Curry and his team found the reason they liked wearing mouthguards during the game.
Williams made both free throws, bringing the score to 90-101, with the Cavaliers still trailing by 11 points.
Durant received the ball for a mid-range jumper that went straight in, immediately countering with a shot. An energized Durant was still that scoring machine.
Hansen then took the ball, and seeing that the Heat Team didn’t double-team him, he directly changed direction and broke past Seferosa to attack the inside.
This move was somewhat unexpected. Although Seferosa didn’t lose his defensive position, the Heat Team’s interior defensive support was slow to arrive.
Hansen ended up scoring, contending with Seferosa’s defense.
Seferosa had contact on the play but the referee did not blow the whistle.
The Cavaliers had to face not only the Heat Team tonight but also Silva’s hand of balance.
Spoelstra made new tactical gestures from the sideline, and the Heat Team immediately opened up to let Durant go one-on-one.
At this point, what the Heat Team needed to do was to ensure a high offensive success rate and maintain the lead. As long as they held on during this period, they could wait until Hansen’s energy was depleted.
Durant posted up Tucker, choosing a back-to-the-basket spin move and layup.
Stability meant getting as close to the basket as possible.
However, just when Durant thought he had shaken off Tucker for sure, Conningham showed off his ability for mobile interior defense, coming from behind at an angle to successfully block Durant’s layup against the backboard!
Or rather, Durant never expected Conningham to be able to block him.
Tucker followed up, snatching the defensive rebound, and then passed the ball to Hansen. The Cavaliers launched a defensive counterattack.
Hansen took the ball over half-court and threw a long, ground-skimming pass across the court. Williams caught the pass and shook off Chalmers to score a flying layup.
The gap in the score had been reduced to single digits!
Spoelstra was already becoming restless; he called up Big Gasol from the bench.
This time, Durant opted for his best off-ball mid-range, but Garnett desperately lunged to disrupt his shot.
Since Hansen came on, the whole spirit of the Cavaliers team clearly changed.
He was like a banner that, once unfurled during a standoff between two armies, gave an instant 50% morale boost.
Tucker once again boxed out well to secure the defensive rebound.
The Cavaliers launched another defensive counterattack.
This time, Hansen and Williams pushed forward quickly, creating a two-on-one situation in the frontcourt.
After a series of passes between them, Hansen received a pass from Williams and took off for a layup.
Seeing that he could no longer stop the play, Chalmers decided to wrap up Hansen, aiming to send him to the free throw line.
But Chalmers, who had not had the chance to match up against Hansen since James left, clearly underestimated the difference in their strength.
Hansen, hanging in mid-air with Chalmers on him, completed an underhand scoop shot.
The referee’s whistle blew at that moment, signaling an and-one.
Upon landing and hearing the whistle, Hansen stepped forward and pumped his fist, letting out an excited roar. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝔫𝔢𝔱
In Game 1, it was the Old Knights charging ahead.
But in Game 7, it was him leading the Old Knights in the final charge!
Hansen stepped up to the free throw line amid a cacophony of distracting noises in the arena.
He took the ball, chewed his gum for a moment, then exhaled deeply.
His additional free throw was securely in, narrowing the Cavaliers’ deficit to just 6 points!
Spoelstra finally couldn’t bear it; he called for a timeout before Big Gasol could take the court.
The LED screen at the venue displayed Hansen’s performance for the night: 52 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks, 3 fouls, 3 turnovers.
It was then, as if possessed by a Mind Reading Technique, an excited O’Neal spoke out:
"If scoring 50 points can’t help you win the game, what about 60 points?"
This sentence sounded ordinary, but only those with the knowledge understood its weight.
Because in the past history of the NBA, there had only been two instances of 60+ points scored in a playoff game.
One was Jordan’s 63 points, and the other was Elgin Baylor’s 61 points.
Tonight, Hansen could very well become the third.