ctnovel Chapter 62: A series of incredible layups and dribbles – the new leader of the men's basketball
Chapter 62: A series of incredible layups and dribbles – the new leader of the men's basketball
"Zeng Zhen's connection with Yao Ming."
"The two are getting more and more in sync."
"Zeng Zhen's pass directly pierced through the Spanish defense."
Zhang Weiping said excitedly that he could see that Yao Ming really liked cooperating with Zeng Zhen. His screens and follow-up moves were very quick, as if he had become a few years younger.
If Zeng Zhen had joined the national team a few years ago, when Yao Ming was fully healthy, the national team might have achieved better results.
Spain's offense resumed. This time, after a series of passes, Marc Gasol, in the low post on the left, used his footwork to beat Yi Jianlian, then turned and scored a layup.
4:2.
"Marc Gasol!"
"The current Marc Gasol is like Pau Gasol's younger brother; he can also score when he receives the ball in this position."
"The Chinese team's inside game will face a greater challenge."
Zhang Weiping shouted.
Zeng Zhen could tell that the Spanish team was taking this match very seriously, probably because the previous match had left a deep impression on them.
After scoring, Marc Gasol glanced at Zeng Zhen.
Zeng Zhen's 30+10 performance against the Dream Team has caught the attention of many NBA players.
They all know how strong the Dream Team is.
But even Dream Team found this guy troublesome.
The pace of the game was not fast.
Spain and the Dream Team are two different styles of teams. They emphasize teamwork, while the Dream Team focuses more on showcasing individual talent.
The Chinese team was in excellent form, and the opportunities created by Zeng Zhen and Yao Ming were all scored by the outside shooters.
Spain's overall performance was slightly worse than China's, which allowed China to maintain the initiative throughout the game.
Zeng Zhen is a pillar of strength for the Chinese team. He doesn't score many points, but when his teammates pass him difficult balls, he handles them exceptionally well.
The fans at the scene became more and more excited as they watched.
With one minute remaining in the first half, the score was 40-46, giving China a six-point lead.
China launched another attack, attempting to widen the score gap further.
Spain's defensive pressure was not as great as that of the Dream Team. After dribbling the ball across half-court, Sun Yue calmly passed it to Zeng Zhen.
Zeng Zhen holds the ball and faces Calderon's defense, observing.
The Gasol brothers in Spain are very strong, and neither Yi Jianlian nor Yao Ming have many good offensive areas.
Zeng Zhen then grabbed the ball with his right hand and made a tactical hand gesture with his left hand to indicate that he should pull away.
"They're here! They're here!"
"Go Zeng Zhen, beat him!"
"Zeng Zhen, you're so handsome."
Zeng Zhenyi made a one-on-one gesture, and the fans at the Wukesong Arena roared. This rookie's one-on-one skills were outstanding.
"Old Du, if you had a model like Zhen, picking up girls would be a piece of cake," said Chen Jianghua from the bench.
Du Feng shook his head: "No way, I'm not as flamboyant as him..."
On the field, Zeng Zhen swelled up.
Facing Calderon's defense, Zeng Zhen grabbed the basketball with one hand and lifted it slightly. Calderon instinctively shifted his weight, and Zeng Zhen released the ball to the right and burst past Calderon in one step.
"Whoosh!"
"So fast!"
Calderon's first reaction was completely off; when he turned around, he could only see Zeng Zhen's back.
Navarro then came over to defend.
Unfortunately, he's too short.
Zeng Zhen stopped abruptly on the right side of the free-throw line, gathered the ball, raised it above his head, and launched a jump shot over the 1.91-meter-tall Navarro. Navarro waved his hand, unable to even contest the shot.
"Whoosh!"
The basketball swished through the net!
40:48.
Zeng Zhen scored his first field goal of the night.
"A brilliant dribble and pull-up jump shot."
"That dribble was amazing, he beat the guy in one step."
"His explosive power is truly impressive."
The cheers from the fans at Wukesong Arena continued unabated.
Calderon shook his head helplessly as he watched Zeng Zhen shoot.
Zeng Zhen is tall enough to play small forward, but he plays point guard, and he's incredibly fast.
Calderon finally understood why the Dream Team was launching a pincer attack on Zeng Zhen.
With that height and shooting ability, he'd be an absolute monster as a point guard.
