Chapter 915 278: Winning by 1 Point Is Still a Win!

Tim Hardaway, upon reaching the frontcourt, didn't waste time and decisively charged in!

After entering inside the three-point line with speed, Tim Hardaway heavily bounced the ball, stepping back.

Zhang Hao quickly recovered again, but Tim Hardaway did not pick up the ball in his step-back, instead following with a cross step, stopping and exploding forward, continuing to break through on the right side... Just as Zhang Hao was about to step back and cover the space for Tim Hardaway's quick stop and jump shot after his breakthrough, he noticed several people on the right side of the paint. Tim Hardaway was still making his way to the right side... In a split second, Zhang Hao made a decision, instead of retreating, he pressed forward!

Indeed, this breakthrough by Tim Hardaway was still a fake; using a method that tortured his own ankles and knees, he stopped abruptly and sprang up again, stepping back once more with a large step, releasing a three-pointer nearly a meter outside the three-point line...

As he jumped, Tim Hardaway regretted it, but the ball was already raised. Even though he had quick reflexes and speed, he couldn't worry about whether he had truly shaken off his opponent; he was sure he could... The ball was barely raised when it was swatted down by Zhang Hao who lunged at him!

Zhang Hao swatted Tim Hardaway's step-back three-pointer away, brushing past Tim Hardaway as he did. He blocked it downward, and the ball bounced off the floor, popping back up, and he snatched it.

His body acted before his mind, launching a counterattack directly!

Tim Hardaway turned and chased immediately... but couldn't catch up!

Watching Zhang Hao's astonishing counterattack speed, Tim Hardaway's eyes widened in disbelief—even having seen it before, it still felt terrifying.

When Zhang Hao slammed the ball into the basket, it was as if victory was slipping away from Tim Hardaway...

When Zhang Hao dunked the ball, there were still 6.2 seconds left, and the Heat inbounded the ball quickly, pushing forward to the frontcourt. It was disrupted out of bounds by the active Doug Christie; with 2.6 seconds remaining, Marion retrieved the ball, took one dribble, turned at the baseline for a mid-range shot but missed.

70 to 61, the Lakers leading by 9 points!

At the start of the fourth quarter, the Heat were definitely not giving up, believing the Lakers would still want to attack at the beginning of the fourth quarter, so they prepared to strike fiercely during this time and then leave the rest to chance...

Originally, leaving it to fate was the Lakers' head coach Del Harris' mindset for this game.

However, watching Zhang Hao tonight continuously initiate attacks from beyond the three-point line inefficiently, hitting only 8 out of 24 shots across three quarters, scoring two three-pointers, and adding 4 out of 5 free throws, totaling only 22 points.

Yet Zhang Hao helped the Lakers when they needed points by opening up the game, creating several scoring opportunities, which James Robinson, the Magician, Wilkins, and Barkley all capitalized on.

There was also O'Neal's contribution of 9 points and 2 assists in the latter half of the third quarter, which was truly a challenge for the Heat to contend with.

But the Heat still had hope, believing the Lakers lacked the most reliable ball handler on the perimeter during crucial moments.

But after the start of the fourth quarter, the Lakers gave up attacking during critical moments and abandoned their previous pace changes.

Del Harris was well aware that such changes in pace could only happen once or twice, but not thrice, and with a 9-point lead, winning by 1 point was still a win. This is something the Heat's head coach Pat Riley always said, and this time, it was Del Harris's turn to say it.

The Silver Fox directly sent out a lineup with Brian Shaw, Doug Christie, George Lynch, O'Neal, and Zhang Hao to play defense in the fourth quarter!

The Heat wanted to launch an attack at the start of the fourth quarter to reduce the point difference, then gamble on which side would be more precise with crucial shots, but that thought was extinguished right from the start.

That's not all—even though in an entire quarter, the defense-focused Heat weren't completely without chances, Tim Hardaway started squandering opportunities as soon as he was up.

However, they found that Zhang Hao, who constantly wiped his sweat after the fast break dunk in the third quarter, seemed to have recovered his stamina after resting in between quarters!

The Lakers, when grinding out defense, indeed weren't better than the Heat, with the Heat in the final quarter scoring regularly and defeating the Lakers 16 to 12, leading by 4 points.

Their regular scoring was indeed severely restricted in the final quarter.

But in terms of counterattack scoring, the Heat succeeded twice in defensive counterattacks, scoring 5 points, reaching 21 points in the fourth quarter at 11 minutes and 2 seconds.

However, the Lakers, led by Zhang Hao in solo counterattacks, scored 6 points... In 11 minutes and 2 seconds, the Lakers scored 18 points! They gave the Heat no opportunity to overturn the game, and with 58 seconds left, the Lakers led 88 to 82, 6 points ahead of the Heat!

The Heat called a timeout, and upon returning, Tim Hardaway missed a gambled three-pointer. When Zhang Hao grabbed the defensive rebound, the Heat directly fouled O'Neal.

But in the final quarter, O'Neal hit two out of three free throws, making both crucial free throws at the line.

90 to 82, an 8-point lead, with 47 seconds left, the Lakers completely locked in the win!

In the end, with Zhang Hao shooting 12 out of 32, including 2 out of 9 from three-point range, plus hitting 6 out of 7 free throws, achieving 32 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 blocks; O'Neal achieving 21 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks; Barkley with 9 points, 7 rebounds, and 1 assist... along with outstanding team defense, the Lakers secured a 92 to 85 victory against the Heat on the road, improving their record to 52 wins and 15 losses!