Chapter 58: The Sweet Sixteen
If it takes so much effort to even play a University of Tennessee, which is not considered a top one, what qualifications does UCLA have to talk about the ownership of the championship?
Ben Holland frowned before reaching out to the referee for a timeout, as the team's head coach must now step up and change the team's decline on the court.
"Alright guys, I know you all want to go home early and rest. Then listen to me, there is not much time left in the game, Wood, you have to run more aggressively and flexibly on the outside in the next time, and make room for the inside..."
There was not much time left for a timeout after explaining the tactics, and the Bruins got back on the field with a high-five.
The execution of tactics has always been a commendable place for the Bruins, and soon Ben Holland's tactics had an obvious effect, Bai Xiaonian frequently rushed into the interior or made kills or players who were released by the ball, because of his presence at the University of Tennessee, the defensive space between the inside and outside was stretched infinitely, and Bai Xiaonian was like a slippery loach in the formation of the University of Tennessee.
Although Bai Xiaonian's current position is a point guard, he is more like a berserker carrying an explosive bag to attack a bunker, although his body is "petite", the energy that bursts out is immeasurable, and he maintains a terrifying offensive ability for the team despite the impact of death again and again.
Brush! Brush! After rushing into the interior again and causing a foul by Reinado's beaters, Bai Xiaonian made two free throws and two hits, rubbed his shoulder, which had just made a foul and was beaten painfully, looked at the scorer outside the court, and showed a happy smile on his face, the difference between the two sides was widened again to 8 points during this time, of which 6 points were created by Bai Xiaonian.
And Reinado, who sent the beater's foul, had a black face, and the most touched in this game was his team's big forward, which made him play extremely aggrieved now that he had four fouls.
Maybe it was the last fight of the trapped beast, except for Reinado, who was in foul trouble, all the members of the volunteer team were like crazy and tore at the defense of the Bruins, just when everyone thought that UCLA would end the game by swinging the bus, Bai Xiaonian did the opposite and showed his fangs again.
Break the ball! Bai Xiaonian rushed out directly when the volunteers had just come out with a loose will, slapped the ball in Harris's hand and rushed to the court.
"! Stop him..."
Reinado, who had just run to the inside line and stood in a good position, did not wait for the imaginary pass, but witnessed Bai Xiaonian's steal, and he shouted angrily.
He knew in his heart that if this ball allowed UCLA to score again, it would be really powerless, and it would be an almost impossible task to smooth out the double-digit margin in less than a minute.
But at Bai Xiaonian's speed, how can ordinary players catch up! Therefore, the only thing that needs to be paid attention to in front of Bai Xiaonian is Córdoba, who has just been replaced by the coach to serve and has not had time to run to the frontcourt.
Although the starting guard of the University of Tennessee was suppressed by Bai Xiaonian throughout the game today, he still pounced without hesitation at this moment, and he definitely did not give up these two words in Córdoba's creed...
As the distance between the two sides got closer and closer, the audience at the scene and even Kenan Dees on the commentary stage held their breath, Bai Yanyu, who watched the NCAA game live for the first time, directly raised his hand to cover his eyes, but he still couldn't help but peek at the situation on the court from between his fingers, the most exciting and boiling scene on the basketball court is this kind of one-on-one heads-up.
Bai Xiaonian stared at Córdoba in front of him without fear in his eyes, although he admired this stubborn opponent in his heart, but there was no sympathy on the field, meeting here in a narrow way is not the victory of the brave, strength is the factor that determines victory or defeat.
The continuous shoulder feints dazzled Córdoba, the basketball hit the ground because of the extremely high dribble frequency, the sound of slamming the ball was connected, the center of gravity of the body sank downward, and the left hand made a move to wipe the basketball, which frightened Cordoba to think that Bai Xiaonian was going to pull it out and quickly jumped up to block it, Bai Xiaonian smiled lightly and then easily flashed the salty pig hand stretched out by Corvado...
Córdoba, who was not in a hurry to contain the momentum, fell directly to the ground because of inertia, and did not have time to leave an apologetic look, Bai Xiaonian quickly whipped up and rushed straight to the basket, this time the attack Xiao Bai Tong's shoes did not pretend to be forced to dunk or anything, but chose a more stable civilian layup, and after the body was slightly in the air, the empty basket hit in the desperate eyes of the volunteer team members!
72 to 62! 10 points difference!
“Yeah! Wood scored two winning points for UCLA, and I think unless it's the pinnacle Maddie who is there, the volunteers on the other side should just raise their hands and surrender! ”
Kenan Dees took a few deep breaths and shouted as he propped his hand over his face, which had just turned red with excitement.
"It's over! It's completely over..."
Reinado, who was still standing in the backcourt of UCLA, muttered that the time was still 28 seconds left for the volunteers, but what else could they do at this time?
Even the Bruins gave up on defending the Tennessee volunteers, allowing the opposing player to turn around and make an empty basket.
At this time, the stands of the Poly Arena have long been a sea of joy, and the fans of the Bruins even played in their seats.
10! 9! 8! 7! 6! 5! 4! 3! 2! 1!
Everyone's eyes were on the timer, with the Bruins eager for the jubilation after the game and the volunteers hoping to get out of the sad arena sooner.
Beep! The referee of this game finally blew the whistle for the end of the game.
In an instant, the air in the Poly Arena was filled with the boiling shouts of the fans, and Bai Xiaonian was sent high into the sky by his teammates of the Bruins...
72 to 64! UCLA defeated the University of Tennessee by eight points to reach the NCAA's Sweet Sixteen, setting the best record in March Madness in nearly three years.
"Hey! Dude, you're actually really good, don't be discouraged by a game..."
Bai Xiaonian found the whole game after the game to defend himself Cordoba said with some admiration, today this guy's tenacious bite on himself also brought him a lot of trouble, at least in his physical consumption is a lot more than usual.
Córdoba, who was sitting on the bench thinking about life, heard the voice and raised his head to look at Bai Xiaonian, who walked to him, and smiled reluctantly, he heard the team coach say that this Asian defender who can do everything on the court is only 19 years old this year, and even a few months younger than himself, but he has firmly occupied a spot in the lottery area of this year's NBA draft...
"I said Wood, you're going to be a great guy when you get into the NBA, but don't forget that there's a guy named Cordoba here who caused you trouble!"
After sorting out the gap between himself and Bai Xiaonian, Corvado said to Bai Xiaonian with relief.
"Of course, don't you want to be friends with me? I mean, do you want me to treat you to a Chinese meal, it's in Los Angeles' Chinatown, it's really delicious..."
When the frenzy after the game gradually subsided, and all the players returned to the locker room, Bai Xiaonian stood at the entrance of the players' tunnel and looked at the stadium where he had fought for two years, clenching his fists.
The Sweet Sixteen is by no means the end of the day...