"What the hell was that?!"
Gay's scalp tingled, and he kept shaking his head.
They had clearly defended nearly the entire 24 seconds. It should have been a great defensive possession that lifted morale, but Blake Su had scored in that kind of way instead. It was a real blow to their spirit.
"Boom!"
The deafening cheers from the home crowd rang on without stopping.
Blake Su's unreasonable ultra-long three, combined with the roaring arena, hammered the Grizzlies' morale. There were already faint signs that they might collapse in the first quarter.
The first quarter ended.
Suns (33): (22) Grizzlies.
The Suns led by 11 after one quarter.
"Wow~"
During the break between quarters, Van Gundy said excitedly from the commentary desk, "Blake Su is 7-for-10 from the field, 4-for-6 from three, and has poured in 18 points in a single quarter!
"And that's with him having trouble even catching the ball.
"He hit four threes in one quarter, and every one of them came from ultra-deep range. Blake Su is absolutely insane. His offensive power is terrifying!"
"Exactly."
Mike Breen was just as excited. "Blake Su's offensive ability is back. It feels like the regular-season games against the Grizzlies again. He's just... impossible to guard."
"Exactly!"
In the stands.
"Hahaha!"
"What? Defend Blake Su? Two defenders can't stop him, three defenders can't stop him, so how are they supposed to win? How is there even a chance?!
"The Grizzlies... are losing tonight for sure!"
"Of course. One team finished first in the league, and the other barely scraped into the playoffs. How could they possibly be on the same level?"
"Go Suns!"
"Blow the game open with one big run before halftime!"
"..."
An 11-point lead after one quarter, along with Blake Su's four ultra-long threes, sent the Suns' home crowd into an even greater frenzy. The Suns had completely taken control of the court.
In the second quarter, the bench units rotated in first.
The two sides played evenly. After 5 minutes and 11 seconds of rotation time, the lead was still 11 points. But... after a timeout, the Suns' starters returned, and their "advanced run-and-gun" offense began to roar.
Blake Su kept his scorching touch. Even against multiple defenders, at 5:08, 3:17, and 34.5 seconds, he still struck.
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
He hit a three each time, adding three more threes in the quarter and cutting down another 12 points.
Tonight, Blake Su's eruption continued. By halftime, he had hit seven threes and blasted his way to 30 points, along with 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. Most importantly... the Suns were leading by as many as 16 points.
At halftime.
At the commentary desk.
Van Gundy rubbed his chin and asked, "Mike, tell me this... in Game 1, Blake Su put up a '30+ triple-double' and set a record.
"But even with such an all-around performance, he couldn't lead the team to a win.
"Tonight, he only has two assists and has barely connected the team's offense, yet the Suns are leading by a full 16 points. Why is that?"
"Hehe!"
Mike Breen smiled and said, "It's simple. The Suns have a lot of young players and lack playoff experience. Forced, rigid passing only makes Curry, George, and the others create for themselves, and when their confidence isn't there, their efficiency drops.
"But when Blake Su stops passing so much and instead increases his own offense, scoring again and again with unstoppable, unreasonable attacks, he lifts the team's morale and confidence.
"That way, not only can Blake Su score, but his teammates, whose confidence rises along with him, also get their offense going. Their efficiency shoots up, and the team naturally builds the lead."
"Ah, so that's it!"
Van Gundy looked suddenly enlightened. At the same time... that explanation also helped many confused fans understand what was happening.
And they could not help sighing in admiration.
Blake Su, this rookie, was a leader who could carry a team to victory.
On the court, the second half soon began.
"The sides have switched, and the Grizzlies take the first possession. Conley brings it up and finds Randolph, their strong point under the basket.
"Frye?!
"They're simply not in the same weight class physically. Randolph just powers through him, bumps him aside, and lays it in easily with one hand under the basket.
"On the other end, how will the Grizzlies limit Blake Su in the second half?
"Wow~
"Have the Grizzlies lost their minds? They're directly using Gay and Allen, two players with good athleticism, to watch Blake Su at the three-point line and cut off his threes.
"Blake Su is a center, yet he's being targeted like this on the perimeter. In my decades around the NBA, this is truly the first time I've seen this kind of defense.
"So... how will Blake Su attack?
"Another unreasonable ultra-long three, or... wow~ Blake Su chooses to accelerate and drive, using George's screen.
"He slices into the paint like lightning.
"Pull-up fadeaway from mid-range. Good."
"Blake Su is more than a meter beyond the three-point line, facing Gay. A crossover in front, then he accelerates, shakes off Gay, and attacks the rim.
"He goes up against Marc Gasol and Randolph's blocks, takes the contact in the air, switches through the gap between defenders, and finishes a high-difficulty layup again!
"So smooth. So clean!"
"It's Blake Su again. With no three-point opportunity available, he chooses to drive and attack the basket once more. It's not that he can't drive.
"It's just that...
"Sometimes he doesn't need to.
"Boom!
"Blake Su rises like a torch to the sky, throwing down a one-arm hammer over Marc Gasol!"
"Huh? Have the Grizzlies already stopped fighting? On the left low block, Blake Su actually gets a chance to catch the ball wide open?!
"He accelerates!
"Marc Gasol rushes out to help, but Blake Su has already released the shot. In his panic, Marc Gasol slaps Blake Su on the wrist.
"Bang!
"Blake Su hits the mid-range jumper again, and he gets the and-one!"
Van Gundy's speech was rapid, his commentary passionate and excited.
"Wow~"
Mike Breen also shouted in excitement and picked up the call. "When you go all out to limit Blake Su's threes, he can tear through the defense with drive after drive and still finish.
"It is far too difficult to stop Blake Su from scoring when he's this hot.
"Only five minutes have passed in the second half, and Blake Su has already scored 9 points. The lead is now as high as 18.
"Hiss!
"Conley misses the open three. The Grizzlies have already lost their footing. This is starting to look like a collapse.
"In transition, Blake Su brings the ball up himself. He holds it in the middle at the top of the arc and lowers his center of gravity. Gay, in front of him, instinctively backs up.
"Is he afraid of Blake Su's drive?!
"Wow~~
"Blake Su feints the drive and suddenly fires a cold arrow. This is his first three-point attempt of the second half. Gay, whose weight had already dropped backward, can only watch helplessly!
"This shot...?!
"Bang!
"Blake Su hits again, a dagger to the throat. The lead is 21 points. Blake Su's eighth three of the game, another unreasonable three that blows the score wide open!"
"Beep, beep!"
Hollins urgently called a timeout.
"Boom!"
But the arena's avalanche of cheers could no longer be contained. The huge lead, the absolute pressure of that momentum...
The Grizzlies... had already collapsed.
"Hiss!"
During the timeout, Van Gundy glanced at the stats and could not help exclaiming, "Blake Su has hit eight threes. Tonight... he's already poured in 42 points."