You can only stick closely, score when he scores, and everyone perseveres until the critical moment to fight for key shots.
Sure enough, after the timeout, Gan Guoyang began his massacre, continuously holding the ball and attacking the Jazz from the outside.
Malone could still hold his ground against Gan Guoyang in the low post, but once pulled to the outside, he became a mere post.
Gan Guoyang continuously scored facing the basket, repeatedly executing 2+1 plays, scoring 14 points in just 5 minutes.
However, looking up at the scoreboard, it’s 90:93, and the Jazz still stubbornly maintained a 3-point lead.
Because the Jazz’s offensive efficiency was equally high, with Hornersek and Stockton hitting consecutive three-pointers.
The duo kept the home team leading, with the third quarter ending at 94:96.
Gan Guoyang scored 47 points in three quarters, making Malone sweat profusely, sitting on the bench in a daze, but the Trail Blazers still couldn’t overturn the lead.
"Damn, 47 points is too little. I should have gotten 60 points in three quarters, then we would have led by over ten points."
Gan Guoyang sat on the bench, complaining while wiping his sweat. He had taken too few shots, trying to create opportunities for his teammates.
But tonight the Trail Blazers’ other players had abysmal offensive performance, especially in three-point shooting, which left Gan Guoyang quite dissatisfied.
Beside him, Kobe listened to Gan Guoyang’s words and quietly noted them in his mental notebook; he had always been a thoughtful student.
On the court, Kobe continuously observed Gan Guoyang’s offensive choices, considering how to handle the ball when facing double teams and attack with high-difficulty shots.
As the fourth quarter commenced, Gan Guoyang rested on the sidelines, with Kobe and Little O’Neal taking the court, and the Trail Blazers quickly fell behind further against the Jazz.
Shandon Anderson and Brian Russell hit consecutive three-pointers, with the Jazz’s outside shooting exploding tonight after being fueled up.
The score gap widened to 8 points. At this point, Kobe stepped up, first hitting a mid-range jumper and then successfully stealing on defense.
He dribbled to breakthrough to score a layup and draw a foul, making the additional free throw, scoring 5 points in a row to help the Trail Blazers cut the gap to 3 points.
Gan Guoyang didn’t rest for too long on the sidelines; he returned to the court when Kobe was making the free throw.
He patted Kobe, saying, "Well done, very decisive."
Kobe said, "In my eyes, they were all 100% chances."
"If you keep imitating my words, I’ll knock your teeth out."
"I’d rather imitate your play."
"Then keep watching."
Returning to the court, Gan Guoyang continued the good form from the third quarter.
The Jazz couldn’t stop his breakthrough at all—this was the Jazz’s defensive issue.
Although the Bulls were restrained by Ah Gan, the Bulls were best at defending Ah Gan’s breakthrough.
The Jazz lacked tall, strong perimeter defenders, and leaving Malone and Ostertag as the last line meant being dominated by Ah Gan.
He drove into the basket for three consecutive possessions, either scoring on a layup or drawing a foul, leaving the Jazz struggling to cope.
Jerry Sloan shuffled his lineup, bringing in veteran Anthony Carl to try and stall Ah Gan’s momentum.
Anthony Carl was once a young talent, and in 1984 he attended the Olympic selection training camp with Gan Guoyang.
He was strong, with outside skills in his prime as a powerful forward, and later became a diligent interior blue-collar at the 4 and 5 positions.
After he came on, he not only defended Ah Gan but also contributed with mid-range shots on offense.
The game entered a stalemate, quickly breaking the 100-point mark, with Gan Guoyang’s score reaching 57 points.
Subsequently, both teams were stuck at 105:107 for nearly 3 minutes.
The Jazz started double-teaming Gan Guoyang early.
Stockton hovered on the edge of violating defense rules, constantly testing the referee’s tolerance.
Here at the Triangle Center, the referees turned a blind eye to early double teams and defensive violations.
They occasionally blew the whistle to warn, but afterward, didn’t pay much attention, stopping close scrutiny.
Gan Guoyang found it difficult to even receive the ball, having to start from the backcourt with the Jazz double-teaming back there.
If two defenders weren’t enough, they’d use three; Gan Guoyang passed to a teammate, PJ Brown caught the ball, left unguarded.
Brown hesitated a few moments before passing to Riddle, who drove and missed the layup.
Similar offensive plays occurred several times consecutively, with the Trail Blazers unable to overcome the 2-point deficit.
The Jazz couldn’t score either, as their defensive efforts tired them and disrupted their rhythm.
Hornersek and Malone missed their shots, but Stockton desperately grabbed an offensive rebound.
That crucial rebound, Stockton dribbled out, adjusted slightly, and hit the mid-range shot!
A very deadly shot as Stockton had scored 24 points, and there were less than two minutes left in the game.
Gan Guoyang didn’t have time to complain to teammates for not marking tightly; there was no timeout, so a quick inbound from the backcourt was executed.
Van Exel finally made a correct decision, swiftly dribbling past the half-court, weaving through the Jazz defense.
Then he passed to Gan Guoyang who was moving to the left 45-degree angle; Gan Guoyang adjusted slightly and shot the three-pointer, hitting it!
108:109, the Trail Blazers quickly closed the gap to just 1 point!
Gan Guoyang also scored his 60th point of the game, with the TV showing the score update.
But for Gan Guoyang, scoring 60 points without winning the game means the 60 points are meaningless.
Besides the 60 points, he grabbed 17 rebounds and handed out 10 assists, achieving a 60-point triple-double.