The referee called an ordinary foul on Wemby.
From the footage, Wang Yi had indeed charged straight into Wemby's fist.
It looked as though he might have faked the fall.
But from another angle, Wang Yi hadn't been heading for Wemby's fist.
He'd been going for the basketball beyond the baseline.
You could argue that after Wemby scored, Wang Yi was trying to quickly grab the ball out of bounds and launch a fast break.
That was a perfectly reasonable move.
So the referee ruled that Wang Yi hadn't faked the fall.
At the same time, Wemby's move hadn't been intentional. Although he had hit Wang Yi in the face, the referee didn't call a flagrant foul—just an ordinary one.
But even that ordinary foul was devastating.
It was Wemby's third foul, which was a major blow to the Hornets.
The crowd let out another deafening round of boos.
"Booo—"
Many people started cursing the referee, too.
"Dumbass ref!"
"Dumbass ref!"
"Dumbass ref!"
But Wemby's third foul was a fact, and nothing could change it.
He had no choice but to head to the bench and rest.
Only then did Wang Yi rub his cheek.
There wasn't the slightest bruise or swelling on his face, nothing like what you'd expect after taking a punch.
It was as if he'd never been hit at all.
The truth was, even though Wang Yi had charged toward the fist, he wasn't about to let it hit him squarely in the face.
The instant his face met the fist, he had turned his head to the side, taking most of the force out of the blow.
With Wemby—both the defensive anchor and offensive powerhouse—out of the game, the Kings suddenly found it much easier to play.
Wang Yi was still getting double-