, when Gan Guoyang made his free throw, the gap had narrowed to just 4 points.
China Team utilized a zone defense and counterattack, hitting Lithuania with a 7:0 run. Lithuania needed to tighten up.
Subsequently, the Lithuanian team finally made a mid-range shot.
But shortly after, Gan Guoyang received the ball in a low position, used his footwork to cut to the basket, and scored a layup while drawing a foul.
Another three-point play, and Lithuania was showing subtle signs of a mental breakdown.
In FIBA games, five fouls mean a player must leave the court, and Sabonis had already committed three fouls.
The second half had just begun, so Sabonis had to sit down to rest, and the situation suddenly became extremely adverse.
Lithuania called a timeout, and Sabonis was still restless. He kept reminding his teammates that while he was off the court, they must defend well, slow down, and stay focused.
"Ah Gan will exploit any flaw and opportunity for a deadly blow. Be careful! Be careful!"
His teammates were a bit annoyed by it, "Arvydas, just sit on the bench, do you really need to be this anxious?"
Sabonis was not a man of many words, but today he was like a chattering old lady, going on and on.
Seeing the blank looks in his teammates’ eyes, Sabonis knew he was speaking in vain, but he still had to say it.
Soon, they would understand why he was so painstakingly earnest.
Meanwhile, on the China Team’s side, with Sabonis benched due to three fouls, Gan Guoyang sensed blood in the water.
He told Jiang Xingquan, "Coach, this is an opportunity. Let Xiao Hu get on the court, Taozi as well! Remember, give me the ball, I’ll handle them!"
Jiang Xingquan understood Gan Guoyang’s intention. With Sabonis off the court, Lithuania’s inside defense took a significant hit. It was indeed an opportunity.
Honestly, within the China Team, there had never been a player who dared to say, "Give me the ball, I’ll handle them," as China Team always prioritized teamwork and followed the coach’s arrangements.
But Gan Guoyang was different. Jiang Xingquan hesitating even for a second would be irresponsible for his coaching position.
Though he was of a conservative nature, he was not foolish, nor did he think Ah Gan would steal the limelight from him as head coach.
Opportunities to win must never be missed.
Jiang Xingquan immediately substituted Hu Weidong for Zhang Yongjun and Shan Tao for Song Ligang.
This was equivalent to adding another submachine gun to the lineup, while Gan Guoyang gave up the center position and moved to the power forward spot, switching to the heavy machine gun mode.
After the timeout ended, returning to the court, China Team continued with a zone defense, but Lithuania hit a three-pointer!
A critical three-pointer forced China Team to change its defensive strategy.
On the offensive end, Gan Guoyang received the ball at the top of the key and immediately shot a three-pointer that also went in!
This three-pointer tightened Sabonis’s heart off the court.
He stood up, yelled at his teammates to defend and strengthen their defense.
Sabonis knew that Ah Gan was about to start his offensive assault.
Lithuania slowed down the pace, trying to engage in a half-court battle with China Team.
But under the basket and near the three-second zone, Gan Guoyang was defending tightly.
Allowing Lithuania to shoot from outside, if they make it, they are strong; don’t even think about easily getting inside.
Lithuania’s shooting touch noticeably fluctuated, and without Sabonis’s coordination, their half-court offense became somewhat stagnant.
When their shot missed, Gan Guoyang grabbed the defensive rebound and dribbled the ball past half-court by himself.
Lithuania retreated quickly on defense, but Gan Guoyang backed up against the defender, starting to pressure in from the three-point line.
Other than Sabonis, who could stand his ground, Gan Guoyang spun with the ball and cut to the basket, still scoring a layup despite a defender hanging on him, drawing another foul.
The Lithuanian player angrily threw the ball to the ground; even with someone draped over him, they couldn’t stop him. They lost the ball, conceded a free throw, and also incurred a foul.
Because a player is benched after five fouls, being called for a foul is quite damaging as they watched Gan Guoyang again make the free throw, successfully completing a three-point play.
The score had been narrowed to just 1 point; suspense heightened in the game, and pressure shifted to the Lithuanian players.
Today was the first match, and the Lithuanian players hadn’t fully gotten into their rhythm yet. Their intense will to win had at that moment transformed into a huge psychological burden.
They knew the entire nation was watching them, they needed to win and achieve great results, but the player regarded as the best in basketball stood before them like a mountain, insurmountable.
Another hurried shot from the outside, Lithuania’s offense was clearly disorganized. Gan Guoyang employed the same routine, taking the ball, advancing, backing in against the defender, and charging strongly to the basket.
There was no choice but another foul. This time, the Lithuanian foul was even more aggressive, preventing Gan Guoyang from successfully executing another three-point play but sending him to the free-throw line.
Sabonis grew even more anxious, yelling, "Don’t be so aggressive, take it easy, take it easy!"
Sabonis truly was worried for his teammates, warning that such fierce fouls might hurt them later.
Nevertheless, Gan Guoyang remained calm, making both free throws, and China Team took the lead!
He shouted to Sabonis, "Relax, Arvydas, I won’t hurt your teammates!"
On the other end, the China Team’s bench erupted entirely, and everyone stood up, cheering.
The morale and atmosphere of the entire China Team were thoroughly invigorated; everyone knew this game was within reach!
Winning against Lithuania would indicate that this year’s China Team was very strong and might indeed achieve significant results.
At the same time, they realized the enormous gap between the top NBA player and the then-standard of FIBA.
Lithuania’s starters were already a formidable presence in FIBA, but without Sabonis, Gan Guoyang truly could play one against five.
Now, the Lithuanian teammates also understood why Sabonis said he was brave because he was the one holding his own against Ah Gan; if he’s not brave, who is?
The second half had played nearly 8 minutes, and Gan Guoyang had consecutively executed 2+1 and 2+1, charging against defenders inside to lead the team on a 22:9 scoring run.
He alone scored 17 points, 17 points in 8 minutes; this scoring outburst was absolutely unique within FIBA.
Meanwhile, Lithuania’s poor shooting touch gave China Team many counterattacking opportunities, and they were not thoroughly prepared.
China Team overtook the score, pausing the game for the opponents, forcing Lithuania to bring Sabonis back on the court.
But the offensive Gan Guoyang who had already found his rhythm wouldn’t stop his assault just because Sabonis was back on the court.
Facing a triple-team from Lithuania, Gan Guoyang made a very high-difficulty turn-around jump shot to further pull the point gap to 6 points!
He was becoming increasingly hard to stop as the hoop began to seem like an ocean.