The additional free throw was made, bringing the score deficit back to single digits. Gan Guoyang directed the defense, calling for further contraction.
"Don’t leave the three-second zone, stay in the three-second zone, let them shoot threes, give up double-teaming, hold your ground against the person in front of you!"
Gan Guoyang pulled PJ Brown aside, simultaneously instructing the whole team to execute man-to-man defense resolutely and avoid casual double-teaming.
Gan Guoyang could feel that the team was at a disadvantage in every aspect, while the Bulls were at their peak ascension phase.
It’s like two boxers facing off, now in the seventh round, and the opponent’s punches are getting heavier and faster.
At this moment, as the weaker side, you don’t have much ability to fight back; all you can do is cover your head with both hands and shrink into defense.
The primary task is to avoid being knocked down by the opponent, while also wearing down the opponent, seizing opportunities for counterattacks, and waiting for a chance.
Wait for the opponent’s peak to pass, for their decline phase to start, for accumulated issues to be exposed, and then deliver a fatal blow to the opponent.
Of course, whether this opportunity will come is uncertain for the weaker side; all they can do is wait and not give up.
Maybe in the end, the opponent won’t show any substantial flaws, or even if they do, you might not be able to seize that fatal punch.
Gan Guoyang used to always win easily, never allowing a comeback once he had gained a significant advantage.
In fact, he is more adept at overcoming adverse situations. He is very good at enduring, which is also a strategic advantage of Chinese people.
Guard the basket, appropriately give up the middle, almost completely abandon the two corners and the top of the arc for threes; the Bulls started bombarding the Trail Blazers.
Pippen hit a three from the top of the arc, Toni Kukoc, who came off the bench, made a pull-up mid-range jumper, and even Jordan hit a three-pointer.
But looking at the score difference, the Trail Blazers still kept the gap firmly around 10 points.
Playing at home, the referees offered some assistance, granting the Trail Blazers many free throws.
At the same time, the Trail Blazers did break through more, with Riddle, Gan Guoyang, and Green all charging towards the basket.
Charging towards the basket is what attracts the referees’ support.
When the biggest point difference was extended to 14 points, Gan Guoyang suddenly hit a surprise three-pointer.
Then, Jordan’s three-pointer from the outside missed, Gan Guoyang grabbed the rebound, launched a fast break, and passed to Kobe, who came off the bench.
Kobe, hesitating on the perimeter, took a three-point shot on the fast break and also scored!
They closed in six consecutive points, and the score difference was back to 8 points.
Next, Pippen broke through the dense defense, only to be blocked by PJ Brown.
Gan Guoyang counterattacked, cutting all the way through the middle into the basket and scoring with a moon-hook, reducing the gap to just 6 points!
In just two or three rounds, the Trail Blazers responded with an 8:0 run against the Bulls, with 3 minutes still left in the third quarter.
For a full 9 minutes, Bird did not call a single timeout, relying entirely on the players to adjust on the court.
They endured, stubbornly standing against the Bulls’ continuous outside shots, seizing opportunities to counterattack.
83:77, Phil Jackson voluntarily called a timeout. The Bulls seemed to be playing easily and freely, as if waving their fists in the ring and forcing the opponent to cower and cover their head.
But looking at the points, the gap hadn’t widened, indicating that things weren’t going very well, and the opponent was stronger than expected.
Jackson kept whistling at the players during the game, but it was of little use. During the timeout, Jordan complained: "Ah Gan is like a lump of hardened cow patty under the basket, both stinky and hard to remove. Damn it, you still can’t move him, and the refs are siding with them! And PJ Brown, that little cow patty!"
Jordan had a good shooting percentage in the third quarter, but they were all from outside shots, none from drives.
Gan Guoyang encountered some restrictions on offense, but he was also restricting the Bulls’ players’ offense.
Currently, the League encourages inside battles, especially turning a blind eye to hand checks and collisions within the three-second zone.
The interior defenders, when guarding against a ball handler’s drive, use their elbows to bump the opponent’s waist. As long as it’s not excessive, the referees turn a blind eye.
This poses a great constraint to ball handlers, and with PJ Brown also present, the three-second zone of the Trail Blazers is solid as a fortress.
With no points from inside, relying solely on outside shooting made the Bulls’ offense lack stability and continuity.
One small mistake and the Trail Blazers seized the opportunity to close the score gap.
"And that number 8, Kobe, is crazily trash-talking me, who the hell does he think he is? Some of those words, who even taught him? Am I supposed to argue with a high schooler? Shit!"
Jordan continued to complain, also suffering from Kobe’s psychological attacks, leaving him very frustrated.
Jackson advised Jordan to calm down, "Stay calm, settle down. Who do you think taught him? Who else but Ah Gan? It’s Ah Gan’s usual trick, he’s unsettling you, using an 18-year-old. He’s playing you, Michael."
"Ah Gan is such a bastard, how could he come up with such an ingenious trick?" Jackson grumbled.
On the other side, Gan Guoyang was venting his anger at Bird.
"Why the hell didn’t you call a timeout, did you fall asleep or forget you were watching the game?"
"I hoped you guys could resolve the problem yourselves."
"Then what’s the use of you!"
"I’m responsible for hope."
"..."
For the Trail Blazers, the situation was improving.
But the issue was, they were still trailing by 8 points, not just 1 or 2 points.
The situation was still quite severe; they had withstood the Bulls’ raging defense and offense, yet the advantage and initiative remained with the Bulls.
After the timeout ended, both teams’ substitutes faced off, maintaining an 8-point gap.
85:77, both teams headed into the decisive fourth quarter.