Tekele moved smoothly into the opposite side, and Larry Hughes and Drew Gooden quickly came to double-team him.
At this moment, one could see how brilliant Tekele's basketball IQ was.
Despite the double-team, Larry Hughes's approach was not decisive. As he moved forward, he was still thinking that if Tekele passed the ball to Nelson, then Nelson would have an open shot.
It was this hesitation that allowed Tekele to seize the opportunity, drive directly to the right baseline, then a one-handed scoop layup, scoring two points.
"Well done, Tekele."
"Tekele, teach that arrogant Dragon Countryman a lesson!"
"This is the Amway Arena, not the Quicken Loans Arena, you'd better be careful."
The Magic fans started their taunting mode.
At first, when the experts translated Tang Long's statement that he would defeat the Magic 4-0, the Magic fans were furious.
Moreover, this was the United States. Although Gortat was suspended for three games for provoking Tang Long, Gortat was also considered a hero and gained a fan base.
"The Magic seem to be continuing their offensive pattern from the last game!"
While retreating, James leaned over to Tang Long to exchange opinions.
In the second game between the two teams, the Magic had changed their tactics. This tactic was quite successful, but they encountered a Tang Long in better form. Returning to their home court this time, the Magic clearly intended to continue their previous tactics.
"They can't just keep running pick-and-rolls all the time, our defense isn't just for show. The most important thing is to put pressure on Tekele, so he doesn't bring the ball up so easily."
"Leave it to me."
Larry Hughes volunteered to guard Tekele.
However, the Magic's home court was indeed difficult to play in. Within the first five minutes of the first half, the Magic completed several pick-and-roll combinations. After Larry Hughes went to guard Tekele, Nelson came alive.
Pau Gasol found it a bit difficult to guard Nelson, allowing Nelson to make four three-pointers. This guy's shooting touch was also excellent, scoring nine points on 4-of-3 shooting.
The Magic's offense in the first quarter was very sharp. Especially since Howard switched to a blue-collar role to contain Tang Long in this game, it made the Cavaliers' defense very passive.
There was no other way. Tekele was playing exceptionally well, so the Cavaliers' focus had to be on Tekele, which directly gave Lewis an opportunity to explode.
With less than a minute left in the first quarter, Lewis also scored eight points on 4-of-4 shooting.
"Have these guys been on drugs?!"
James bent over, hands on his knees. The pace of the game was very fast in the first quarter, and he was already a little tired.
"That's how the game is. When you're playing with excitement, you don't feel tired."
"Fuck, if they keep this up, they'll win this afternoon."
Tang Long glanced at the excited Magic players. It would be difficult to contain them in the first quarter, and they would have to try to change tactics during the break.
After another possession, Larry Hughes and Evans' shots missed the rim, and the referee blew the whistle to end the first quarter.
The Magic played very well in the first quarter, leading the Cavaliers by fourteen points at home, 30-16.
"The Magic are playing with great excitement, and we can't follow their rhythm, otherwise we'll be very passive."
Mike Brown took out the tactical board and continued, "In the second quarter, we need to slow down the pace. We need to be meticulous in every offensive possession and ensure our scoring. Tang, you need to drive to the basket more, and James, when you need to break through, you need to do it."
Originally, the reserve players should have come on to play at this point, but Mike Brown did not dare to move the starting players. If the reserves continued to be outscored, they might lose this game again, and then they would be back to the previous pattern, winning two games only to be tied by the opponent.
"James, you still need to defend Lewis with all your might."
Because Tekele was playing well earlier, James's defensive focus had shifted slightly, and the team's focus was on Tekele, which gave Lewis an opportunity.
While Mike Brown was explaining tactics to others, Tang Long looked at James and said, "Because Tekele is playing well, our defensive focus has shifted, and as a result, Lewis has become more comfortable. We need to stick to how we played in the first game and not let Lewis score easily."
"We'll switch to a zone defense later, so we can't let the Magic score in the paint."
Tang Long and James looked at Mike Brown in unison.
In the first quarter, the Magic's points mainly came from the free-throw line and the elbow area, with few opportunities to score inside the three-second line. If they played zone defense, it would give the Magic an easy shooting opportunity.
The two exchanged glances and nodded helplessly.
After all, Mike Brown was the head coach of the Cavaliers.
"Beep!"
At this moment, the referee blew the whistle for the second quarter. The Magic, after taking the lead, brought on a point guard, Kenyon Doolin.
Tang Long had long forgotten his basketball skills, but many fans knew Kenyon Doolin by another identity: he later became the president of the players' union.
At the start of the second quarter, the Magic did not rush their offense, setting up a zone defense to prevent the Cavaliers from scoring in the paint.
Especially after Tang Long erupted, the Cavaliers' outside shots were more frequent only when they had a lead.
The Magic's goal was clear: Lewis guarded James, not giving James an easy shot. As for Petrovic and Drew Gooden, they could shoot freely.
After several passes, the ball reached James. He didn't have a good driving lane at this point, and Lewis was sticking to his rhythm, making James hesitant to make fancy moves.
After Gortat was suspended, Augustin played center and was responsible for guarding Tang Long.
Augustin clearly understood Van Gundy's tactics: do the job of a blue-collar player, prevent Tang Long from scoring, and secure defensive rebounds.
This made Tang Long quite frustrated because the focused defense made it difficult to seize the opponent's momentary hesitation.
James passed the ball to Petrovic in the corner. Petrovic feigned a shot, and Evans came over to defend. Petrovic flicked the ball, intending to use his speed to beat Evans.
Evans had clearly anticipated Petrovic's move and reached out to steal the ball.
"Phew..."
"Oh no!"
The Magic fans gasped.
It was just a little bit short. If it had been a little closer, Evans would have stolen the ball, but Evans's attempt to steal also blocked Petrovic's offensive path.
He had no choice but to throw the ball to Tang Long as he was about to fall.
Augustin was using an overplay defense, and the ball went straight towards Augustin's chest.
Fortunately, this was a basketball. If it were soccer, it would have been a huge super mistake!