The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 86 Going The Distance
Stockton's unexpected departure is a huge loss for the bulldogs.

The player who replaced Stockton was defender Mark Matthews, who is far inferior to Stockton in terms of individual ability.

Gan Guoyang told Matthews, "Mark! I'll be in control of the ball. Your job is to focus on defense. Don't worry about anything else, understand?"

Matthews glanced at Coach Bellman, who nodded and said, "Listen to Forrest, let him handle the ball."

Stockton said, "Mark, you have to hold on. I'll be back soon."

Matthews nodded vigorously. He knew he bore a heavy responsibility; this was a competition he could only participate in once in his life.

Even the smallest mistake could cause the team's entire season's efforts to go to waste.

The game continued. Although Matthews was not as good as Stockton overall, he was 6 feet 4 inches tall, a big guard, and he had a lot of energy.

Once he's on the court, he only has one thing on his mind: defend relentlessly and keep a close eye on Franklin or Michael Young. He doesn't need to worry about anything else.

If a player can focus on doing only one thing on the field, his performance will generally not be too bad.

Many players who lack the necessary skills try to attack and defend at the same time, which leads to them losing their composure and ultimately performing poorly.

Matthews didn't think about anything else; his eyes were only on the Cougars' perimeter players. He didn't need to worry about Agan, who was inside.

He tried his best to block Michael Young's shot, but because he was taller, he interfered with Young's shot.

Yang's shooting touch gradually cooled off in the second half. Gan Guoyang grabbed a defensive rebound and dribbled the ball across half-court.

When Gan Guoyang first came to San Francisco to start playing basketball, he would practice dribbling the ball on the complex streets every day to develop his feel for the game. Over the years, he has practiced diligently without missing a single day.

In this era, player positions are clearly defined. Centers rarely even dribble past half-court to organize an offense, let alone leave the three-second zone to initiate an attack.

Gan Guoyang, however, was not bound by such rules at all. Although his dribbling skills were not top-notch, it would not be easy for the Cougars to steal the ball from the outside.

He bent over to protect the ball, advanced to the frontcourt, and passed it to McPhee, setting a screen for her.

He then cut down to the three-second zone, McPhee made a through pass, and Gan Guoyang received the ball and slammed it home with one hand!

The bulldogs have taken the lead!

With seven minutes left in the game, the Bulldogs took the lead!

The Cougars clearly hadn't expected the Bulldogs to have a center dribble across half-court and start their attack; their defense was caught off guard.

Stockton excitedly stood up from the bench and waved a towel.

In a bar in San Francisco, thousands of miles away, Nate Thurmond jumped up with joy and cheered with his family and friends.

Cheers erupted in Chinatown. Even the brothels closed early that night.

In the more remote Hawaii, Wilt Chamberlain nearly threw the two busty beauties he was holding out of his arms.

Hakeem Olajuwon's previously calm and rock-like face began to show signs of distress, a hint of ferocity flashing in his eyes. He grabbed the ball and slammed it hard on the floor, clearly very dissatisfied with the defense he had just received.

The two sides began to engage in the most arduous tug-of-war.

Without Stockton, the Bulldogs' offense was crippled; it was already quite good that Gan Guoyang could dribble the ball across half-court.

But their full-court press defense began to work, disrupting the Cougars' offense several times.

Under the repeated hammer blows, the Cougars' excellent outside shooting touch at the start of the game has completely disappeared.

But Hakeem Olajuwon was like a mad beast. He scored twice under the basket, once by pushing past Gan Guoyang to score a layup, and the other time by grabbing an offensive rebound and dunking.

Gan Guoyang responded with a hook shot and a turnaround jumper, and the competition between the two sides became fierce.

The temperature in Kingdome Stadium was slightly higher due to the heat generated by the players running around, and both players and spectators were covered in sweat, with steam rising from the entire field.

But no one left their seats, and those who needed to use the restroom tried their best to hold it in. With less than a minute left in the game, the score was tied at 66-66.

