Champion, please stay!

Chapter 33.B...BIG-YI!

Calhoun claims he has 24 ways to deal with big centers, but without a doubt, he's just bragging.

But he certainly had a lot of tricks up his sleeve when dealing with the Amazings. During the years with Okafor, he took a hard-core approach, focusing on mid-range and close-range defense. Last season, with Marcus Johnson, Curtis Carey, Martin Gagné, and other muscular seniors still around, plus Yad and Thabeet, he engaged in physical battles and tackles, forcing Jeff Green to miss wide-open three-pointers. The season before last, when they had six near-NBA players, he used his talent to dominate them with various fancy moves…

In the mid-90s, influenced by the NBA's increasing demand for physical centers, the Amazings developed a center named Jahidi White, who was 206 cm tall and weighed 130 kg. Nicknamed "Big Buffalo," he was extremely aggressive in half-court defense and was Allen Iverson's most solid support. In the 94-95 season, White, as a freshman, helped the Amazings reach the Sweet Sixteen, and in his sophomore year, he helped them reach the Elite Eight. After the Huskies were crushed by the Iverson + White combination in the 94-95 season, Calhoun introduced the "Running Dogs" tactic the following year.

This tactic not only allowed the Huskies to successfully avenge their loss to the Amazings in the divisional battle, but it was also adopted by other teams. In the Elite Eight, the UMass Militants, who made it to the quarterfinals for the first time in their history, used the same tactic to upset the Amazings. That was the first and only time in UMass history that they made it to the Final Four. Marcus Camby also defeated players whose individual performances were superior to his, such as Iverson, Duncan, and Ray Allen, and won the Naismith Award, Wooden Award, and National Player of the Year that season.

Veteran commentator Hubie Brown was deeply impressed by this.

The first principle of this tactic is to play fast on the offensive end.

Sure enough, Hibbert had just sprinted back to the backcourt when the opposing team came running. Before he could even have a chance to fight Thabeet, he had to run back to the frontcourt again.

However, Wallace was not affected by the opponent's actions, and he slowly advanced the ball when receiving the serve, steadily running down the clock.

John Thompson Jr. on the sidelines breathed a sigh of relief. He recognized the tactic that had driven him crazy back then. With Allen Iverson in his team, he swept through the first three rounds, only to be upset in the quarterfinals. What drove him crazy was the final quarterfinal rankings: the champion Kentucky Wildcats were first, and the Amazings were third! The Minutemen, who had upset them, were only seventh in the quarterfinals.

Fortunately, their three perimeter players are no longer as quick to match up against the opponent as Allen Iverson was back then. However, the opponent played so fast on offense, but then slowed down to match their pace after retreating to the backcourt... Damn Calhoun, he's really weird!

The Huskies' ability to change pace is thanks to Dyson. This sixth man always ignores everyone else when he's playing one-on-one, and Calhoun emphasizes defense. Over time, everyone got used to it.

With nearly half the offensive time gone, Sap received the ball at the top of the arc and continued to run pick-and-roll offense with Ewing against Yi Shui's defense.

Patrick Ewing Jr. was criticized by the commentators again, this time by another good-for-nothing star's father: "Even if he couldn't overpower the opponent, Ewing should have gone inside and pushed Brook in. Doesn't he know that Brook is the defensive anchor of the Huskies? He hasn't inherited a single bit of his father's basketball IQ..."

Hubie Brown, standing nearby, strongly suspected that his partner was emphasizing that his son at least had basketball IQ.

Sap, who had the ball, was also extremely frustrated by Ewing. Fortunately, he had top-notch ball-handling skills and successfully broke free from the opponent's zone defense. With 5 seconds left on the shot clock, he passed the ball to Hibbert, who had moved to the left side of the free-throw line.

Hibbert takes a mid-range shot... and it goes in!
No one is filling that position. Compared to Hibbert's mid-range shooting percentage of less than two shots per game with a 35% success rate, his passing threat of 2.2 assists per game is what the Husky team values ​​more.

As the game transitioned, Yi Shui received the ball at the right 45-degree angle. He said to Sap, who was in defensive stance, "Jay, I'm going to shoot... I'm really going to shoot!"

Sap looked at Yi Shui, who was slightly bent over and catching the ball with one hand, and didn't believe his nonsense at all... You're really going to shoot!

Yi Shui once again pulled up and shot, but this time Sap didn't lose focus and immediately jumped and reached out... but it didn't work.

With his superior height, wingspan, and jumping ability, Yi Shui, who had an advantage in all aspects of physical attributes, jumped with full force and completely ignored Sap, focusing on shooting.

This time he didn't get the hot hand like last time, but he was already in good form tonight, and the ball he threw went in the basket again!
John Thompson Jr., watching the clock tick down to 26, grunted in exasperation. Sure enough, it was that ridiculous '10-second offense'! These huskies, they really are trying to outmaneuver them again!

