Chapter 229 Chapter 233+Chapter 4 Are You Superstitious? (Two in One Chapter)

Tang Tian stretched out his hand to signal her, and she also made a cheering gesture to Tang Tian.

After the warm-up, the scene entered the opening ceremony.

The cheers of the audience were overwhelming, and the atmosphere in the arena in the playoffs was also different from the past.

The starters of both sides played one after another.

For the Mavericks, Carlisle sent a regular lineup, with Kidd and Carter on the outside, Marion and Nowitzki on the striker, and Haywood at the center.

For the Spurs, Popovich continued to use the starting lineup for the second half of the season, with Parker and Tang Tian on the outside, Leonard and Diaw on the striker, and Duncan on the center.

After the opening ceremony, the starting players of the two teams appeared one after another.

Duncan and Haywood's jump ball in the middle circle.

Tang Tian stretched out his hand and patted his chest. At the beginning, he didn't feel much about playing in the NCAA tournament, but when it came to the NBA playoffs, his mentality was still a little different.

He had coached the playoffs as a godfather in his previous life, and he could feel the difference in intensity just by being on the sidelines.

If you really play the game as a player, this feeling will definitely be stronger.

Duncan used his wingspan to dial the ball back to the Spurs half, and with the cheers of the audience, the game officially started.

The Spurs started with a TD.step hammer.

However, the Mavericks' defense was so airtight that they blocked all the opportunities of the Spurs.

Popovich is a master tactician, and Carlisle on the opposite side is no different.

And the Mavericks' competitive state on the court is 100%.

Parker's final layup was missed by interference, and the Spurs' first offense did not succeed.

The offense of the Mavericks is much simpler than that of the Spurs. After Kidd dribbled the ball to the frontcourt to signal to open the space, he then gave the ball to Nowitzki.

Nowitzki catches the ball and hits Diaw with his back.

After Dior lost his weight, his overall competitive state improved significantly, and his defense was also underestimated.

Nowitzki took the initiative to fight physically, and Nowitzki was very uncomfortable.

Nowitzki chose to turn around the iconic "Golden Rooster Independence" back shot.

Dio rushed forward to interfere.

"Shua!"

However, the ball still fell into the net bag after crossing a high parabola.

Nowitzki killed the Heat so abruptly in last year's finals.

The Mavericks turned away and took the lead.

The Spurs' offense and physical confrontation on the court are still very strong, and Tang Tian has never been able to get open opportunities.

In addition to tactics, he played a small cooperation with Dior and took the initiative to run out through the pick-and-roll.

Parker found him and passed the ball immediately.

Tang Tian caught the ball and shot a three-pointer, and Nowitzki tried his best to save the interference.

"boom!"

This ball opportunity is fleeting, but it is enough for Tang Tian.

But it's a pity that the luck was a little bit bad, and the ball bounced out after going in.

Haywood protected the defensive rebound, and the Spurs failed to score in the opening consecutive offense.

The Mavericks attacked the frontcourt and continued to hand the ball to Nowitzki.

Leonard began to help defend the past at this time, and Nowitzki suddenly threw the ball to the middle after turning around.

Marion cut in and scored against Duncan's throw.

Just like Ginobili said in the locker room, the peak of the Mavericks' strength was not when they won the championship last year, but in the two years of 2006/07.

The Mavericks had almost no solutions in those two years, but Nowitzki at that time had obvious technical shortcomings and couldn't pass the ball.

There are gains and losses. The team did not win the championship at its peak, and Nowitzki developed a pass after learning from the pain.

Most people remember his unsolvable "golden rooster independence", but in fact, he can shoot and pass, so he is so unsolvable in the playoffs.

4 to 0, the Mavericks gave the Spurs a disarm at the beginning of the game.

In the Texas Civil War, it seems that there will be no one-sided game.

The Spurs finally scored a goal from Duncan, but Marion's breakthrough hit also caused Leonard's thugs.

The performance of the Mavericks after the opening perfectly interpreted the word "defending champion".

In 1995, the Rockets ranked sixth in the Western Conference as the defending champion, and everyone was not optimistic that the Rockets could defend their title.

But then coach Rudy Tomjanovich said one of the most classic words in the NBA:

Never underestimate the heart of a champion.

Just after he said that sentence, the Rockets finally defended the championship of the season.

As the defending champion, regardless of strength, the confidence of the championship is like the halo in the game, allowing them to play 100% or even 120% of their strength.

Popovich tried various tactics and lineups in the first half, but none of them worked very well.

The Mavericks played away, but they really played the momentum of the defending champion.

At halftime, the Mavericks led the Spurs by 7 points 45 to 38.