The two teams' scores were neck and neck, alternating each other, clearly indicating a battle that would continue until the very last moment.

With possession in the hands of the Cougars, Coach Lewis called a timeout to plan the crucial attack.

"Guys, even if it kills us, we have to keep up with the opponent! Defend the paint, don't rush out too much. Protect the defensive rebounds, don't give them a second chance! Collapse our defense, collapse it! Don't let them penetrate to the basket! Don't foul unnecessarily, guard your men!"

Berman was shouting loudly on the bench. His voice was hoarse and his eyes were red. Since the team entered the national competition, he hadn't slept well for a single night and had to stay up all night every day.

He knew in his heart that this might be his only chance to get close to the NCAA championship.

Players like Gan will never appear again.

The buzzer sound heralded the arrival of the final battle.

Houston has run out of timeouts, while Gonzaga has one last timeout left.

Stockton replaced Mark Matthews after receiving treatment. Matthews had completed his task perfectly and was almost exhausted when he sat on the bench.

He couldn't help but admire Stockton and Gan Guoyang; their bodies were truly superhuman.

Houston took the ball out of bounds, but Gonzaga's defense was exceptionally tight, making it almost impossible for them to take the ball.

Hakeem Olajuwon came out to receive the ball, jumped up, caught it, and held onto it tightly, preventing Gonzaga's players from stealing it.

Michael Young came up to him, took the ball from Olajuwon, and after repeated dribbling and screens, he drove in from the right 45-degree angle.

Gan Guoyang was waiting for him inside.

The two jumped almost simultaneously, and Gan Guoyang dared not press down; he dared not commit a foul.

He stretched out his arm with all his might to disrupt Yang's offensive vision, and Yang could only use a high lob to avoid Gan Guoyang's block.

"Bang!" The ball hit the rim, but didn't go in!
But Hakeem Olajuwon, who was there to receive the pass, leaped high, grabbed the offensive rebound, and was about to dunk again.

Anderson immediately slapped the ball away with a fierce blow.

The referee blew his whistle, calling a foul on Anderson, and Olajuwon went to the free-throw line.

Gan Guoyang looked up at the timer; there were 2.8 seconds left in the game.

Anderson had just lost a crucial rebound, but Gan Guoyang still patted Anderson on the shoulder and comforted him, "You've done your best, good foul."

Anderson fouled Olajuwon, sending him to the free-throw line; it's better than him getting dunked on.

Under immense pressure, Olajuwon made his first free throw.

"Hakeem Olajuwon made a crucial free throw, and now they lead 67-66 by one point, and the chance to win is in their hands."

The entire stadium held its breath. If Olajuwon made his second shot, they would be invincible in a game without three-pointers.

With 2.8 seconds left, it would be incredibly difficult for the Bulldogs to score.

Hakeem Olajuwon took a deep breath; he had never been so nervous in his life.

His performance tonight was nothing short of perfect. Although his stats weren't as good as Gan Guoyang's, he maximized his impact and gave the Cougars the lead.

The referee passed the ball to him, and the ball felt unusually heavy.

Suddenly, he heard Gan Guoyang's voice in his ear. Gan Guoyang had been talking to Olajuwon all night, but Olajuwon had suppressed himself, turned into a stone, and hadn't heard a word.

But he heard it, heard it clearly.

"Akim, if you miss that free throw, I'll hit the game-winner."

The voice was cold and clear, like a sharp sword, piercing into Olajuwon's heart.

One second later, Hakeem Olajuwon took the free throw, and the instant he released the ball, he knew it was too short.

Hakeem Olajuwon attempted to drive to the basket for a putback, but Gan Guoyang intercepted him first, grabbed the rebound, and immediately called a timeout.

With two seconds left, the bulldog has one last chance.

Hakeem Olajuwon walked off the court with a nervous heart, glancing up at the scoreboard and the timer.

