Lamb saw the ball go in and let out an excited roar from the floor, pounding the court hard before Smith rushed over and pulled him up.
Ollie's face lit up at the sight.
When Lamb had missed that earlier shot, he had worried that Lamb's mentality had collapsed. Now, though, it seemed that was not the case at all.
After all, having missed so many shots in the previous games, expecting him to regain his touch the moment he stepped on the court was asking too much.
But judging by the way he had charged inside after the shot, he really had changed.
Walker smiled and glanced at Tang Tian on the court. It looked like Tang Tian's attempt had worked.
Lamb made the and-one free throw, putting UConn ahead 5-2.
Marquette University went on offense. Butler gave the ball to Allen again, but O'Riaqi stayed glued to him. Allen spun repeatedly without finding room to shoot, and in the end, he could only drive toward the basket.
He went for an underhand layup, but O'Riaqi rushed over and challenged it.
He did not block the ball, but he successfully disrupted Allen's shot, and it slipped off the rim.
Tang Tian rushed beneath the basket and secured the defensive rebound.
That sequence of offense and defense from UConn greatly boosted the team's morale.
Thump, thump!
Defense!
Thump, thump!
Defense!
Sensing that the momentum was shifting, the arena DJ began rallying the fans to cheer for the home team.
After UConn crossed half court, Napier again signaled for the three-point play. Tang Tian cut in from the left baseline toward the basket, throwing Marquette University's defense into disarray.
But Butler's defensive ability was truly outstanding. Tang Tian had already gotten open, yet Butler anticipated a passing lane and denied Napier the chance to pass. He also recovered quickly with help defense.
Tang Tian was under tight defense and had no opportunity, while Lamb deliberately curled back to the right high post and held out his hand for the ball.
Napier fired a direct pass.
After catching the ball, Lamb used a fake move to fool his defender, took one step toward the edge of the paint, and, seeing Allen coming out, banked the ball high off the glass early.
Bang!
The ball sailed over Allen's fingertips, struck the backboard, and bounced into the net.
Lamb scored another 2 points!
He had realized that his touch was off, so he was attacking the basket more often.
"Old man, this actually fucking worked!" Seeing Lamb look like a completely different player, even Ollie could not help swearing.
If Lamb kept playing like this, he could absolutely carry the mantle of next season's Team Core!
Cahoon smiled and nodded, unable to stop himself from giving Tang Tian another look.
Back when they played Georgetown, Tang Tian had been the one to suggest the three-point play. This time, he had boldly tried to wake Lamb up. This newcomer to the team just kept bringing him surprises.
Marquette University went on offense, and Butler used a teammate's screen to finish a Driving Layup, finally helping the team get back on the board.
On the other end, Napier immediately raised his hand to signal a change in tactics.
A play with the shooting guard position as the finishing point.
This had originally been their most frequently used tactic in the game when Walker got injured. But with Lamb struggling, they had barely used it over the last few games. Now that they brought it back, the players were still very familiar with it.
Tang Tian's Three-point positional play drew the defense, while O'Riaqi set a screen before moving up to the high post to set another screen for Lamb.
His massive body blocked both Allen and the opposing guard at once.
Lamb came curling around for a completely wide-open opportunity.
Napier fired a direct pass, and Lamb caught it for a Mid-Range Shot.
The ball had a nice arc. After making two straight baskets, his shooting touch had started to return as well.
Swish!
A crisp sound rang out.
Lamb's Mid Range shot went in too!
He had scored 7 points in this stretch with drives and jumpers, looking every bit like UConn's new core!
UConn's bench could not help erupting in excited cheers.
They all knew about Lamb's talent, but his poor performances earlier had frustrated them badly. Now that he was playing well, they naturally cheered for him.
Tang Tian could not help smiling as well.
Some people were born asking for a beating. If you did not hit them a few times and curse them out, they would never grow.
Lamb was clearly one of those people. His high school coaches had probably been like Cahoon and the others, afraid to yell at him and protecting him like a flower in a greenhouse. That obviously would not work.
Still, it was fortunate that Lamb had some fire in him. He was not Wiggins, steeping goji berries in tea, nor was he Towns, all talk and no action.
Marquette University went on offense. Butler called for another screen, but this time Tang Tian pressed up tightly against him, leaving no room for the screen to develop.
Butler had no opening and could only pass to Allen. Allen's Mid-range jump shot missed, and his attempt after grabbing the offensive rebound also failed.
O'Riaqi secured the defensive rebound, and UConn immediately launched a Defensive Counterattack.
Tang Tian took up a Corner Position and attracted the defense. The trailing Lamb received Napier's pass, found an opening, and immediately launched a Chasing Three-Pointer.
Everyone in the arena suddenly held their breath.
Could Lamb make this one too?
Bang!
With a dull clank, the shot came up short and hit the front rim before bouncing out.
Lamb's three-point touch was still not very good.
The fans let out a long sigh of relief.
But in the next second, Lamb charged into the paint, grabbed the long rebound, leaned into Marquette University's guard, and scored through contact!
This was insane!
He had scored 9 straight points in this stretch. He was completely on fire!
Marquette University's Head Coach raised his hand and called a timeout.
Walker's absence had had an obvious impact on UConn, especially at the offensive end. Over their past three games, they had all scored fewer than 60 points. Before that, their average score had been over 70.
That had also been the key to Marquette University winning this game, but no one had expected Lamb, who had been awful before, to suddenly explode in this game—and show signs of going on a rampage.
Tang Tian had emerged in their first meeting, and now Lamb had appeared too. UConn really seemed to have a grudge against Marquette University!
When Lamb came off the court, he was greeted by enthusiastic cheers from his teammates. Cahoon nodded in satisfaction and used the tactics board to draw up a new play for Lamb.
"Hey, guys, keep your confidence up! We're only down by 5!" On Marquette University's bench, Butler raised his voice as much as he could and shouted at his teammates.
"Coach, I'll guard Lamb," he said directly to the Head Coach after shouting.
He was truly taking both offense and defense onto his own shoulders.
After the timeout, Marquette University went on offense.
Butler forced his way against Tang Tian in the frontcourt. He took a shot after an Isolation play, but Tang Tian gave him contact, and the shot was clearly disrupted and missed badly.
Butler spun around and rushed beneath the basket, grabbing the offensive rebound for Second Chance Points and scoring before O'Riaqi's Help Defense could arrive.
After scoring, he let out an angry roar toward the crowd.
"This is our home court!" he shouted, then yelled at his teammates.
He was using this method to fire them up.
"Jimmy! Jimmy!"
Cheers rang out across the arena. Butler's style of play was truly tough, and it was easy for him to stir up the fans' emotions.
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