no shortcuts in basketball

Chapter 54
When they arrived in Detroit, Xu Yong's life suddenly became richer.

First of all, they have been interviewed by the media twice as much as before, or to be more precise, they have changed from [even attention] to [focus].

The reason for this is, on the one hand, because in the third and final stage, the team itself will get greater exposure.

On the other hand, it is the new draft prediction list.

The Devils now have three lottery picks. Even if those media don't rush to report, scouts will pay more attention to them.

Then they were dragged to shoot a team promotional video for the Final Four.

It is worth mentioning that, unlike the other three teams with deep backgrounds, they are the only "dark horse" in this year's semi-finals because their ancestors are not rich.

Therefore, when shooting promotional videos, they became the objects of "care" by reporters when taking pictures.

This feeling of being the center of attention makes them feel uncomfortable, but also very enjoyable.

Finally, while preparing for the game in the past few days, a piece of news from Michigan State University made the upcoming semifinals full of controversy.

"Nobody can beat us in Michigan, where we're going to win our third championship."

These confident remarks were uttered by a first-year freshman of the team when the reporter interviewed Michigan State University for training.

This person's name is Draymond Green.

Green is a four-star high school student in the same class as DeRozan. DeRozan ranked fifth and he ranked 5th.

As a rookie, he has a very low sense of presence in the regular season, averaging 11 minutes per game, and his performance of 3.3 points and 3.3 rebounds can only be regarded as a marginal player on the bench.

But since the start of the tournament, Green has earned himself playing time with tough defense and aggressive play.

In the four games in the past two stages, he averaged 21 minutes per game, contributed 64 points and 9 rebounds per game with a shooting rate of 5.8%, and became the well-deserved sixth man of the team.

Especially in the conference finals match against the top-seeded University of Louisville, he was responsible for defending the opponent's top scorer, Earl Clark. Not only did he complete the task well, he also scored 6 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. , played a personal masterpiece of the championship.

It can be said that without him, Michigan State University would not be able to come to the third stage, which also made his self-confidence extremely inflated.

Of course, there is a background for him to say such words. When the reporter interviewed him, he asked questions about defense, and the words kept reminding that the four-man group of the Devils would enter the NBA after the championship game.

So Green's original words are: "I don't care what they are called, Earl Clark, or James Harden, or Xu Yong or whatever, no one can beat us in Michigan, we will be here Won the third championship trophy."

However, the consistent style of the media is naturally to remove some unnecessary words, how come UC.

And Green is not blindly confident. In addition to having confidence in the team's strength, another more important reason is "home field advantage."

Detroit is in Michigan, and Michigan State University is also in Michigan. The weather, location, and people are harmonious. This is the same situation that Arizona State University experienced before.

After Green's words were reported by the media, they quickly ignited the enthusiasm of Michigan fans.

The last time a Michigan State team won the championship dates back to the 1999-2000 season, and that season happened to be Michigan State University's championship.

Nine years of reincarnation, winning the cup at home, everything is the best arrangement.

Even Michigan State University's biggest alumnus, NBA Hall of Famer "Magic" Johnson, expressed support after hearing Green's remarks, announcing that he would come to the scene to support his alma mater.

This kind of scene also made the NCAA organizers happy. Although the attention of the tournament has been very high in the semi-finals stage, it is like money in your pocket. Who would want too much?
The stage, lighting and sound are ready, time: April 4th; location: Detroit Ford Stadium; leading role: Michigan State University; supporting role: Arizona State University, a good show is on.

The degree of attention in the third stage is also unprecedented.

When Xu Yong came out of the player tunnel, he was also shocked by the battle in front of him.

Ford Stadium is the home of the NFL team Lions, which can accommodate 8 people to watch the game, and now it is full of seats.

8 people, and he only saw so many people when he participated in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games last year.

The dense crowd, tens of thousands of people watching at the same time, and the sense of encirclement that can't be seen at a glance, this is no longer a matter of thin air, but a real feeling that I am an ant on the pot.

And nearly two-thirds of the crowd were Michigan fans, which was even more exaggerated than when they were at the University of Phoenix Stadium.

Xu Yong quickly adjusted his mentality, and after seeing his teammates who were still in shock, he called everyone together.

"They say no one can beat them in Michigan, but we're not 'little people.'"

Xu Yong used a relaxed way of speaking at this time, and the team members couldn't help laughing when they heard it.

"Nobody" has two interpretations in English, one is "no one", and the other is "little people".

Xu Yong's words cleverly cracked Green's primary formula, and at the same time relieved the original nervousness of the players.

"Guys, beat them at the beginning!"

After seeing his teammates relax, Xu Yong raised his hand and shouted again.

"Come on, Devils!"

The team members then folded their hands together and shouted the slogan again.

After shouting, they no longer paid attention to the surrounding environment, but focused on warming up, with high fighting spirit on their faces.

They didn't know the original intention of Green's words, but what they heard was Green's arrogance.

A first-year player speaks so loudly, they have to beat each other up hard.

After the opening ceremony, the starters of both sides appeared one after another.