He felt a slight fear; would they be utterly defeated?
Even the hardest stone was eventually chipped open.

However, the chances of victory still largely lie with the cougars; a decisive win won't be easy.

The atmosphere in the stadium was extremely tense. According to CBS's post-game statistics, the number of people watching the game across the United States reached a record 4000 million at that moment.

Berman scoured the tactics manual for a final attack tactic that had been practiced many times but never used in official matches, and handed everything over to the players.

"This is, this is the last goal, our last goal of the season."

After giving his tactical instructions, Bellman's voice trembled. He felt like he was about to faint, but he was holding on.

The referee blew the whistle, and both sides returned to the court. The Bulldogs players unusually lined up at the free-throw line, a deceptive formation.

The paint is wide open, which means they have a chance to cut to the basket and score.

Hakeem Olajuwon kept a close eye on the basket, along with Gan Guoyang, who was standing in the middle.

With two seconds left, they will likely use a high lob to the basket to allow Gan Guoyang to score.

The coach said they had to stop them from lobbing the ball to the basket, and Hakeem Olajuwon bent his legs, ready to run towards the basket.

Without hesitation, the referee passed the ball to Stockton for him to serve.

Franklin desperately tried to distract Stockton, who only had five seconds to make a decision.

He knew that the opportunity to pass the ball was fleeting, leaving him almost no time to think or hesitate.

The referee blew the whistle, and everyone started moving.

Anderson and McPhee drew Houston's defense as they moved toward the basket.

Forrest Gump!

Forrest Gump stood at the top of the arc, and he was empty!

Stockton immediately delivered a through pass, which sailed over the fingertips of Franklin and Michael Young.

The ball flew smoothly into Gan Guoyang's hands, and Gan Guoyang, standing a step outside the arc, jumped and shot!

Hakeem Olajuwon had no idea that Gan Guoyang would run to the top of the key to receive the ball and shoot from distance.

Time seemed to stand still, but in reality it passed very quickly as the ball hurtled towards the basket.

It flew straight to the center without any hindrance, as if it had always belonged there.

At that moment, Gan Guoyang felt that the world was completely silent.

It felt like arriving at a tranquil, pure white plateau.

All he could hear was the "swish" of the basketball going through the net and the sound of his own heartbeat.

Goal! We won!

He heard his own rapid breathing and saw his teammates and fans rushing towards him like madmen.

A sea of ​​people.

Hakeem Olajuwon covered his face and cried.

Coach Berman appears to have fainted.

Stockton was crying too.

Gan Guohui saw his father in the flag, and he smiled happily.

Many people were pushing and shoving him, their mouths agape as they asked him something.

But Gan Guoyang didn't know what they were talking about, or what they were actually saying.
Until he heard a voice calling to him:
"Forrest Gump! Forrest Gump! Forrest Gump!"

He heard a sound, and he felt like his eardrums were about to explode.

The endless stream of questions from the reporters filled my ears.

"Gan, was that last shot part of the coach's strategy?"

Will you go to the NBA? Or will you stay in the NCAA for another year and try to win back-to-back championships?

"Gonzaga went undefeated in this NCAA tournament, creating an undefeated legend, and you..."

"I don't know... I don't know anything..."

"Forrest Gump!"

A girl squeezed through the crowd and came to the vicinity of Gan Guoyang; it was Wang Fuxi.

When Gan Guoyang saw her, he reached out and pulled her close, and the two leaned against each other.

Gan Guoyang looked at Wang Fuxi, whose thick, black hair was loose and messy.

"Where's your hat? Where did your hat go?"

"I...I don't know, it seems like it's lost again..."

"What? What did you say?"

I said... I said I love you!

"Speak louder, I can't hear you!"

I said, I love you!

Gan Guoyang was stunned.

Then the two embraced tightly amidst the boundless crowd.

(End of Volume Two, "Off the Wall".)
(End of this chapter)