The Wildcats offense, Li Feng broke through again, drawing a double-team from two defensive players. He then executed a no-look pass to an open Curry.
Danny Green rushed to close out, but Curry's shot was as quick as lightning, swish!
Another three-pointer made.
The Splash Brothers accounted for all the Wildcats' comeback points, tying the score at 13:13!
The Wildcats fans in the arena were ecstatic; this was the finals!
The North Carolina legends on the sidelines all had grim expressions.
Basketball god Michael Jordan, who had been chatting and laughing with those around him, expecting North Carolina to easily defeat the Wildcats,
suddenly lost his smile as the Wildcats' Splash Brothers found their rhythm.
He began to pay attention to Li Feng.
Li Feng's drives reminded him of himself in his prime, and also of Kobe and Wade later on – a comprehensive blend of wild guards, incredibly well-rounded.
The game continued, and North Carolina exploited their inside presence, frequently attacking the basket.
However, under Li Feng's help defense, North Carolina's scoring efficiency was not high.
On the Wildcats' side, Li Feng and Curry were firing on all cylinders, their shooting touch hot, and the score difference gradually widened.
At 18 minutes and 41 seconds into the first half, Curry was called for a foul during a defensive play.
He now had three fouls.
This became a hidden danger for the Wildcats.
The Splash Brothers were the Wildcats' engine, indispensable, so Curry kept shaking his head, clearly disagreeing with the call.
Wildcats coach Mike had no choice but to substitute Curry out early.
North Carolina inbounded the ball from the sideline, and the ball was once again passed to Hansbrough inside.
At this point, North Carolina was trailing by 11 points, and with the first half nearing its end, Hansbrough wanted to make a play to narrow the deficit to within 10 points.
Love, facing Hansbrough, was frustrated. He couldn't guard Hansbrough effectively and had to resort to fouling.
Li Feng stepped up again, standing in front of Love, blocking Hansbrough.
Hansbrough intended to use his height advantage for a little hook shot.
Swish!
Li Feng soared into the air again, arriving earlier than expected!
Slap!
The ball was once again knocked out of bounds!
The crowd erupted in another gasp.
Li Feng's rim protection was terrifying; it was far beyond what a guard should exhibit.
Mike Krzyzewski on the sidelines nodded with satisfaction. He had actually discussed rim protection with Li Feng, asking him to help out occasionally to relieve pressure on the bigs.
But he hadn't expected Li Feng to genuinely study it so diligently; Li Feng was simply perfect at rim protection today.
North Carolina continued to inbound the ball from the baseline, but with only just over 2 seconds left on the shot clock.
Danny Green received the ball and, in a hurried shot, threw up a brick.
With Curry off the court, Li Feng temporarily shouldered the offensive load.
However, the referees seemed unwilling to let the Wildcats lead by too much. Li Feng's consecutive drives were both called offensive fouls.
This meant both Curry and Li Feng now had three fouls.
Coach Mike had no choice but to substitute Li Feng out as well.
With less than two minutes left in the first half, and without Li Feng and Curry, the Wildcats' situation took a sharp turn for the worse.
North Carolina, after being suppressed for over ten minutes, finally turned the tide. Without Li Feng's close defense, Ty Lawson transformed into Jordan, directly overwhelming the Wildcats players.
In just two minutes, the 10-point deficit was erased, and they took the lead.
Following a three-pointer by Danny Green, North Carolina led by 4 points at halftime!
At this point, the spectators fully understood that the Wildcats were the Splash Brothers' team.
With both of them off the court, the Wildcats were finished, reduced to a mere underdog team.
During the halftime break, Barkley on TNT began to downplay the Wildcats' performance again.
"See, Li Feng and Curry are plagued by fouls; that's the drawback of their playing style!"
Smith asked in confusion, "Isn't that just a matter of the officiating?"
"Officiating is part of the game; it's not an excuse! If the team loses, it's the core players' responsibility!"
Barkley's words, though clearly biased, represented the thoughts of a significant portion of the media.
They simply didn't want the Splash Brothers' offensive model to rise, so whenever the Wildcats fell behind, they would jump out to criticize.
Smith remained more objective, analyzing Li Feng's and Curry's offensive plays from earlier.
"See, Li Feng and Curry's offense has overturned traditional play. As long as they strengthen their defense, their offense can win the game."
Barkley fell silent. He actually knew the strength of the Splash Brothers but didn't want the old-school traditional basketball to decline.
...
In the locker room, Li Feng and Curry were still cheering on their teammates.
When the two weren't on the court earlier, and the score was reversed, the teammates felt guilty, heads bowed in silence.
"Brothers, we're only temporarily behind. The game is 40 minutes, not 20 minutes. Let's get pumped up!"
Curry clapped his hands, encouraging his teammates.
Li Feng also said, "Everyone has been great, don't be discouraged. In the second half, everyone needs to strengthen their defense. Victory will still be ours!"
Aleron had 4 fouls in the first half and could barely play in the second half; he felt the most regret.
Reserve center Jones made frequent turnovers and was the main reason for the points conceded earlier.
The two big men sat in a corner, feeling very dejected.
Li Feng and Curry walked over, patted them on the shoulders, and continued to encourage them.
The atmosphere in the Wildcats' locker room was restored to morale under the adjustment of the two.
Coach Mike did not enter the locker room because he trusted Li Feng and Curry to manage the locker room atmosphere effectively.
The team trailing at halftime was not a tactical issue, so his presence as head coach was not necessary.
...
Old Nelson sat in a corner, having watched the first half intently.
When the Wildcats were trailing at the beginning, he had already noticed the distinctiveness of Li Feng and Curry.
Perhaps prompted by West, he had a feeling that Li Feng and Curry would still break out.
During the halftime break, he immediately called the Warriors' general manager and shared his thoughts.
"At all costs, we must get Li Feng and Curry. If we can't get both, we must get at least one!"
The Warriors' general manager was surprised because the team had always been looking for forwards, as the Warriors already had Monta Ellis at the time.
Monta Ellis played very well for the Warriors and even created the "We Believe" upset with his teammates in the 2006-07 season.
Although the manager was surprised, he didn't say much and decided to find game footage of Li Feng and Curry to study carefully.
The second half of the game began.
The Wildcats players high-fived each other, shouted, and bounced onto the court.
Although North Carolina was leading, their players were somewhat uneasy, as they knew very well that the reason they were able to come back in the first half was the absence of the Splash Brothers!
The Wildcats initiated the offense first. Li Feng was not bothered by fouls and continued to charge and fight.
This was also a test of the referees' officiating.
Fortunately, the referees were not overly biased and were considered fair.