At halftime, the Trail Blazers lead the Pacers 53 to 50, ending the two quarters with a 3-point lead and entering the halftime break.
This should be the toughest half the Trail Blazers have played this season.
In the series of previous victories, many teams fell apart by halftime, giving up early and surrendering outright.
However, in this game, the Pacers faced the Trail Blazers’ offense with very targeted strategies in all aspects.
The Trail Blazers’ Flow offense wasn’t running smoothly, and they fell behind early, forcing Gan Guoyang to step in and save the game early.
The Pacers were extraordinarily patient on the offensive end, even to the point of being overly patient, which not only improved their offensive success rate but also slowed the game pace.
In the repeated tug-of-war over tempo, the Pacers’ coaching staff, who are very familiar with the Trail Blazers, were well-prepared, doing an excellent job with rotations and timing.
That the Trail Blazers were able to lead at halftime purely came down to the team’s strong prowess over the Pacers, securing the advantage on certain plays through individual player abilities.
After adjustments during halftime, as the third quarter began, the Trail Blazers brought something new into the first possession.
Gan Guoyang and Brellock played a pick-and-roll at the top of the key; after the cut, Gan Guoyang received the ball and acted like he was going to shoot, but instead, he made a straight pass to the basket.
Sabonis caught the ball and dunked easily — the Twin Towers connected!
The Trail Blazers started to bring out their best, determined to win this game.
The Pacers immediately responded, and after several passes, Mario Ely got an opportunity at the right corner, took a three-pointer from the zero angle, and scored!
A crucial three-pointer from the former Trail Blazer; if he missed, the Trail Blazers’ counterattack could have widened the score.
With this shot, the gap narrowed to 2 points, and the pressure moved to the Trail Blazers’ side.
In the 1996 draft, Ely was traded to the Pacers with Davis in exchange for a draft pick.
The Trail Blazers didn’t want to give up Ely at first, because he was too important at the small forward position; his defense and three-point shooting were consistently key.
If they could have kept him, the Trail Blazers might not have lost to the Jazz in the 1996-1997 West Finals.
But there was no choice; the Pacers also knew Ely’s importance and insisted on including Ely in the trade.
In the end, Ely came to the Pacers and became an important puzzle piece for them.
The Trail Blazers then completed another Twin Towers coordination on offense, executing a classic high-low tactic between Sabonis and Gan Guoyang.
Sabonis quickly lobbed the ball to Gan Guoyang, who caught it very close to the basket, practically a handout.
He turned and easily hooked the shot for two points.
In previous matches, the Trail Blazers could defeat opponents merely by relying on smooth coordination from the perimeter.
Tonight, they began to frequently use the Twin Towers tactic centered around Gan Guoyang, clearly going all out.
Both teams remained deadlocked on both offense and defense for a few minutes, with the Trail Blazers maintaining a lead of 4 or 5 points.
The turning point came with the Trail Blazers’ first substitution; Bird replaced Riddle with Kobe.
Kobe jumped up from the bench like an arrow, took off his jacket and went on court.
Seeing this, Adelman also substituted Jalen Rose to match up against Kobe.
Adelman was very cautious and meticulous; this kind of targeted substitution is usually seen only in the playoffs.
Kobe was itching to avenge the punch he took in the first half; his eyes were filled with anger.
As soon as he got on, Kobe took the ball, utilized double screens, drove into the basket, and scored the layup, even drawing Schmitz’s foul.
Kobe made the free throw, completing a three-point play.
The Pacers missed their outside shot, Gan Guoyang secured the rebound, and passed to Kobe.
He noticed Kobe’s strong desire to attack and was willing to give Kobe opportunities.
Again, a high pick-and-roll screen, Gan Guoyang personally set up the play for Kobe; Gan Guoyang’s screen was exceptionally solid.
Kobe got past Jalen Rose’s defense, broke through, stopped abruptly near the free-throw line, and made a jump shot, scoring!
Kobe scored 5 consecutive points, helping the Trail Blazers widen the gap, and the Pacers called a timeout.
But the timeout didn’t dampen Kobe’s scoring desire; his hand was getting hot.
Mario Ely missed a three-pointer from the outside, and Gan Guoyang grabbed another rebound.
The Pacers had a chance on this play, but Ely failed to capitalize.
The Trail Blazers counterattacked, with Kobe running to the right corner; Gan Guoyang passed to Kobe with a bounce pass.
Kobe caught the ball, aimed, and took the three-pointer, scoring it.
Jalen Rose tried hard to contest, but Kobe still made that crucial three-pointer.
Kobe scored 8 consecutive points, helping the Trail Blazers widen the gap.
In the third quarter, as the Trail Blazers made their push, the Pacers began to feel overwhelmed.
After scoring, Kobe made a blowing gun gesture towards Jalen Rose.
His hand was hot now, he needed to cool down the smoking gun barrel.
As the game continued, the Trail Blazers gradually extended their lead to more than 10 points.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Trail Blazers’ lead at one point reached 15 points.
NBC’s commentators said, "Portland had a neck-and-neck battle with the Pacers in the first half, but by the third quarter, they surged ahead to widen the gap. Their 41-game winning streak is calling out to them."
Once the Trail Blazers lead by over 15 points, it’s almost fantasy for the opponent to mount a comeback.
Bird breathed a sigh of relief; he thought the situation in the first half would be very tough, but Kobe suddenly stepped up and exploded, helping the Trail Blazers firmly establish their advantage.
Kobe scored 14 points in the third quarter, and no matter if it was Jalen Rose, Reggie Miller or Mark Jackson, or Best, no one could effectively guard him.