But he didn't panic because of his past painful experience. His current trio of outside shooting talents from the 05-07 cohort are all incredibly stable and unlikely to be affected by the opponent.

On the court, the trio of Wallace, Sapp, and Freeman on the perimeter were indeed not in a hurry. They didn't know about the "running puppy" tactic, after all, it was 12 years ago. At that time, they were still in elementary school and had never even heard of Georgetown University and UConn. But they could guess that the other side wanted to change their offensive and defensive rhythm, so they played more steadily.

But they remain calm, while others are anxious!
Wallace shielded the ball on the left side of the top arc for a few seconds, and was just about to signal Sap that he could move out when he saw Hibbert move directly to the left mid-range to ask for the ball!
Thabeet showed no intention of following out; he remained crouched under the basket. If the ball were passed to Sap and Ewing for a pick-and-roll, the two would be trapped in a zone defense and might not be able to pass the ball out.

Wallace had no choice but to pass the ball to Hibbert.

Hibbert, who had just scored a goal, confidently took a shot... and missed!
Hibbert has a 35% mid-range shooting percentage, but all of them are open mid-range shots. He makes less than two out of every five open mid-range shots per game, showing absolutely no consistency!

However, the Amazing Team did not allow the Huskies to launch a counterattack. After Hibbert took the shot, he immediately retreated to defend. Although he wanted to score, the primary survival rule as Georgetown's center was ingrained in his instincts.

In the transition between offense and defense, Yi Shui received the ball at a 45-degree angle on the right side. Before he could even speak, the opponent immediately pressed towards him after he received the ball. He immediately made a move, swinging his right hand, which was holding the ball with one hand, backward dribbling behind his back, creating a beautiful rhythm difference, creating perfect positioning, and driving straight to the inside!

Facing Ewing's help defense, Yi Shui jumped close to him, pulled back to avoid Hibbert's help defense, and threw the ball... but it missed.

Yad, who was following up from the baseline, grabbed the offensive rebound, but was disrupted by Hibbert. Sap, who had come in, secured the rebound.

Yi Shui felt this was his mistake, so he focused on Ewing and didn't notice the opponent with the protective barrier coming from behind.

As he retreated on defense, he recalled the feeling as if the sky itself had been enveloped, a feeling similar to facing Thabeet in an intra-team scrim, but even more difficult to deal with!

There's a chance to draw a foul against Thabeet, but Hibbert's help defense doesn't give him any chance to draw a foul. He moves up and jumps, but his jump is straight up and down!

Although the shot missed, Calhoun on the sidelines was still quite satisfied. It was so close, and including the second-chance opportunity, it took less than 15 seconds to get the opposing center running again. However, compared to the opposing John Thompson Jr., who was focused on the 'running dog' tactic, Calhoun didn't really value this little trick. It was just a strategy to wear down the opponent; as long as it was executed, its effectiveness depended on luck. The game itself was still about limiting the opponent's scoring and getting more points for himself.

When the Amazing Team was on offense, Hibbert, though prone to inexplicable overconfidence, would calm down after missing a shot. When his teammates initiated the offense, he would effectively hold off the opposing center, who was taller than him, in the paint, creating better pick-and-roll opportunities for his teammates.

Sap continued to use screens to break through, and facing Yad who switched defense, he stopped suddenly in the mid-range, made a fake catch motion, and the moment Yad jumped, he pulled away with his right hand that was about to grab the ball, while his left hand, which had already made the move, pushed the ball to the right, took a step to the side, jumped, and released a mid-range shot... and it went in!
Yi Shui, who was switching to guard Ewing, was practically drooling at the sight. This mid-range, rhythmic style of play was exactly what he had been dreaming of!

This world is so unfair! Why do players with average athleticism always have such good rhythm? He's so handsome, and he's been developing his rhythm-based style for two months, and he's only just gotten the hang of it?

If Sap knew what Yi Shui was thinking, he would definitely be tempted to draw his sword. He started practicing mid-range rhythm offense when he was 10 years old, and it took him ten years to develop his current mid-range rhythm shooting skills!
Stimulated by the opponent's pick-and-roll offense and quick pull-up jump shot, Yi Shui, after transitioning to the frontcourt, stood at the left 45-degree angle... with his hands on his hips, closed the door, and let Puya pass!

This was quite unexpected for the Husky team players. According to the preparation materials, whenever the Husky team encountered a team with a good zone defense, Yi Shui would start by going all out, with several rounds of one-on-one attacks and passes. Only when their stamina dropped significantly in a short period of time and they could not maintain offensive stability would they put their hands on their hips.

However, they are, after all, the strongest defensive team in Division I, ranking first in defensive efficiency, second in opponent field goal percentage, and sixth in opponent scoring. They quickly adjusted their zone defense formation.

