ctnovel Chapter 17: Another explosive halftime attack!
Chapter 17: Another explosive halftime attack!
Zeng Zhen's body swayed in the wind like a willow branch, but the entire movement, from receiving the ball to releasing it, was as smooth as flowing water.
The arc drawn by the basketball seemed to be full of elegance.
Stewart, who was responsible for defending Zeng Zhen, was completely numb and felt a headache coming on.
He kept chasing Zeng Zhen at high speed the whole time, without slacking off at all.
Zeng Zhen is the kind of player who will shoot if given even the slightest opening.
This shot had an extremely high difficulty level, yet he still maintained his shooting consistency.
"Zeng Zhen's positioning is very sharp, which puts Kansas State University's defense on the defensive very passively," McBreen said excitedly. "This is the awareness of a top shooter."
"I heard Reggie is paying close attention to this guy. He says this guy will make it to the NBA, and I agree. Zeng's shot is too consistent. He has the potential to become a top shooter," Mark Jackson said.
Watching Zeng Zhen make another difficult three-pointer, Hao Wei took a deep breath and wrote in his notebook: "Absolutely a super shooter."
Hao Wei reaffirmed Zeng Zhen's talent in shooting. As a senior scout who has seen many players, Hao Wei has a very sharp eye.
Quick release, steady rhythm, standard hand shape, and good positioning...
These are all standard features of top shooters, and Zeng Zhen has them all.
On the court, Kansas State University, after a difficult passing sequence, continued to pass the ball to Beasley.
Zeng Zhen and Westbrook continued to double-team Beasley, forcing Beasley to pass the ball to Stewart on the perimeter.
Stewart had an open look and quickly took a jump shot.
This is where the difference between Zeng Zhen and Stewart became apparent. In such high-pressure games, Stewart's three-point shooting was inconsistent.
The basketball slammed heavily against the rim and bounced off.
"Russell, you!"
Seeing the rebound coming, Zeng Zhen blocked Beasley, and Westbrook jumped up and firmly controlled the rebound.
"Good job, bro." Westbrook has a natural excitement about grabbing rebounds.
Zeng Zhen nodded. Westbrook had provided him with a lot of assists in these two games, and he was returning the favor.
He doesn't care about rebounding stats, but Westbrook cares a lot.
UCLA's offensive continues.
After a series of passes and positioning moves, Zeng Zhen found himself without any space this time.
Kansas State University has significantly strengthened its defense against Zeng Zhen. Seeing that he had no chance, Zeng Zhen decisively went up to set a screen for Westbrook.
Westbrook used a screen to drive to the right, drawing the defense before passing to Zeng Zhen at the top of the key, and then quickly slid along the baseline.
Zeng Zhen then showcased his dribbling skills, receiving the ball beyond the three-point line and flicking it past Beasley, who had switched onto him, before taking a long stride to drive inside.
Zeng Zhen's breakthrough drew a double team from Stewart and center Louis. At this moment, Westbrook and Love, who were following up in the middle, were both open.
Of course, the choice was Love. Westbrook's three-point shooting was unreliable, so Zeng Zhen passed the ball to Love with a low hand while moving forward.
The pass was perfect; Love caught the ball, took a step, and made a layup.
24:16.
*Smack!*
"Well done."
Love excitedly high-fived Zeng Zhen, whose pass was much smoother than Westbrook's.
"Are your feet stuck in the ground? Your defense is terrible," Zeng Zhen shouted at Beasley.
Beasley was very unhappy when Zeng Zhen mocked his poor defense and quickly came over to confront Zeng Zhen.
Zeng Zhen did not back down and went to meet him, their chests touching.
"Fuck!"
"Cao Nima"
"Fuck!"
"Idiot!"
"Fuck!"
"Your mother is a prostitute."
"....."
The two of them were swearing at each other.
Beasley's cultural knowledge was limited, and he could only repeat a sentence or two over and over again. Zeng Zhen, on the other hand, used the art of language to insult Beasley's ancestors for eighteen generations.
"Beep beep!!!"
Beasley was furious.
He is rarely mocked on the field.
At this point in time, Beasley is an NCAA superstar, and almost everyone believes he will soon be an All-Star after entering the NBA.
Few people would provoke such a rising superstar, for fear of angering him and being utterly crushed.
Most people respect him.
But Zeng Zhen did something that many players wouldn't dare to do.
State the facts!
In his opinion, Beasley's defense was indeed terrible.
This is a fact.
Why do people get angry when they are told the truth?
Of course, Zeng Zhen also had his own agenda. He wanted to become famous nationwide in the fastest way possible, which was to ride on the coattails of these people's fame.
If he clashes with these rising stars on the court, puts in a good performance, and defeats them, the news will give him extensive coverage.
The conflict between Zeng Zhen and Beasley remained verbal. Both were rational for the sake of their future draft prospects and did not dare to throw punches. The referee quickly intervened and separated the two teams.
Kansas State University promptly requested a suspension of operations!
If a conflict breaks out and Beasley and Zeng Zhen are ejected, they will suffer a huge loss.
"Snapped!"
"Snapped!"
"Well done, Zeng!!"
Ben Holland is becoming increasingly satisfied with Zeng Zhen, not only because he plays well, but also because he can affect the mentality of the opponent's star player.
Inside the arena, the cheers from UCLA fans continued to rise.
"Based on his performance over this period, he has become a fantastic tactical focal point on the court. Around him, UCLA has played a beautiful offense, and once their offense is going well, they also improve their defense," Mike Breen said.
"I don't know if you noticed the details, but his dribbling ability is actually not bad. You can see it from his breakthrough past Michael Beasley. His dribbling fundamentals are very solid," Mark Jackson said.
"Yes, perhaps there are more skills I haven't shown them yet," Mike Brin suggested, but the others didn't pay much attention.
People generally think that Zeng Zhen is a 3D artist.
After the timeout, UCLA continued to dominate the offense, and Kansas State University tried to fight back but failed.
Beasley was double-teamed relentlessly, and his teammates did not punish him.
Zeng Zhen was heavily guarded on the court, and he had very few opportunities. He also missed two three-pointers, but he occasionally scored by cutting inside or on fast breaks.
There are 3 minutes and 11 seconds left in the first half.
UCLA's offense relied on Zeng Zhen and Westbrook continuously passing the ball around the perimeter.
Love set another screen for Zeng Zhen at the left 30-degree angle. Zeng Zhen dribbled the ball one step to the side and, about 1.5 meters outside the three-point line, jumped and shot a three-pointer against Stewart's defense.
This shot was very tough. Although Zeng Zhen had missed two three-pointers before, he was not afraid to shoot.
His shooting rhythm remained as smooth as flowing water.
Ignore the interference!!
"Whoosh!!"
It hits!
"Wow, well done!!"
"A long-range three-pointer."
"They have all of that!!"
"That's amazing!!"
"Zeng Zhen!!!!!" The DJ's voice echoed throughout the entire stadium.
On this nationally televised stage, Zeng Zhen's three-pointer struck Kansas State University like a sniper bullet, hitting the very heart of the team.
The first half ended quickly, with Zeng Zhen scoring 16 points, 1 assist, 1 rebound, and 2 steals in the first half.
This helped UCLA take a 44-34 lead over Kansas State.