Spain's attack.
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
The fans at Wukesong Arena once again created a home-court advantage.
Spain advanced quickly, their movement and passing were very smooth, and after a series of wide-ranging passes, they continued to pass the ball to Pau Gasol in the paint.
Pau Gasol has found a way to rely on Yi Jianlian.
Pau Gasol can't forcefully attack Yao Ming like that, but he feels he can easily attack Yi Jianlian.
He's going to be tough.
Shot!
Backstab!
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Yi Jianlian repeatedly dribbled and backed down Gasol, his hands protecting his chest as he continued to contest Gasol's moves.
Gasol bumped into Yi Jianlian several times, realizing he had underestimated Yi's physicality. He couldn't create space and managed to turn around, trying to pass the ball to Navarro on the outside.
Zeng Zhen kept a close eye on Gasol's pass, made a prediction, and intercepted the ball like a tiger hunting its prey the moment Gasol passed it.
*Smack!*
Zeng Zhen intercepted the ball.
"Zeng Zhen made the steal!"
"Gasol can't play like that against Yi Jianlian. Yi Jianlian's physical talent is top-notch among Asians. Zeng Zhen's anticipation in this defense was also excellent. He kept an eye on Gasol's offense."
Zhang Weiping shouted excitedly.
Zeng Zhen controlled the ball and quickly advanced forward, but his speed was so fast that the other Chinese players couldn't keep up.
The Spanish players were quick to get back on defense.
Zeng Zhen didn't wait for them to get into position to launch a counterattack. He changed direction to the right and got past Navarro.
Calderon, with his experience, quickly moved in and committed a tackle to stop the counterattack.
Calderon will not give Zeng Zhen such an easy chance to get started; this is Spain's strategy to target Zeng Zhen.
Zeng Zhen remained calm, passed the ball to his teammate, and started making runs again.
Yi Jianlian passed the ball to Yao Ming in the paint. Zeng Zhen stood outside the three-point line on the right side. Seeing that there was space, Yao Ming quickly started to drive to the basket for a one-on-one attack.
Yao Ming collided with Pau Gasol.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Yao Ming's collision drew a double team, and he chose to pass the ball to Zeng Zhen on the outside.
"Zeng Zhen played very casually today."
"Let's see how Zeng Zhen handles the ball from two meters beyond the three-point line."
"Calderon is up here."
At this moment, Zeng Zhen was facing Calderon. He placed the ball on his right side to attract Calderon's weight, and then Zeng Zhen slapped the ball to his left.
Calderon tried to hold Zeng Zhen back, but as soon as he reached out, Zeng Zhen accelerated.
"Whoosh!"
That was too fast.
Zeng Zhen vanished right before Calderon's eyes.
Get it done in one go.
Hehehe!
"A beautiful dribble."
"Zeng Zhen's change of direction without slowing down resulted in an incredibly fast burst of speed."
On the court, Zeng Zhen unleashed a burst of speed with a change of direction similar to Derrick Rose.
Navarro came to help defend, but he was stunned by Zeng Zhen's explosive power; his dribbling was too fast.
"Whoosh!"
Zeng Zhen pushed the ball from the left to the right again, and with a second burst of speed, he also got past Navarro.
"pretty!!"
"Zeng Zhen!"
"He passed two people in a row."
"Zeng Zhenchong has caught up, and Yi Jianlian has Marc Gasol in check."
"Pau Gasol's help defense."
On the court, the player now had a chance to finish the game at the basket.
Zeng Zhen took off and joined the ball to challenge Pau Gasol.
Pau Gasol stretched out his long arms to try to block the shot; this championship-caliber power forward was desperately trying to stop the attack.
Zeng Zhen caught the basketball in mid-air, dodging and weaving, leaning against Pau Gasol and turning around before finishing with a super layup on the right.
Pau Gasol knew it was over when his body started to decline.
Zeng Zhen easily hooked the ball, and after bouncing, the basketball fell into the basket.
40 to 50.
After the goal, halftime was over, and the Chinese team went into the locker room with a double-digit lead.
The Spanish players were stunned as they watched Zeng Zhen single-handedly break through their defense.
"pretty!!"
"pretty!!"
That's how you fight.
"We have taken the initiative."
Coach Zhang screamed; this match had taken him completely by surprise.