Chapter 437: Chapter 349: 35 Points, 35 Assists, 11 Rebounds, 4 Steals, and 3 Blocks!
Zeng Xingyang dribbled to the frontcourt, his eyes becoming sharp. He passed the ball to Zubac, who received it and returned it after a single dribble.
Zeng Xingyang tried to break through after using a screen, only to find the Clippers’ interior packed with players,
with Little Jordan, Griffin, and Wesley Johnson forming an iron wall, blocking all penetration routes.
He remained calm, dribbling to the left side, while Wesley Johnson stayed tight on defense.
Just when everyone thought he was going to reorganize the offense, Zeng Xingyang suddenly turned and changed direction, slicing into the paint facing Wesley Johnson.
Meanwhile, Siakam started from the opposite corner, running to the left side of the free-throw line like a ghost.
Zeng Xingyang, on the move, accurately passed the ball back to Siakam.
Siakam was left wide open, in his most comfortable spot for a short-range jump shot.
He took a dribble to adjust his pace, jumped, and shot.
But the ball hit the front of the rim, bouncing up into the air.
Griffin leaped up like a spring, firmly grabbing the rebound.
Without thinking much, he immediately swung a one-handed pass to the frontcourt, trying to launch a fast break with Crawford.
But he underestimated the Nuggets’ defense.
At the moment Griffin passed the ball, Harris shot out like an arrow, precisely intercepting the passing lane.
"Smack!" The basketball was knocked down, and Harris bent down to pick up the ball, smoothly passing it to Zeng Xingyang.
Zeng Xingyang launched a counterattack, with only Crawford and Griffin left to defend ahead.
He drove to the basket, attracting the attention of Crawford and the assisting Griffin, but just as he jumped, he passed the ball to the other side.
Grant had stealthily followed up without anyone noticing, and after catching the ball, he pushed off with both feet and slammed it down with both hands!
The basketball crashed fiercely into the basket, and the spectators in the stands stood up in astonishment.
"110 to 116!" Coach Zhang shouted at the top of his lungs, "Zeng Xingyang shows his tremendous assist ability once again with a spectacular defensive counterattack!"
The Clippers’ offense.
Griffin posts up against Grant in the paint.
He held the ball with his back, used his strong body to push the opponent away, turned around for a layup, and the ball gently brushed the backboard and went in.
to 116, the gap remains at 4 points.
Nuggets’ offense, Zeng Xingyang dribbled to the frontcourt again.
This time, facing Crawford’s defense, with a flashy behind-the-back dribble combined with a change of direction, he moved the ball from the right side to the left, accelerating to break through. Crawford was easily driven past, stumbling and almost falling.
Griffin saw this and hurriedly rushed out from the paint to help defend.
Zeng Xingyang, at high pace, faked a pass.
Siakam in the middle opened his arms, ready to catch the ball, and Griffin instinctively turned his head to look.
In that lightning-fast moment, Zeng Xingyang pulled the ball back, soared into the air like a giant eagle, and slammed it with one hand!
to 118
The basketball made a loud crash with the rim, and the cheers at the scene reached a fever pitch.
On the Nuggets’ bench, the players jumped up and roared; the play was so magnificent that even Siakam was obviously fooled.
Landing, Zeng Xingyang casually shook his wrist, his expression quite calm, as if that arena-shaking dunk was just a routine finish in daily practice.
"Haha, Zeng Xingyang’s pass is so deceptive!" Coach Zhang laughed so hard he couldn’t close his mouth. "A fake pass followed by a real dunk, this move is amazing!"
Coach Xu chimed in from the side: "Look at that athletic talent, the core strength is really strong! To maintain body balance and complete the slam after the fake pass move, that’s the capability of a top-tier athlete!"
In the stands, the fans were all talking.
"Zeng Xingyang’s athletic talent is really impressive."
"Such core strength, able to dunk after a fake pass like that, it’s outrageous!"
