My days of working at the NBA

Chapter 16 Next Opponent: Marquette University

As expected.

With ten minutes remaining in the game, the point difference had reached 40+.

Anderson may have replaced both Duze and Carroll out of consideration for safety.

As expected, the final buzzer sounded, and the University of Missouri swept Cornell 92-59, winning by a full 33 points.

Carroll played reasonably well, shooting 4-for-8 and putting up an all-around stat line of 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists. However, all 7 of his rebounds were defensive rebounds.

The way he picked up the rebound... was both deliberate and obvious, but no one would criticize him for it. After all, Carroll's current projected value on various draft websites is very good, and the amount of data he has will directly affect his draft stock.

Another key contributor to this victory was Lyons, who scored 18 points and grabbed 6 rebounds, shooting 7-for-13 from the field and 2-for-5 from three-point range. His outstanding performance was crucial in helping Missouri withstand the pressure in the first half.

Lawrence's performance was rather mediocre, going 2-for-8 for only 5 points and 4 assists, missing all 5 of his three-point attempts.

If Missouri hadn't ultimately won, Lawrence would definitely have been brought before the highest military court.

English, who came off the bench, also had a very impressive performance, going 4-for-6 from the field, including 3 three-pointers, and scoring 15 points. He was a key player off the bench and helped Missouri maintain their offensive firepower.

T-Taylor also scored 11 points, shooting 4 of 9, a performance that can only be described as mediocre.

And the best player of the game was undoubtedly Du Ze.

他投篮10中9，三分1中1，罚球2中1，狂砍20分10篮板的20+10超级两双数据，另外还有2抢断1助攻，以及6个盖帽。

Overall, the performance was absolutely phenomenal.

Moreover, 5 of his 10 rebounds were offensive rebounds.

With 6 blocks, he perfectly exemplified what it means to be a guardian of the paint.

In fact, the rim protection he provided on the court was even more impressive than the data suggested.

His head seems to be equipped with a Gundam; he can effectively interfere with any enemy who breaks in.

It was precisely because of this natural barrier he created that the University of Missouri was able to defeat Cornell University so easily and advance to the Round of 32.

For Cornell University, Whitman had the best performance, scoring 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. However, his shooting touch was actually quite poor, making only 7 of 17 shots.

Ford also recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, but he only made 5 of 12 shots, making him far less efficient than Duze.

Throughout the match, he was completely outmatched by Du Ze.

Before the game, he was considered a strong point for Cornell University, but he ended up becoming Duze's sweet spot.

Du Ze blocked two of their shots and stole one.

Most importantly, it was his loss of dominance in the paint that caused Cornell University's overall tactics to fail, ultimately leading to their collapse.

Another culprit was their point guard, Dell, who went 1-for-11 and scored only 3 points.

He was completely lost and couldn't perform at all; in fact, he had a negative impact on the field.

of course.

His current sorry state is probably due to Du Ze.

He is a player who relies on breakthroughs to establish himself, and attacking the basket is his specialty.

As a result, Du Ze's rim protection was so effective that his drives to the basket were completely blocked, with two of his shots being blocked.

This forced him to move away from the paint area and instead use mid-range shots, completely distorting his playing style and naturally making him less efficient.

The rest of the Cornell team didn't perform much either.

Alex scored 6 points and Reeves scored 5 points, both of which were far below par.

After the match, the two players embraced and greeted each other.

When Donahue found Anderson, his face was full of helplessness: "Mike, you're such a sly old fox, you managed to hide it so perfectly."

Anderson paused for a moment, then quickly recovered: "Thank you for the compliment, but I wasn't hiding anything. Du just happens to be in particularly good form tonight."

In fact, even he himself was a little puzzled. Du Ze seemed like a completely different person in this game, and he felt so unfamiliar.

However, he can temporarily call this phenomenon "being in good condition".

Donahue, of course, didn't believe it, and gave him a "you're just pretending" look: "Wow... but this kind of miracle won't work in the next round, so you'd better be careful."

Now it was Anderson's turn to feel helpless: "Thank you for your kind reminder, but I believe in the children's abilities."

He wasn't faking it.

If Du Ze is really that strong, then he has no need to pretend.

After all, we have to consider these kids' future. If they can make it big, they could have a chance to enter the NBA and make a lot of money.

How could he possibly suppress a child's performance for the sake of a tournament? He may be old, but he's not that senile.

Donahue patted Anderson on the chest and stopped pressing the issue: "Alright, good luck to you guys."

Although the loss was somewhat embarrassing, making it to the tournament is already an achievement beyond expectations.

Moreover, even without Duze's influence, Cornell University might not have won the final victory, given the significant difference in strength between the two sides.

……

……

After the match.

Du Ze and the others returned to the changing room and began to wash up.

Making it to the top 32 was still very exciting. In the washroom, all sorts of whistles and screams could be heard from time to time.

Half an hour later, assistant coach Hunter called them all to the video room and showed them the video of the game.

Finally, Anderson began to analyze the shortcomings of the game.

For example, the pressing in the first half was not tight enough, the shooting was not decisive enough, and the drives to the basket were not aggressive enough, etc.

After pointing out the shortcomings, he then began to talk about the things they did well.

First and foremost, we must commend Du Ze for his rim protection, especially his outstanding performance in help defense and rotation.

At the same time, they were very aggressive in rebounding, giving the team a lot of second-chance opportunities.

Finally, the team was praised for their changes in the second half, including increasing the intensity of their pressing, wearing down the opponent's stamina, and forcing mistakes – all of which were done very well.

After analyzing the game, Anderson clapped his hands: "Our next opponent has been decided: Marquette University."

"Our journey is far from over, so please don't let your guard down, stay focused, and stay fierce. Marquette University is very strong, with a fierce outside shooting and a high level of defense. Without a doubt, this will be a tough battle."

Everyone felt a chill run down their spines and listened intently.

Next, Anderson, using the edited video footage, began to explain Marquette University's main tactics, lineup, and strengths.

When discussing Marquette University's roster, Anderson introduced their star player, Wesley Matthews.

Looking at that rugged face, Du Ze suddenly felt a sense of familiarity.

Hmm... I feel like I've seen this somewhere before.

Ok?

Wesley Matthews, wait... isn't that one of the famous Trail Blazers' starting five?

This player, who is considered a famous undrafted player in NBA history, was a senior at Marquette University.

Hey! I actually ran into this amazing player in the round of 16...