One Wins, One Loses. Speed is Paramount

Johnny Watson simply couldn't understand the behavior of Stanford's number 10 player on the court, was he being reckless?

The physical difference was obvious, yet he was constantly defending closely, even seeking physical contact?

In the second round of Pruitt's attack, Li Zhen once again went up to meet him, with arms spread wide, a defensive pose like a wrestler.

But... what was the meaning of doing this?

Pruitt just turned his back, and with one collision, he staggered back two steps, although he looked slightly better than in the previous round, he ultimately couldn't maintain his balance and fell to the ground.

How embarrassing!

Laughter erupted from the crowd again.

But soon, the laughter abruptly stopped.

Pruitt's jump shot was still short and hit the rim.

The basketball was knocked out of the court by Frank Benson in the struggle, USC still had possession.

"I simply can't understand this player named Bruce Li. His behavior is unacceptable. Despite the obvious difference in physicality, why does he insist on being so reckless?" Johnny Watson continued, "Does he really think... that he can resist Pruitt's attack with his body?"

"My opinion differs from yours, I really admire him," Magic Johnson had a completely different perspective, "The first time he defended, I thought maybe he didn't correctly assess the strength difference between the two sides. But the second time, he went up to meet him again, what does that show? It shows that even though he knows there is a huge gap between the two sides, and he understands the cost of this type of defense, he still wants to defend like this because the previous defense was successful."

"To be honest, if he had a thicker build and stronger power, I would really recommend the Lakers' scouts to go and check him out."

Magic Johnson was very serious this time.

But his seriousness puzzled Johnny Watson: he thought Magic was too emotional.

At the same time, Li Zhen, on the court, rubbed his painful chest and got up.

Jamie Lin on the sidelines had been pressuring the referee, reminding him that Pruitt had committed offensive fouls twice.

But now, during the break, he yelled angrily at Bruce in incomplete Chinese, "Li Zhen, if you continue with this risky defense, I will throw you onto the bench and never let you play. This is suicidal, understand?"

He was very excited and angry.

He believed that Li Zhen was trying to prove himself in the final three games, but basketball wasn't played this way. There were more important things in this world than basketball, and there was no reason to engage in self-destructive behavior just to stay at Stanford next season.

Doing this would not move the apathetic coaching staff or athletic committee.

Jamie, who shared the same racial background, spoke harshly, but he felt very sympathetic towards Li Zhen. He understood better than anyone how difficult it was for players with yellow skin to prove themselves in basketball, how they had to put in twice or even ten times the effort compared to players of other races. Until you left everyone far behind, any effort you made would not be acknowledged. They arrogantly believed that your ceiling was at the level of other races' knees.

Li Zhen replied in Chinese, "Don't worry, I know my limits."

At this moment, Li Zhen wasn't thinking about trying to impress anyone or staying at Stanford.

He wanted to use this method to gain more strength and talent.

When he fell to the ground, Talent Baby told him, "This time you gained 3 points of strength talent. He only has 39 points left, while you already have 19 points. Because this jerk has been indulging himself last night, he can only display around 30 points of strength now. As long as you collide with him again, his power will fade away and he won't be able to suppress you completely."

This message made Li Zhen smile, and then he turned his head and looked at Pruitt gently, "My dear Pruitt, I really enjoyed being bumped by you twice. Come on, I can't wait for our third collision."

He said this lightly and genuinely.

But to Pruitt's ears, it was utter trash talk.

Pruitt instantly glared fiercely at Li Zhen, "You dumbass, when you say those words, you should immediately call an ambulance."

"Acting tough in front of me, pretending to be strong. Hmph!"

He coldly left these words and quickly ran towards the three-point line.

But at this moment, USC had already passed the ball to Nick Young.

After Nick Young received the ball, Pruitt didn't move anymore. He knew Nick Young's style very well, this guy was like his idol Kobe Bryant, a black hole for ball possession. Once the ball was in his hands, it would never be passed again. In the eyes of players like him, even with three defenders, there would still be an open space.

Stanford timely double-teamed, Thompson and small forward Ian House quickly went to defend. But Nick Young used a smooth turning move to avoid them, and with a highly difficult fadeaway shot.

Even Kevin George at the sidelines exclaimed, "Wow", this was indeed NBA-level, picturesque posture.

Unfortunately... clang!

The shot hit the rim.

Scott under the basket quickly grabbed the rebound with interference from Frank Benson and immediately passed it to Li Zhen at the three-point line.

Li Zhen caught the ball and immediately took off like lightning.

Although Pruitt tried to chase him, Stanford's number 10 player was just too fast. An 80-point speed would rank within the top 30 even in the NBA, and in the NCAA, except for those with exceptional talent, all the others were left in the dust.

When Bruce left Pruitt far behind at the centerline, Kevin George quickly took out his notebook, this guy's performance had to be recorded in words. He had the idea of pushing this player to the Spurs' management: although this might make some people think he was an unprofessional scout, but... he was just too impressive.

Li Zhen rushed into the paint like lightning, then he quickly jumped up, although his vertical leap was not as astonishing as his speed. But with no one able to catch up...

Swish!

The basketball went in without suspense!

YES!!

Jamie Lin on the sidelines vigorously waved his fist, this shot made him extremely excited.

He had invested too many personal emotions into Li Zhen.

"Well done, buddy!"

He shouted towards Li Zhen.

Li Zhen turned around and blew a kiss gesture towards Jamie Lin.

Then, Jamie Lin heard a scream of admiration from a female fan in a Nick Young #1 jersey behind him. She looked at Bruce with infatuation in her eyes. (T/N: Author wrote #23 as Nick Young's jersey. Changed it to #1.)

Well, this girl must have misunderstood something.

But Jamie Lin wasn't surprised at all. After all, this kind of thing happened frequently.

Bruce was very popular among the girls when he was at Stanford. Even though he didn't play many minutes per game, with his handsome appearance, he always received the most love letters among the players.

As Scott would say, this guy lived at the top of Stanford's mating hierarchy, even the star players of the football team couldn't surpass him.