Travis Walton, Lurin Lucas, Delvin Roy, Remar Morgan, Goran Sutton, this is the starting lineup for the MSU Spartans.

Glasser, Harden, DeRozan, Xu Yong, Ayers, this is the starting lineup of the Arizona State University Devils.

Sandek replaced Cooksix with Glasser in the starting lineup tonight. The height of the lineup has been reduced, but the speed and control ability have been improved.

It's also against the Michigan State Spartans.

The Spartans' tactics are very simple, which is to defend and counterattack, even press the whole court, and then rely on an excellent rotation lineup to exert pressure.

Before Michigan State University was able to win against the University of Louisville, it relied on defense to limit the scoring of the University of Louisville, which is known for its offense, to 52 points.

So the key to the game is to see if the Devils can penetrate the Spartans' defense.

Once they can't do it and are dragged into a war of attrition by the opponent, then they will be the next University of Louisville.

So "beating the opponent at the beginning" is also Sandek's strategic thinking.

The game starts immediately, Als and Sutton's jump ball in the middle circle.

Amidst the cheers of 8 people, Sutton won the first chance for the Spartans to attack.

Then the Spartans immediately showed their poor positional offensive ability.

Both offensive and defensive teams are not common in the NBA, let alone in the NCAA.

The students have little physical ability, so they can only focus on one aspect of offense and defense. Since the Spartans are good at defense, they are naturally not good at offense.

Although they have a lot of pick-and-roll coordination, because they have no offensive strength, the Devils can switch defenses infinitely, which prevents them from getting easy shots. In the end, the ball was killed in Lucas' hands, and Lucas forced a breakthrough Xu Yong's layup was directly pressed on the backboard.

Xu Yong took the rebound, turned around and threw it to Glasser on the outside.

The Devils took the lead in playing a defensive counterattack, and Glasser advanced to the three-point line in the frontcourt for a two-on-one, and directly threw the ball into the sky.

"Oh!"

DeRozan followed up and soared into the air, and the opening game was an alley-oop dunk!
Deafening cheers from the Arizona fans erupted instantly.

Although the number of fans is at a disadvantage, the shocking opening method of the Devils is enough to ignite their enthusiasm.

A gap of 2 crickets, what a gap!
The Devils scored, and the Spartans could only play positions.

But this time they scored. Although they still didn't have a good chance to run, their white center Golan Sutton fired from the outside and hit a three-pointer against Ayers.

Sutton is the only player on the Spartans to be selected by the NBA in history, with the 50th pick in the second round.

This three-pointer gave the Spartans a chance, a chance to show their defensive energy.

Glasser advanced to the frontcourt and was immediately flanked by the Spartans. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and gave the ball to Harden.

But Harden didn't get an open shot, either, because the Spartans returned quickly after the flank.

This defensive style is also a key factor in their ability to reach the final four.

However, they soon discovered that something was wrong.

Because the moment Harden touched the ball, the biggest advantage of the Devils was manifested. All five of their starters could handle the ball!
Including center Ayers, who also has the ability to cope.

Especially when the ball comes to Harden's hands, it doesn't work for double-team recovery moves.

Because if you dare to pinch, the speed of his ball will make it too late for you to recover it.

"Shh!"

Xu Yong received Harden's pass from the outside, hit a three-pointer with ecstasy, and immediately returned an answerball.

The Devils don't even play the pick and roll!

Then, the game showed a one-sided trend in the Spartans' repeated defensive failures and botched positional offenses.

When the most powerful venom of the poisonous snake loses its damage, it is like meeting a flat-headed brother, and the only thing left is to become spicy.

The game has just played 5 minutes, 17 to 7, and the Devils have extended their lead to double digits.

Before the game: Nobody can beat MSU at Michigan State.

During the game: What kind of chicken and tile dog, vulnerable to a single blow!
It is not surprising that the game will reach this situation.

Because in the previous invitational stage, Michigan State University played an invitational game against the University of North Carolina. The result of that game was that Michigan State University lost by a full 35 points and was defeated by the University of North Carolina.

The rhythm of that game was very similar to this one. Because of the defensive strategy of flanking and recovering, when there are multiple offensive strengths on the field, you will not know who to focus on, and you dare not let anyone go. As a result, he was constantly mobilized by his opponents like a headless fly, exhausted.

What?Why can Michigan State University reach the final four like this?
Because their luck is good.

The luck here does not mean that their opponents in the division are weak, but that they have never encountered North Carolina or Arizona State's starting opponents with multiple strengths before this.

Or you can also understand that Arizona State University is one of Michigan State University's nemesis.

Of course, because everyone has never encountered the tournament before, the real effect is only known after the game.

And it turns out that Sandek's adjustments are very masterful, and this opening is very quintessential.

At 7 minutes into the game, the score was 7-21.

This is going to cost halftime!
At this time, Michigan State University made substitution adjustments, and Darrell Summers, Chris Allen and Draymond Green came off the bench.

　You can see that the eggplant has grown again, and the length can be switched freely~ It was fed by the ticket~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)