In the closing stage of the game, the players from Kang University demonstrated strict discipline.
They patiently consumed the offensive time on court, and always managed to find the teammate in the best position before the timer hit zero.
In the stands, as the Connecticut players held the ball, the Wake Forest supporters were trying their best.
They made various strange noises and boos to try to disrupt the Kang University players on the court.
But all these efforts had no effect.
Until there were 2 minutes left in the second half of the game, Connecticut still led Wake Forest by 6 points.
Moreover, the next possession belonged to Connecticut.
But just like the players on the court didn’t give up, the fans on site didn’t choose to give up either.
In Wake Forest’s half, seeing Gordon responsible for holding the ball this possession, the fans started counting down repeatedly.
They tried to disrupt Gordon’s offensive rhythm in this way.
However, Gordon still steadily controlled the basketball in his hands and decisively took action when there were about 7 seconds left in the offensive possession.
Gray, who had been matching up against Gordon all night, stuck tight to him, and, with the referee’s silent consent, disrupted Gordon’s rhythm before he initiated his finish with a pull that had Kahong jumping on the sidelines.
Was Gray’s defense a foul this time?
If Gray’s defense was a foul...
Then in previous games, were Villanueva, Armstrong, and Okafor’s battles with Qin Yue also fouls?
The referee clearly didn’t want to be the main character tonight.
So in the last moments of the game, as long as it wasn’t a malicious foul or an excessively big foul, they completely didn’t need to blow the whistle.
On the court, Gordon, his rhythm disrupted, couldn’t secure the victory for Connecticut with his one-on-one play.
At the same time, under the basket, in the battle for positioning with Okafor and Armstrong, Qin Yue, whose stamina was already exhausted, also showcased his amazing determination.
Watching the basketball bounce off the rim, in the fierce exchanges with both Okafor and Armstrong, Qin Yue swung his arm like reaching for the moon and secured this crucial rebound for Wake Forest!
At this moment, the Devil’s Deacon Team’s supporters seemed to see a glimmer of hope arriving.
But seconds later, accompanied by Paul’s rushed-out-of-time missed three-pointer, the fans on the stands let out waves of howls.
Could Wake Forest be stopping here?
On-site, Rachel Carrell, who had been watching Qin Yue the entire night, suddenly shouted: "Get ready to catch, Ronnie!"
In fact, Ronnie Evans couldn’t hear Rachel’s shout because the stadium was too noisy.
But at the moment Paul’s three-pointer missed, having also kept an eye on Qin Yue, he was already prepared to receive the ball.
Relying purely on instinct, at this offensive possession, under the bewildered gaze of Connecticut players, Qin Yue tapped the ball back into teammate Evans’ hands!
Yes, all with instinct.
Because claiming to be the Emperor of Europe, he didn’t trigger the [I am Sakuragi Hanamichi] badge at that moment.
On his last legs, he only relied on instinct and intuition to save this crucial offensive rebound for Wake Forest.
And the possibility of defeating Connecticut.
Outside, Evans finally hit that damned three-pointer!
"If Wake Forest can defend successfully in the next possession, they have the hope to tie the score before the regular time ends." From the commentary booth, wiping sweat off his forehead with a tissue, even the veteran commentator Mike Breen couldn’t ignore the suffocating tension enveloping the entire stadium.
In the stands, fans were shouting defense, defense.
And with the decibels in the venue constantly rising, Gordon suddenly lacked the calm and composure he previously had under mounting pressure.
In the face of Gray’s defense that seemed to wish to stab him twice, Gordon nearly made the basic error of dribbling the ball back across the court.
On the sidelines, Jim Calhoun was sweating profusely.
Seeing this, as a senior, Tariq Brown voluntarily took responsibility and took the ball away from Gordon.
For Wake Forest, this seemed like good news.
Because during his four-year college career, Brown was never known for his offense.
But just when Connecticut had little offensive time left, and fans had already begun to fantasize who should execute the next attack for Wake Forest, the youngster Reeve who lost track of another dangerous player in the Kang University lineup.
At the right time, Anderson appeared in the right position.
With a flick, the three-pointer swished through.
"This could be the shot that decides the outcome, Rashad Anderson ended the game with 54 seconds left with an Answer.Ball in response to Wake Forest." In the commentary booth, Mike Breen, feeling the Devil’s Deacon Team’s hope dwindling, explained with a look of regret.
On Wake Forest’s bench, after glancing at the scoreboard, Prose decisively called the last timeout and set up a quick offensive play.
During the timeout, everyone was comforting the remorseful Reeve.
"Don’t dwell on the mistake, this game isn’t over yet." Looking at this lanky figure, Qin Yue patted him on the shoulder and said.
After the timeout, Wake Forest attacked.
To prevent the Devil’s Deacon Team from going for the three-pointer, Kahong retained only Okafor as the sole inside player on the court.