The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 378 - 110: The New King

In the fifth minute of the first quarter, Gan Guoyang stood on the free-throw line and hit both free throws, bringing the score to 11:15, with the Celtics leading the Trail Blazers by 4 points.

Back on their home court, the Celtics came with a do-or-die attitude, determined to defeat the Trail Blazers in a life-or-death battle, win this game, and drag it to a game seven, where the advantage would then be in the Celtics’ hands.

Especially Bird, facing defense from Jerome Kossie, he kept hitting shots, vowing to wash away the humiliation of scoring only 11 points in Game 5.

The Trail Blazers were off to a slightly slow start, and the Celtics continued their tight double-team defense on Gan Guoyang; having him score 50 points was truly a shame.

Auerbach was furious after Game 5, saying that if Ah Gan scored more than 25 points in the next game, he would cut all the players!

Of course, what Auerbach said was just out of anger, just like Bird’s remark about Jordan scoring over 20 points and then going to drive a truck.

Every member of the Celtics didn’t want to let Gan Guoyang score wildly anymore, they defended as intensively in the first quarter as they would have in the fourth.

High intensity certainly led to an increase in fouls, and Gan Guoyang went repeatedly to the free-throw line to open up the game using free throws.

Parish and McHale each quickly racked up a foul, which was a concern for the Celtics.

At the end of the first quarter, the teams were tied at 24:31, with the Celtics performing well on offense, leading the Trail Blazers by 7 points.

Gan Guoyang scored 8 points in the first quarter, making all 6 free throws; his only field goal came from an offensive rebound followed by a second-chance score.

The Celtics would rather send Gan Guoyang to the free-throw line than let him get a feel for his offense in the first quarter and have his firepower explode.

Gan Guoyang had a very difficult time receiving the ball in the first quarter; he faced the most severe double-teaming, and the physical play of the Celtics kept escalating.

In the second quarter, during a defensive play, when Larry Bird double-teamed Gan Guoyang, he slapped Gan Guoyang’s face, leaving several bloodstains on it.

Gan Guoyang did not retaliate right then; afterward, in offense, he "accidentally" elbowed Bird in the corner of his eye, causing blood to flow from Bird’s eye.

The referees gave both key players a technical foul; they didn’t exchange words or insults because it was pointless; they both knew this was a fight to the death, and winning the game was what truly mattered.

The fans in the stands jeered and cursed, but Gan Guoyang ignored them; nothing could shake his determination to win. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

The Celtics targeted Gan Guoyang even more, with all sorts of rough and subtle moves, shoves after double teams, sticking out legs, and body bumps; they simply didn’t want to let Gan Guoyang comfortably receive the ball and play one-on-one.

In one-on-one situations, Parish and McHale really couldn’t guard him.

This tactic was somewhat effective, hindering the Trail Blazers’ offense.

Gan Guoyang started passing the ball to his teammates; Drexler drove hard to the basket and made a layup.

Jerome Kossie grabbed an offensive rebound and dunked with both hands, drawing a foul on Marques Johnson and making the added free throw.

The Celtics tried to pull away in the second quarter, but tonight the other players for the Trail Blazers were all shooting exceptionally well.

Porter, Drexler, and Kossie all made shots; by halftime, the Trail Blazers were biting at the heels of the Celtics’ lead.

56:60, the difference between the teams was down to 4 points, halftime break.

In the locker room, the mood was different from the cheerful atmosphere before the game; as the match went on, the players’ adrenaline soared, and everyone’s emotions were heightened.

Gan Guoyang’s face and arms were covered in bloodstains, the marks of battle from tonight’s fight.

Right before going back on the court, Gan Guoyang rallied his teammates for war once more, "In this world, there are millions of possibilities, but only one thing is impossible, and that is for the Boston Celtics to defeat us tonight! They are already in decline; we are the new kings!"

Wearing red jerseys, the Trail Blazers came to the Garden’s wooden floor surrounded by a sea of green and with unmatchable momentum.

At this point in the game, tactics and strategies had mostly gone out the window, as most so-called tactics had already failed.

Defensive intensity was at its maximum, the physical confrontation was at its peak, and every offensive play involved continuous physical contact; each attack was a mutual torment.

CBS commentator Dick Stockton said, "This is a more intense finals than those in 1985, the Portland Trail Blazers have raised the level of physicality on the NBA court."

Viewers in front of the TV also witnessed a game with such fierce competition for the first time; both teams were clustered near the three-second area, with no offensive play being easy, and no dribbling breakthrough without stumbling.

The referees relaxed their whistle because, following a tighter standard, the starting lineup for both teams wouldn’t be able to stand on the court after three quarters.

Gan Guoyang started to wreak havoc under the basket; first, he knocked over Robert Parish with an elbow, then he knocked over Kevin McHale, who was trying to foul him maliciously, during a fast-break layup.

All three Celtics frontcourt stars saw blood, and Gan Guoyang’s arms were already covered in wounds, but he fought more bravely as the battle went on, desperately competing for offensive rebounds in the third quarter, creating opportunities for his teammates.

Drexler received the ball and made a mid-range jumper.

Drexler missed a jumper, but Gan Guoyang secured the offensive rebound and passed it out; then, Drexler shot again and scored.

Vandeweghe came off the bench, took a pass from Gan Guoyang, broke through, and dunked!

Terry Porter missed a three-pointer, but Gan Guoyang grabbed the offensive rebound, bumped Larry Bird with his back, passed it back to Porter, who decisively took the shot, and made a three-pointer.

In the third quarter, the Trail Blazers unleashed an 11:2 offensive surge on the Celtics, catching up and even overtaking them.