"The Nuggets’ bench looks like they’re acting in a movie, each one of them is as excited as if they won the championship!"
"What a crazy scene!"
The Clippers’ offense.
Crawford dribbled to the frontcourt, passing to Griffin in the paint.
Grant and Zubac double-teamed him.
Griffin decided to pass the ball out, but the trajectory was too predictable, and it was directly intercepted by Zeng Xingyang.
Zeng Xingyang dribbled to the frontcourt, facing Crawford’s defense with a big crossover followed by a spin move, but just as he got past Crawford, he noticed that Little Jordan, originally under the basket, was drawn to him.
"Bang!"
Little Jordan bumped into Zeng Xingyang, which should have been a blocking foul, but the referee didn’t call it.
Zeng Xingyang lost the ball, and Griffin snatched it away.
The play was recorded as Zeng Xingyang’s turnover.
Zeng Xingyang complained to the referee but didn’t stop running.
Griffin dribbled for a counterattack, showing a flashy move near the midline to get past Harris, but his speed slightly dropped, giving Zeng Xingyang a chance to chase back.
Griffin drove into the three-point line; his absolute speed wasn’t fast, he even slowed down to control the tempo.
Griffin stepped and rose, wanting to make a slam dunk.
But a figure raced after him from behind.
As Griffin was about to reach the rim and slam the ball down.
A big hand firmly palmed the ball.
"Slap!"
Zeng Xingyang completed a block on Griffin.
The block was extremely dominant; Griffin had almost no room to avoid it.
Of course, it was mainly because Griffin couldn’t imagine that after stealing from Zeng Xingyang, Zeng Xingyang could react so quickly to chase down the block.
The basketball bounced off Griffin and out of bounds.
Possession returned to the Nuggets.
"Ah!!!"
Zeng Xingyang pumped his fist and roared.
The fans on the scene screamed, loving the sight.
Zeng Xingyang rejected whining after losing the ball, opting instead to chase back and defend the opponent’s attack again.
"Awesome chase-down block."
"Zeng Xingyang’s defense is indeed at a Defensive Player of the Year level."
"Throughout the season, it seems Zeng Xingyang hasn’t been clearly dominated by anyone; every player fears facing him."
"Fast, strong in confrontation, great physical quality, active as a defensive player, who wouldn’t be afraid of such a defender."
The fans at the Pepsi Center in Denver were howling.
On the court.
Nuggets’ offense resumed.
Zeng Xingyang dribbled to the frontcourt, this time veteran Pierce was the one to defend Zeng Xingyang.
Pierce’s defense was just right, guarding against both Zeng Xingyang’s shooting and not giving him space to rush in entirely.
Zeng Xingyang initially wanted to pass, but he noticed none of his teammates had a good opportunity.
Harris and Grant’s offense reliability wasn’t very strong, and Zubac faced two big men in the paint.
It was better for him to create chances.
Zeng Xingyang stepped back, opened up some space, and decisively exploded forward.
Pierce quickly slid over, but Zeng Xingyang had the advantage, crashing through.
After entering the paint, Zeng Xingyang went up for a layup against Little Jordan.
Both jumped simultaneously; Little Jordan was taller, seemingly covering Zeng Xingyang completely.
Only Zeng Xingyang demonstrated superior hang-time ability, waiting for Little Jordan to start descending before releasing the ball.
Little Jordan couldn’t block it, and the basketball bounced off the backboard and fell in.
The game continued, though the Clippers desperately tried to close the gap, Zeng Xingyang and his Nuggets consistently controlled the tempo.
Every time the Clippers inched closer, Zeng Xingyang would steady the situation with either a brilliant pass or a crucial score.
As the final buzzer sounded, the Nuggets defeated the Clippers 145 to 131.
Zeng Xingyang contributed an astonishing stat line of 35 points, 35 assists, 11 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 blocks, and 3 turnovers, setting multiple playoff records.