224

```

The Staples Center greeted their number 8 with the most enthusiastic cheers upon his return.

Instantly, the Lakers' number 8 took over the offense.

Although Yu Fei didn't believe in the buffs associated with playing consecutive games, today Kobe really resembled those anime athletes from Japanese sports series who seem to gain a sudden power up after a flashback.

Before Kobe came on the court, the Bucks had narrowed the gap to one point.

In the following half of the quarter, that one-point difference just couldn't be closed.

Even though the OK connection was cut off, having two dominant isolation players on both the inside and outside inherently provided a strong sense of security to their teammates.

Yu Fei decided to test the Pistons' Iron Bucket Formation in advance, deliberately leaving the Lakers' role players open.

Turns out, their catch-and-shoot was not half bad.

By the end of the first half, the Lakers' lead had increased back to five points.

58 to 53