Not many points were scored, but the audience was extremely nervous.

The fierce confrontation on the court, the master-level tactical game between Popovich and Carlisle, the two sides played a half-court game at the finals level.

The Mavericks played respectably, but the Spurs didn't play well, shooting just over 40% in the half, and they needed to make adjustments in the half.

The team's shooting percentage was not good, and Tang Tian was a little bit behind tonight. In the first half, he made 0 of 4 shots and scored no points. He only contributed 1 rebound and 1 steal.

The Mavericks were so tight, he didn't get any open shots, and all four of his attempts were catch-and-shoot threes.

And what's even more depressing is that the balls were actually shot quite squarely, but they either bounced out or hit the frame, and none of them went in.

The basket at home tonight was a bit unfriendly to him, and it was covered in front of him.

The game entered the intermission, and the players of both sides returned to the locker room to rest.

The commentary for this game was ESPN's Mike Breen and Reggie Miller. The two were also chatting about the situation in the first half of the two sides in the commentary booth.

"The Mavericks played very well, but the Spurs didn't seem to find their form at the beginning. One obvious thing is that Don, their most accurate three-pointer in the regular season, took 4 shots in the first half, but all of them failed. Missed."

Breen watched carefully.

"Maybe this is the difference between the playoffs and the regular season. As a shooter, it is not easy to perform well in the playoffs."

Miller's words have a say, which is one of the reasons for his popularity. He is the kind of player who rarely performs better in the playoffs than in the regular season.

"Maybe Terry's words got to him."

Brin said another possibility.

He still had some fresh memories of Tang Tian's performance in the NCAA Championships. It was unreasonable to say that Tang Tian's stage fright in the playoffs was a little bit unreasonable. In comparison, it was more likely that he was influenced by Terry.

"perhaps."

Miller nodded as well. Talking before NBA games is commonplace. Tang Tian didn't answer this time, maybe his mentality was really affected.

In the Spurs locker room, Popovich had a chat with Tang Tian after analyzing the halftime game.

The general content is to let him not worry about not being able to make a shot, but to make a shot if he has the chance.

Others saw that Tang Tian's performance was abnormal, but Popovich knew very well that Tang Tian simply didn't make a shot.

Tang Tian nodded.

After Popovich left, he took out the lucky bracelet that Olsen had given him before the game.

He is not a superstitious person. After all, he has experienced previous lives, and he knows that most things can only be achieved by his own efforts.

But he still believes that there is such a thing as luck in the world.

Otherwise, with so many people writing books, why would readers subscribe to your book?

Popovich knew it, and he knew it was pure bad luck not to score in the first half.

So now he can try this necklace made by Grandma Olsen to see if it can bring him good luck.

The intermission time is approaching, and the players leave the locker room one after another.

"What's this?"

Seeing the bracelet on Tang Tian's hand, Green couldn't help asking curiously.

The competition in the NBA is fierce. Apart from the protective gear, the only accessory is the scarf. Tang Tian's braided rope bracelet is too eye-catching.

"Lucky bracelet."

Tang Tian said with a smile.

Green was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help laughing, Tang Tian is really a bit unique.

Back from the intermission, the starting players of both sides returned to the court one after another.

Popovich asked Tang Tian to speak alone at halftime, which showed that he still trusted Tang Tian.

Back in the second half, Tang Tian was still in the starting lineup.

Kidd dribbled upfield and the Mavs took the lead in the second half.

The ball was given to Nowitzki, and Nowitzki turned around and shot back after receiving the ball.

"Shua!"

The old driver is still as steady as a dog, scoring the first offense in both halves.

"The Spurs are in trouble."

In the commentary seat on the sidelines, Breen spoke immediately.

A team is in good shape in the first half, but it will fall back more or less after the intermission.

But now the Mavericks are in unabated state. If the Spurs don't make any adjustments, this game will really be hard to say.

Although this is the first to play eighth in the Western Conference, the Mavericks are the defending champions.

If they win the first round, after the state improves, it is really not impossible for Black Eight.

The situation became very unfavorable for the Spurs.

"Go. spurs. go!"

The DJ on the sidelines also realized that the momentum was wrong, and also drove the fans to cheer for the home team.

Parker signaled to pull away and then gave the ball to Duncan. The tactics are difficult to open. At this time, it depends on personal ability.

It was Heywood who defended Duncan. Duncan held the ball high as if he was looking for a teammate, and suddenly turned around towards the baseline.

Heywood's reaction was a bit slow, and it was too late to block the block with his hand, and Duncan directly dunked with one hand.