Price initiated an attack using Yad's screen, but his three-pointers and mid-range shots were completely blocked, and he had no space to drive to the basket. He lobbed the ball to Yad, who was cutting in, but Hibbert had already come in to help defend when Yad received the ball at close range.

But instead of retreating, Yad took a step forward and jumped to meet Hibbert!
Hippo also positioned himself perfectly and leaped high into the air!

The two clashed in the air. Although Hibbert weighed 125 kilograms, the two-meter-tall Yad weighed 113 kilograms. He was just as strong as Hibbert when he charged forward and forced a layup over him!

This shot was incredibly aggressive, and the Harry Gamper Arena, which had already been ignited by Yi Shui's two three-pointers at the start of the game, was boiling over again!
8-4, the Huskies are leading by 4 points again!
The offense and defense switched, and Hilbert, frustrated by being overpowered, blocked Thabit in the low position.

This time, Hibbert didn't need to ask for the ball; Wallace was already ready to pass.

The public's impression of Hibbert as calm and low-key comes entirely from the previous three seasons, when the Marvel Cinematic Universe had the talented all-around player Jeff Green, who kept Hibbert's restless heart in check.

Since Jeff Green left, Hibbert has played far less calmly this season than last season, with his field goal percentage dropping from 70% in his junior year to 59%. This is because after making a mid-range shot, he becomes confident and takes another shot, and after being outscored by the opponent, he always tries to retaliate with a one-on-one attack.

John Thompson Jr. could only tolerate this; after more than a dozen games in the preseason and regional competitions, his teammates had gotten used to it.

Anyway, they have the best defense in the country, so conceding a few more goals each game doesn't matter. Compared to Hibbert's contributions on the defensive end, this loss is nothing.

Moreover, among giant centers of this height, Hibbert's low-post offensive skills are indeed outstanding, and his one-on-one success rate is not low; otherwise, he wouldn't have been called 'BLACK YAO' in the Associated Press's team analysis.

Sure enough, he received the ball in the low post, turned left, and faked a move, tricking Thabeet into taking half a step back towards the baseline!
Hibbert pulled back his racket and turned to the right. The movement wasn't particularly fast, but it was enough for him to lift the ball before Thabeet could close the gap. He attempted a hook shot... but it was still too slow!
"Snapped"

Yi Shui, who charged into the paint from the top arc, slapped away the ball that Hibbert had just hooked out!

The ball hit the backboard with a "thud" and bounced back face-first.

Hibbert was completely unprepared for the block; the ball flew over his head and he didn't even reach out. He was stunned.

Yi Shui, who had just landed, excitedly reached out and grabbed the ball, launching a counterattack... and they charged forward!
During the counter-attack, Yi Shui passed the ball to Price, and Yad had already rushed forward. The Price-Yad combination attracted the double-team of the opposing point guard Wallace, small forward Freeman, and power forward Ewing. Price passed the ball back to the right 45-degree angle.

Sap, who was chasing Yi Shui, retreated to the right free-throw line distance to prevent Yi Shui from cutting to receive the pass. Unexpectedly, Yi Shui stopped outside the three-point line, and the opposing point guard passed the ball to him!
As Sap rushed forward with his arms outstretched, he thought to himself, 'No! This shouldn't be! That's not how you play!'

But when he rushed in front of the other party, the other party still jumped up, and he didn't even have time to jump up with him. His outstretched hand looked like he was handing the other party a gun mount... For Yi Shui, this really was a 'gun mount' in the real sense!
'Tower Sniper' judged this shot as a catch-and-shoot pull-up! And just like the first shot, the height advantage triggered a hot hand effect by chance!

As the ball flew out and landed in the net, splashing through the net, the fans who were already cheering for the counterattack erupted in even louder cheers!

“BIG YI…BIG YI…BIG YI…”

The fans, along with several international students who appeared to be from the same country as Yi Shui, started chanting this nickname.

In American sports, "BIG" is often used as a nickname added before an athlete's surname. Someone starts shouting it, and then the people around them start shouting it, and then the whole stadium starts shouting it.

The NBA team management and scouts present were also thrilled by this round!
On the defensive end, he accurately predicted the opponent's center's footwork to make a block, and on the fast break, he received the ball and chased down a three-pointer... His offensive and defensive talents are simply drool-worthy!

Hibbert, the 'best center in America,' actually had a pretty bad start to the game...

However, Yi Shui, who was being chanted by the entire stadium, felt as if the sky had fallen.

This doesn't mean "Da Yi" at all. When he entered the stadium, he heard several rich international students sitting in the first row pointing at the number on his jersey and calling him "Brother B Yi"!
Requesting monthly votes! Requesting recommendation votes!


(End of this chapter)