Li Feng signaled his teammates not to panic, to stay steady, and the China team launched another offense.
This time, Li Feng saw that Da Yao had finally secured a position in the low post and immediately passed the ball to him.
The pass was precise, but Australia was too brutal. Bogut played dirty, pushing Da Yao from behind and simultaneously bumping Da Yao's elbow.
Da Yao's ball dropped.
Strictly speaking, it was a clear foul, but the referee hesitated and didn't call it. Australia's Barlow snatched the ball and initiated another counter-attack.
China's two consecutive failed offensive attempts disappointed the scouts.
They began to whisper among themselves.
"Hey, what's wrong with Li Feng today? His performance is too poor?"
"Maybe he's being heavily guarded and can't adapt."
"Sigh, another flash in the pan. So disappointing!"
...
It wasn't just the scouts; even the fans in the arena were getting restless.
The commentators for China Sports Channel were still Yu Jia and Coach Zhang.
The two were immensely looking forward to today's game.
Ever since China's three consecutive victories, they had transformed into fans, eagerly awaiting each game.
When China got off to a poor start today, Yu Jia became a little anxious.
"Coach Zhang, what's going on? It seems the players haven't adapted yet!"
Coach Zhang wasn't worried at all. He understood Australia.
Australia's rough play style could indeed make opponents uncomfortable at the start.
"Don't worry, Yu Jia. China will definitely win today. They just need a moment to adapt!" Coach Zhang was confident, with a smile, assuring Yu Jia.
Hearing Coach Zhang's words, Yu Jia felt reassured.
"Haha, Coach Zhang is so calm. Go China!"
...
The game continued. Coach Jonas stood by the sidelines with his arms crossed, his expression grave.
He didn't call a timeout because he knew Li Feng and Yao Ming would direct their teammates on the court and make adjustments.
Australia counter-attacked, and the ball went to Anderson again. He still wanted to target Yi Jianlian.
However, under Li Feng's direction, Du Feng immediately came to help. Anderson was in a difficult situation and had to pass the ball to the open Barlow.
Barlow took a mid-range shot. Swish!
Australia scored another 2 points, making it 5:0!
China found themselves at a disadvantage right from the start.
The spectators fell silent, watching the game in disbelief.
"Why can't we beat Australia? What is Li Feng doing?"
"Are we going to lose today? Australia lost to Spain and Lithuania."
"Sigh, maybe it's a case of mutual restraint. Today is dangerous."
"No, I still believe in Li Feng. He'll definitely step up!"
...
Facing the deficit, Li Feng didn't panic. He shouted to his teammates again, "It's okay, let's have a good one!"
This time, Li Feng still didn't attack himself but passed the ball to Sun Dasheng in the corner.
Sun Dasheng had a good feel for the ball and made the three-point shot!
The crowd erupted in cheers. China finally scored!
Li Feng's pass was precise and risky, threading through the gap between two opponents.
In the ensuing game, Australia continued to hold the advantage on the court. Da Yao was heavily restricted, and Li Feng seemed to lack offensive desire, focusing on passing.
Little did outsiders know, Li Feng had just added several points to his passing skill, so he wanted to pass the ball from the start to consolidate his passing ability.
However, his teammates' shooting felt off, and coupled with Australia's tough and rough defense, China remained behind in scoring.
By the end of the first quarter, the score was 14:23, with Australia leading by 9 points!
Li Feng scored no points in the first quarter, with only 4 assists and 3 rebounds.
Yao Ming scored 7 points in the first quarter, Sun Dasheng 3 points, Yi Jianlian 2 points, and Du Feng 2 points.
As the Chinese players went to the bench for a break, Jonas walked up to Li Feng and asked him, perplexed, "Li Feng, why aren't you attacking yourself?"
Li Feng replied calmly, "I want to connect the team first. Don't worry, we'll definitely win this game!"
Hearing Li Feng's words, Jonas was relieved. He knew Li Feng's ability to turn games around.
As the second quarter began, both teams brought in their substitute players.
In the battle of the reserves, the two teams were evenly matched, and the score difference remained around 10 points.
The home crowd in China was very dissatisfied and chanted in unison again, "Bring out Li Feng! Bring out Li Feng!"
Seeing this, the scouts found the game boring, and Li Feng's performance disappointed them.
"Hey, can Li Feng still have a breakthrough today?"
"Unlikely. The defensive intensity in the NBA is much greater than in Australia. Li Feng is struggling now?"
"Logically, it shouldn't be this way. The Greek team in the last game was also quite rough, and Li Feng didn't suffer."
"He's probably just inconsistent. Sigh, what a pity. To establish oneself in the NBA, one must improve consistency, otherwise, they can only be a streaky player."
Just as the scouts began to criticize Li Feng, Li Feng re-entered the game!
It was 4 minutes and 38 seconds into the second quarter, with the score at 31:20, China trailing by 11 points.
After the starters returned to the court, Li Feng suddenly erupted!
On his first offensive play of the second quarter, Li Feng sank an ultra-long three-pointer!
Swish!
This three-pointer was magnificent and inspiring, and it shut the scouts up!
The scouts were stunned and speechless for a long time.
Immediately after, Li Feng fiercely stole the ball from Bruton and launched a counter-attack.
Bruton tried to steal it back through rough play, but Li Feng's strong physique and superb ball-handling skills made Bruton's efforts futile, and he almost knocked Li Feng to the ground.
Li Feng drove through the defense as if no one was there. He crossed half-court, stepped on the free-throw line, and soared into the air. Bang!
This dunk shocked everyone!
Li Feng's previous dunks were in the Shaq style, but this one was a combination of Jordan and Carter, incredibly graceful yet full of power!
Li Feng's consecutive scores sent the fans into a frenzy. They finally understood that Li Feng wasn't unable to attack, he just hadn't intended to!
The Australian players were also stunned. They realized they couldn't stop Li Feng at all.
It was Australia's turn to attack again. Bogut received the ball in the paint, wanting to dunk to boost the Australian team's morale.
At this moment, Yao Ming was pushed behind by Anderson and had lost his position, only able to watch Bogut score.
Just as everyone expected Bogut to dunk, a figure suddenly leaped from behind and, with a volleyball-like motion, delivered a thunderous block on Bogut!
Wham!
Bogut felt his hands empty, the ball gone.
It was incredibly dominant!
A guard blocking a star center was a rare sight!
The Wukesong Stadium erupted again. The spectators jumped to their feet, applauding and cheering for Li Feng's spectacular block!
"Li Feng is awesome, we've finally got you!"
"Haha, Li Feng, I love you! Take them down!"
"China will win! Li Feng is awesome!"
...