Duncan dunked the ball that could layup, and Duncan lost his energy. It seemed that he also knew that the team needed to boost morale at this time.

The golf quotient and consciousness of "Stone Buddha" are absolutely historical.

"Defend! Defend!"

The atmosphere at the scene also rose a few days ago. After the Spurs switched from offense to defense, the decibels of cheers on the scene continued unabated.

The Spurs' defensive strength on the field continued to increase amid the cheers, and the Mavericks' tactics failed to fight.

The ball was finally given to Nowitzki.

The situation at this time was different from that in the second half. Time was limited, Nowitzki couldn't do too many technical moves, and Dior's personal defense was also in place.

"boom!"

Nowitzki's "Golden Rooster Independent" shot missed, Duncan stuck Haywood under the basket and took a defensive rebound.

With this offense and defense, the overall state of the Spurs in the second half has improved significantly.

Parker took the ball to the frontcourt, directly greeted Duncan's high pick-and-roll, broke through after breaking the ball, attracted double-teams, and distributed the ball back to Duncan.

Duncan hit the board from mid-range from the free throw line.

"boom!"

The ball hit the board and went into the frame, and "Stone Buddha" scored 4 points in a row after coming up in the second half!

The Spurs also took advantage of the trend to narrow the point difference to 5 points.

"Why isn't Tim old?"

Brin couldn't help but smile at this moment.

"Isn't he the No. 21 rookie?" Miller said with a smile.

Carter's breakthrough layup was blocked by Duncan's help defense. "Stone Buddha" showed absolute inside dominance after returning from halftime.

The audience cheered endlessly.

Tang Tian was not surprised. Duncan is only 35 years old now, and it is still too early for him to retire.

Parker went to the frontcourt and handed the ball to Duncan. The Mavericks were forced to help defend at this time, and Marion released Leonard to double-team the strong side.

Tang Tian reacted quickly at this time and moved directly to Leonard's side.

Leonard and Tang practiced together every day, knowing that they would directly mention the three-point line and do a pick-and-roll.

Duncan quickly split the ball after seeing it, and Tang Tian took the ball and made a three-pointer before making a shot.

The fans on the sidelines were all nervous.

If it were the regular season, they wouldn't be worried at all, and they would even feel that such an opportunity was a sure thing.

But tonight is different. Before tonight, Tang Tian made 0 of 4 shots from the outside line and felt cold.

Whether the touch has recovered after halftime is completely unknown.

When the ball is released, the handle looks very soft, and the trajectory after the release looks very positive.

But in fact, Tang Tian threw the same ball in the first half, but he didn't score in the end.

After passing the final point, the ball fell straight down.

"Shua!"

With a crisp sound, Tang Tian made his fifth three-pointer of the game and finally made it!

"This is you! Godfather!"

Fans shouted excitedly at the scene.

But this voice was quickly overshadowed by the cheers of others.

After Tang Tian scored a goal, he reached out and kissed the bracelet.

This lucky bracelet really brought him good luck.

The photographer on the sidelines captured this picture and quickly put it on the large LED screen at the scene.

Only then did the fans notice that Tang Tian was still wearing this thing.

After Olsen saw it, his heartbeat suddenly accelerated, and his face became rosy.

Tang Tian really put the bracelet on, and even kissed her!

Recalling that the two didn't kiss each other on the Santa Monica beach before, Tang Tian's kiss was like kissing her.

There were also spectators on the sidelines who took pictures of this scene. This action of kissing the bracelet is likely to become one of the highlights after the game.

With Tang Tian's three-pointer, the Spurs played a 7-2 offensive in the second half and narrowed the point difference to only 2 points.

Nowitzki's low catch and back play, this ball is critical for the Mavericks.

Leonard then assisted in the double-team, and Nowitzki also passed the ball to the middle.

However, Leonard has become wary after suffering a loss. At this time, he showed his defensive ability.

The super long wingspan and big hands directly cut off Nowitzki's pass abruptly!

The Spurs' defense counterattacked, and Leonard strode forward.

Kidd assisted in the defense at this time, and Leonard attacked the big and small opportunities in the frontcourt.

Although Kidd is old, his strength lies there and he successfully interfered with Leonard's fast break layup.

Leonard grabbed the offensive rebound again and was almost intercepted by Kidd. At this time, he glanced at Tang Tian, ​​who was late on the right, and threw the ball over.

Tang Tian catches the ball and has a three-point chance.

Without hesitation, he voted directly.

The eyes of the fans on the scene once again showed expectations. They made 0 of 4 shots in the first half. Can they make consecutive shots in the second half?

"Shua!"

Tang Tian quickly gave the answer.

able!

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