Gan Guoyang is an exception; his attack speed is fast, his power strong, and his hook shots and jump shots are flawless. Especially his hook shots, which have great impact in FIBA; no one can effectively interfere with him.
Hook shots inherently have strong double-team resistance, and coupled with the generally average physical condition of FIBA players, Gan Guoyang becomes even more effective in the low post.
At the start, Gan Guoyang called for the ball in the low post. After receiving it, he faced Weiss, dribbled to open space, spun around gracefully, and scored with a hook shot, securing the first point.
Weiss' height of 2.18 meters was completely ignored by Gan Guoyang. If your strength and jumping don't measure up, you can't interfere with me. What's the use of being tall?
Then, China Team's tight man-to-man defense at the start made France Team unable to find good shooting opportunities, resulting in missed long shots.
Gan Guoyang grabbed the rebound, Hu Weidong took the ball directly for a counter-attack, without waiting for Gan Guoyang to position himself as France Team anticipated.
A direct drive to the basket succeeded, securing two points. China Team's momentum was impressive from the start.
France Team still missed their three-point shots, leading to another counter-attack by China Team, forcing France Team to commit a foul to stop them.
Having played several seasons in the NBA, Hu Weidong's individual skills had greatly improved.
His dribbling, ball-handling, and strength are already quite formidable in FIBA.
Compared to his 1992 self, who was more nimble but somewhat seemed to be floating.
Now, at 30, he lacks the agility of his youth but is more solid and steady in his actions, with every move being quite standard.
These skills were honed in the world's toughest league.
In the half-court, it was time for Gan Guoyang to shine again, receiving the ball and spinning for another hook shot.
Even double-teams from France Team were futile; this kind of one-arm big hook shot from the side could score amidst the cracks in double-teaming.
With a 6:0 start, France Team was forced to call a timeout early to solve their issues, while the control of the game had already shifted to China Team.
Entering the knockout stage, Gan Guoyang wouldn't entertain fancy plays with you; once he's at the center position, he aims to overpower the opponent.
After the timeout, France clearly couldn't find a solution to counter Gan Guoyang, continued strong attacks in the low post coupled with inside-out connections, allowing China Team to expand their lead more effectively.
However, during rotations, France Team finally saw their chance, utilizing three-pointers to regain some points.
On China Team's side, Yao Ming substituted Gan Guoyang, allowing Gan Guoyang some time to rest.
Yao Ming doesn't have the same impact inside as Gan Guoyang; his low-post offensive game is still somewhat raw.
But Yao Ming's height continued to maintain China Team's offensive rebound advantage, forcing France Team to invest forces to fight for defensive rebounds.
France Team found it very difficult to initiate fast breaks—an advantage typically leveraged by underdog teams.
Three-pointers and fast breaks, both suppressed by China Team, causing France's gameplay to suffer greatly.
At halftime, China Team led France by 10 points with a score of 48:38, showcasing a low score from both teams as China controlled the game's pace.
The coaching staff of Team USA watching from the sidelines knew as soon as halftime ended that France Team would likely be defeated.
The game's pace and pattern were all too familiar to Carlisle, Brown, and Dick Hart.
In the first half, Ah Gan only exerted some power, starting with a blast-off, then letting his teammates follow the rhythm, already controlling the situation.
In the second half, if Ah Gan finished strongly, it seemed unlikely that any opponent from France Team could turn the tide.
This was a typical Ah Gan-style match, with complete control over teammates and opponents alike.
In the NBA, Gan Guoyang's control ability had declined for various reasons, yet in FIBA's knockout rounds, he remains the master puppeteer.
Unless Rigado explodes again with flawless three-point shooting, it might create a miraculous comeback.
But miracles don't occur frequently; Rigado already exploded once in the group stage but was tightly guarded by China's strict man-to-man defense.
When China Team has Gan Guoyang on the inside, they can confidently employ man-to-man defense; even if there's an occasional lapse, Gan Guoyang can cover for it, while Yao Ming's capacity in this area is far less than Gan Guoyang, leading Yao Ming on the FIBA courts to rely more on zone defense.
If he goes to the NBA, his reliance on power forward's strong defense at the four position would be more apparent.
As soon as the second half began, as expected by Team USA's coaching staff, Ah Gan started to explode.
Continuously executing multi-position, indiscriminate single plays, receiving the ball anywhere within the three-point line, can single-play, making any defense a mismatch.
This unsolvable offensive might caused France Team's defense to completely lose its resilience and flexibility due to one exceedingly strong point.
After Gan Guoyang scored 9 consecutive points, France Team was forced to call a timeout and adjust their defense to a zone double-team.
But all of these strategies were accounted for in China Team's pre-planned scenarios, with shooters like Hu Weidong and Li Nan taking the stage for a wing three-point bombardment.
In the previous game against Australia, China Team's three-point shooting was mediocre, but in this game's second half, their three-pointers were effectively executed.
With Flying Dagger Li Nan hitting two consecutive three-pointers, Hu Weidong nailed a direct pull-up three-pointer during a counter-attack.
In the second half, China Team unleashed an 18-7 scoring wave, expanding the lead to 19 points.
China fans on-site waved the Five-star Red Flag and cheered loudly; at that moment, they felt China Team was incredibly powerful.
After establishing a 19-point advantage, France Team was powerless to turn the game around.
In FIBA, this point gap is nearly insurmountable.
Moreover, Gan Guoyang clearly still held some strength back, ready to strike the moment the opponent closes in a bit.
FIBA's game pace is very fast; with a 40-minute match split into halves, with no significant suspense, it ends quickly.