Chapter Thirty-Eight—Final Four
"No brothers, no basketball." Everyone at Stanford shouted loudly with their hands stacked on top of each other.
Coach Trent Johnson looked at his enthusiastic disciples from the sidelines, and was quite proud that after so many years, this class was the most satisfying and successful for him.
Assistant coach Jason also had a hint of enlightenment on the sidelines, it turned out that this was the locker room leader, and it seems that Coach Trent Johnson really didn't see the wrong person.
The atmosphere at Stanford was harmonious, but the University of North Carolina was in a dead silence, where the head coach kept explaining his tactics, but everyone couldn't concentrate, because the basketball game was sometimes not as simple as it seemed on the surface, and their side also faithfully implemented the tactics arranged by the coach in the first half, but what? It's not that the momentum of being hit by a fairy ball from Stanford is completely lost.
The head coach of North Carolina is also very helpless, there is no way to explain the momentum, his own team suppressed Stanford University from the momentum, but Stanford relied on a timeout to stabilize the situation, and even played a fairy ball that had never appeared in the NCAA or even the NBA in a defensive counterattack later, and the momentum of his own team was counter-suppressed.
At this time, I can see the importance of stars, although the strength of their new four young people is outstanding, but it is not a little worse than the real stars, and I have been playing team basketball around the starting 4 people, and now I want to break this situation There is no qualified point, what a helpless thing.
On the other hand, Stanford's brotherhood in the locker room at halftime made them even more imposing, while the anxious look on the University of North Carolina side made it clear that there was no solution to the problem.
Seeing this, a smile appeared on the corner of Coach Trent Johnson's mouth, they won this game at Stanford, and the final four we at Stanford came.
"Jason, do you think the University of North Carolina will be able to turn things around?" Coach Trent Johnson had nothing to do, so he wanted to test his assistant coach.
"Of course not." Assistant Coach Jason replied without hesitation.
"Why?" Coach Trent Johnson asked with interest.
"Well," Jason didn't know how to explain, he just replied casually, no one wants their team to be overturned, as for why? Jason was lost in thought.
Looking at Jason who was lost in thought, Coach Trent Johnson didn't say much, he was waiting for Jason to think of the answer himself.
"I'm sorry, coach, although I know that the atmosphere at the University of North Carolina is no longer able to turn around, but as for why, I really can't figure it out." Jason thought about it, but he still couldn't get an answer.
"Jason, you're right, the momentum is completely on our side right now, and the reason why North Carolina can't turn the tables is because none of them can break the momentum gap between the two sides. This is the gap between our two teams, in the past, we were once suppressed by the University of North Carolina in momentum, even if I called a timeout, by waking up Lee, this only saved the situation that continued to be suppressed, but we were still suppressed, until Lee and Jackson's amazing empty connection, instantly overtook the momentum, coupled with the desperate efforts of our substitutes to hold the point difference, the gap between the two sides in momentum became wider and wider. Coach Trent Johnson explained to Jason seriously that they got far more than a win in today's game, and they gained more from Stanford, which is what Coach Trent Johnson wants to see the most.
"So Jason, how do you break this situation if you're the head coach of North Carolina?" Coach Trent Johnson continued to ask.
"Sorry, coach, I really can't think of it." After thinking about it for a long time, Jason said helplessly.
"It's nothing, Jason, even if it's me as the head coach of North Carolina, it's going to be hard to solve this situation. You know why? ”
"Why?" Although Jason scolded in his heart, you can't solve it with a head coach, and you still ask me as an assistant coach? But on the surface, I still humbly asked for advice.
"Because although the North Carolina four-man team is playing well together, the problem is precisely this, they don't have a star-like existence who can stand up and break the current situation." So says Coach Trent Johnson.
"You mean, they're missing a star to break the ice?" Jason also heard the meaning, and he said that this is indeed the case, the new four young people in North Carolina are balanced, but there is no outstanding point.
"That's right, in fact, after the first half timeout, Lee did a good job, when the momentum was suppressed, he took the lead in stabilizing the situation, although the open connection was the accident that broke the balance, but even without that goal I believe we can recover the situation after that, which is what a star should do." Coach Trent Johnson is really getting more and more satisfied with Lee's performance.
"I see." Jason suddenly realized.
Not to mention the talk off the field, the situation on the field is also unexpected by everyone.
