Chapter 425: Chapter 337, 2-0... 3-0, pushing the Grizzlies to the edge of the cliff.
The Grizzlies’ attack.
Parsons gritted his teeth and changed direction to break through the inside, but was chased down by Gordon at the jump, who slapped the ball towards the technical table.
As the ball was about to go out of bounds, Butler flew in and saved it back.
Zeng Xingyang picked up the ball and accelerated the advance. The Grizzlies had a defensive lapse, and Zeng Xingyang decisively lobbed the ball into the air.
At this time, Gordon, who had just completed the block, crossed half-court, caught Zeng Xingyang’s pass in mid-air, and slammed it hard!
"Whoa!!"
"Taking off."
"The City of Alley-oop is coming!!"
The remaining time in the second quarter became the Nuggets’ showtime, with Zeng Xingyang hitting two consecutive ultra-long three-pointers at the buzzer of the 24-second clock.
Jokic showed his footwork in the paint, backing down Randolph twice.....
The Grizzlies collapsed once again in the first half.
The second half ended quickly as well, with the final score frozen at 88 to 124.
The Nuggets slaughtered the Grizzlies at home by a margin of 36 points, bringing the series score to 2-0.
At the instant the game ended, Butler excitedly waved to the home crowd: "We’ll see you in the next round."
The meaning was clear: they intended to sweep the Grizzlies!
Zeng Xingyang played 32 minutes in this game, hitting 14 out of 20 shots, including 8 out of 11 three-pointers, and 5 out of 5 free throws, achieving a stat line of 41 points, 11 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks, and 0 turnovers.
Zeng Xingyang’s performance was still at a dominating level.
The top scorer for the Grizzlies was Randolph, who scored 18 points and 14 rebounds, holding a slight edge against Gordon overall.
After finishing G2, the Grizzlies’ core veterans felt the difference in strength between the two teams and realized how difficult it would be to beat the Nuggets in this series. Their hope was to avoid a sweep, to save some face.
Back at the Grizzlies’ home court, G3 started quickly.
In this game, both sides played very intensely in the first half. The Grizzlies team showed a desperate defensive attitude against the Nuggets.
The referee also favored the home team with some calls.
At halftime, the two teams were tied, 48 to 48.
It was rare for the Grizzlies to play the Nuggets to such a draw.
The fans at FedExForum were very excited, as they enjoyed seeing such a game.
Zhang Weiping exclaimed: "The Grizzlies have really gone all out tonight; they just want to win!"
Xu Jicheng said: "Let’s see how long the Grizzlies can withstand the Nuggets’ offensive surge. The Nuggets haven’t found their three-point rhythm in the first half, relying purely on inside play to respond to the Grizzlies, so now it depends on when they will start to open up the perimeter."
First attack coming back in the second half.
The Grizzlies’ attack.
Conley dribbled to the frontcourt, passing to Little Gasol at the free-throw line.
Little Gasol held the ball, observing, and when everyone thought he was going to slow down the pace a little, he saw Carter cutting in.
Carter escaped Pope along the baseline and rushed in. Little Gasol gave the ball to Carter, and he quickly made a layup to score.
to 50.
The Grizzlies, after much effort, finally took the lead.
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
As Zeng Xingyang pushed quickly, the Grizzlies fans kept cheering for their home team.
Zeng Xingyang took a deep breath; G3 was harder than he had imagined.
It was mainly because it was an away game, and his teammates didn’t seem to be very focused.
The Grizzlies were using a box-and-one defense, with Carter specifically marking Zeng Xingyang, while the others guarded the paint.
If Zeng Xingyang tried to break free from Carter for a drive, the Grizzlies’ defense would quickly collapse inward.
Jokic positioned at the free-throw line for support, and Zeng Xingyang made a bounce pass.
Jokic passed the ball to Pope.
Pope held the ball to shift the defense. The disadvantage of zone defense is that it’s a bit passive when guarding the three-point line.
The Nuggets’ three-point shooting was off tonight, which made their zone defense very effective.
After a large-scale ball movement, Pope flicked the ball to the other side to Zeng Xingyang again.
This cross-court pass was huge, and Zeng Xingyang, upon receiving it, made a shot fake that sent Carter leaping at him.
Zeng Xingyang feinted and then took a large stride inside.
Randolph and Parsons tried to double-team, but they couldn’t trap Zeng Xingyang.
Zeng Xingyang accelerated a second time and charged inside, stepping with his right leg to the right and then his left leg to the left.
It was a Euro step to the left, finishing by embedding the ball into the basket with one hand.
"Bang!"
to 50.
The Grizzlies’ attack.
Conley dribbled into the frontcourt.
Conley initiated a pick-and-roll with Randolph.
After the pick-and-roll, Conley and Randolph rolled to the basket together.
Randolph continued to play comfortably against Gordon tonight.
Conley decisively gave the ball to Randolph.
"Slap!"
As soon as Randolph caught the ball, Butler flew in and swatted it away.
Butler completed the steal.
Butler passed the ball to Zeng Xingyang.
Zeng Xingyang got the ball and quickly pushed to the frontcourt.
Jokic naturally set a screen for Zeng Xingyang, leading Little Gasol to switch on defense.
Zeng Xingyang signaled his teammates to spread the floor.
The Nuggets’ players quickly cleared space for Zeng Xingyang.
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
"Thud!"
After several consecutive between-the-legs dribbles, he made his adjustments.
Little Gasol couldn’t keep up with the pace.
After a series of changes, Zeng Xingyang created space with a step-back.
A rhythm-changing, hesitation three-pointer.
"Swish!"
to 50.
This three-pointer by Zeng Xingyang opened the scoring rally for the Nuggets in G3.
On the next possession.
The Grizzlies, through continuous screening and positioning, made Carter get an open corner three.
But Carter missed the three-pointer, and the long rebound bounced out to Zeng Xingyang.
After Zeng Xingyang dribbled into the frontcourt, he repeated a pick-and-roll with Gordon.
Following the same pattern, he took on Randolph.
A rhythm-changing step-back three-pointer was made.
to 50.
Zeng Xingyang consistently drew out and took on Randolph and Little Gasol, succeeding each time.
These two three-pointers also marked the start of the Nuggets’ third-quarter three-point rain.
Butler and Pope found their rhythm, hitting three-pointers one after another....
The Grizzlies’ score was stretched out once more.
The Grizzlies’ players played more aggressively, but after Butler retaliated, he received two consecutive technical fouls and was ejected.
The Grizzlies tried to counterattack.
But at critical moments, Jokic and Zeng Xingyang stepped up to save the team once more.
The two consecutively scored on inside plays.
Once the Grizzlies’ proud interior was breached, their chances of resisting successfully vanished.
In the end, the game’s score was frozen at 121 to 115; the Nuggets narrowly beat the Grizzlies on the road.
Zeng Xingyang achieved a triple-double with 55 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds, while Jokic had a triple-double of 18 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists.
Both players’ triple-doubles helped the Nuggets gain a 3-0 lead in the series.
The Grizzlies were pushed to the edge of the cliff.