Chapter 51: Elevator Door Tactic
Sun Hao's explosive scoring burst pulled Real Madrid Team back from the brink.
But almost immediately, he had no more chances.
Panathinaikos Team's head coach was Giannakis, a future European Hall of Fame coach.
After Sun Hao sank two consecutive three-pointers, Panathinaikos Team's defense changed again.
It was still man-to-man defense, but the moment he caught the ball, he was double-teamed.
Sun Hao wanted to score through isolation?
Sorry, not unless he could take on two defenders at once.
And if he passed? Their tactical discipline was there for all to see. Help defense and rotations could arrive in an instant.
Unless he had two Sun Haos spreading the floor, there was no way around it.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid Team still had no good answer for Bodiroga.
At the end of the first quarter, the score was 21-22. Real Madrid Team and Panathinaikos Team were evenly matched.
But by halftime, the score had become 34-44, and the gap had widened to double digits.
Panathinaikos Team had easily defeated Barcelona Team in the semifinals. Their strength was plain to see.
This was also the first time since entering the UEFA Champions League Knockout Stage that Real Madrid Team had trailed by so many points at halftime.
The situation was extremely unfavorable for them.
During halftime, the players returned to the locker room, gasping for breath.
Sun Hao included.
He had scored 15 points in the first half and had already given it everything he had.
But tonight's opponent was simply too strong as a whole.
After Laso came in and arranged the tactics for the second half, he left again.
The players gradually caught their breath, but few of them spoke.
Seeing the team's morale dip, Sun Hao stood up... and headed out of the locker