The Stanford crowd who returned to the pitch showed more desperate momentum both offensively and defensively, as if they were the ones behind them.
North Carolina, which has not been able to recover its strength, has been completely blinded, not only on the defensive end, but also the defensive formation has been hit by the three Stanford outside line, which makes the two Lopez brothers turn over the clouds on the inside, and the score is like a probe.
On the offensive end, under Stanford's desperate defense, there were many mistakes, which made Stanford's counterattack fast break appear many times, although it failed to appear again like Li Yao and Jackson's empty connection fairy ball, which made the fans feel sorry for the scene, but as the most outstanding team in defensive counterattack, Stanford's fast attack also brought them a pleasing feeling.
There is an old Chinese saying that the momentum is repeated and declined, and the University of North Carolina, which was already under the pressure of Stanford, completely lost itself, and the score difference was once widened to nearly 20 points, looking at the confused look of his disciple, the head coach of the University of North Carolina couldn't help it, called a timeout, replaced all the substitutes, and announced that he had given up the game.
And Stanford, as an opponent, of course, has to give respect to the opponent, coach Trent Johnson waved his hand, the same five up and five down, and the game went into garbage time in the first 12 minutes of the second half.
And Stanford's starting five were also warmly applauded by the audience.
They are not blind, they have also seen Stanford's backwardness to a comeback, and they applaud these young people.
The game finally ended with a score difference of 83:67.
Stanford, on the other hand, was in a frenzy, and they finally managed to make it to the final four under the premise that everyone was not favored.
Coach Trent Johnson was also very happy about this kind of history-breaking moment, and waved his hand to indicate that he was in for a treat at tonight's celebration banquet.
The cheers on the Stanford side were even louder.
"Coach, let's go to the Sichuan restaurant." As soon as Jackson heard that his head coach was treated, he immediately proposed, and Jackson's mind was full of those colorful dishes at this time, and his Adam's apple was shaking.
"Haha, no problem, but Jackson swallows your saliva first." In this atmosphere, Coach Trent Johnson is also a rare joke.
"First of all, let's congratulate Stanford University on making it to the Final Four, and please stay tuned to TNT TV for the next two games, and Kenny and I will continue to bring you wonderful and professional commentary." After the game, Barkley did not forget to promote his own TV station.
"Well, Sir Charles, I admit it, professional commentary doesn't just describe me, when have you ever been professional in this entertainment commentary?" Even if the live stream is coming to an end, Kenny. Smith still didn't give up the opportunity to tease Barkley.
"Kenny, don't run."
The words are divided into two ends, not to mention the fight of the cross talk duo here, Stanford is also surrounded by reporters.
"Congratulations to Stanford on making it to the Final Four and getting to where we are today as a team that wasn't favored before the series started, what do you think about that Coach Trent Johnson?"
"I don't have any special opinions, as we all know, Stanford has never been a strong team in the NCAA, and I'm very satisfied that we are where we are today, and of course, I want to thank our players, without their efforts, we would not be where we are today." So says Coach Trent Johnson.
"So let's ask Coach Trent Johnson to give you an assessment of today's opponent, the University of North Carolina."
"North Carolina is a strong team, we were able to beat them today, we were very surprised ourselves, they may not be in form today."
"I just got the news that the new four young people in North Carolina announced at the same time that they will give up this year's NBA draft and decide to play in the NCAA for another year, what do you think about this?"
"What? Then next year, the NCAA teams will have to be careful of North Carolina, they are determined to win the championship. Coach Trent Johnson was also shocked by the news, and generally players who have decided to participate in the NBA draft will not choose to give up, because the financial temptation brought by the NBA is irresistible, which is why so many high school students will announce their participation in the NBA draft. Although the NBA now prohibits high school students from participating in the NBA draft, this only makes them a year late, and more players will choose to participate in the NBA draft after their freshman year.
Now that the new four young people in North Carolina actually gave up the draft at the same time, then the picture of North Carolina is obvious.
Li Yao on the side was also stunned, although the new four young people in North Carolina in the previous life also announced that they would give up the draft this year, but that was after the final four lost to the University of Kansas, the final champion of the NCAA in 08, and now it is because of the butterfly effect that it lost to its own team in the top 8, but the result has not changed. And Li Yao was even more surprised by Coach Trent Johnson's judgment, you must know that the NCAA championship in '09 is not their North Carolina.