"Just wait, the game will prove I'm right," Smith said, turning his head.

"Yeah, the game will prove you're wrong," Barkley said with a loud laugh. He often lost bets to Smith during their TNT commentary, sometimes for the sake of the show, but this time at the NCAA, he finally had a chance to get his own back.

The four commentators chatted animatedly, the players from both teams finished their final warm-ups, and the arena moved into the opening ceremony.

UConn's opening ceremony was unique this time. Each player performed an impromptu dance as they were introduced.

Tang Tian was introduced before Walker, and he and Walker did a mechanical dance with electric current effects, instantly igniting the emotions of the UConn fans.

Singler watched UConn's entrance speechlessly. He felt like they weren't here to compete, but to entertain the fans.

Duke's opening ceremony was very formal, with 3D projections and cheering fans, highlighting their imposing momentum, just like North Carolina.

The cheers of more than 40,000 fans in the arena broke through the clouds.

After the opening ceremony, the starting players from both teams entered the court one after another, and the cheers of more than 70,000 people were overwhelming. They couldn't wait any longer.

For UConn, Calhoun sent out the lineup he used most in the regular season: Walker and Lamb in the backcourt, Smith and Tang Tian on the forward line, and Oriakhi at center.

On the Duke side.

The starting point guard was Irving, and his backcourt partner was senior Nolan Smith. Smith was an excellent combo guard who averaged 17.4 points last season and was the absolute core of the perimeter before Irving came to the team.

On the forward line, the small forward was MOP Kyle Singler, and the power forward was Ryan Kelly, a stretch four. He had hit a three-pointer in 18 consecutive games this season, ranking second in Duke history.

At the center position was Mason Plumlee, the younger of the Plumlee brothers. The Plumlee brothers were both tall white men with rare athleticism, and compared to his older brother Miles Plumlee, Mason had a more stable mid-range shot, which was the reason he was the starting center.

(Note: There are three Plumlee brothers in total. This Duke team only has Mason and Miles. The youngest, Marshall, has not yet entered the NCAA. Mason has the best talent among the three brothers.)

Plumlee and Oriakhi jumped for the ball. The former, at 2.11 meters tall, had a pair of spring legs. After the referee blew the whistle, he jumped up and tapped the ball back to his own half, giving Duke the opportunity to attack first.

Accompanied by the deafening cheers of the audience, the Final Four battle officially kicked off.

Irving dribbled the ball outside the three-point line, and Nolan Smith directly signaled his other teammates to spread out.

Plumlee came up to the high post to screen for Irving. Irving accelerated past Oriakhi and scored a layup with a sudden stop and change of direction.

The crowd stirred.

Irving's change of direction was clean and neat, truly worthy of being the new generation crossover representative.

In UConn's offense, Tang Tian picked and rolled with Walker, and Walker, mismatched against Kelly, also scored with a low-body change of direction.

At the start of the game, both sides began a peak duel between point guards.

Irving dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, and Plumlee screened again. This time, UConn didn't switch, and Walker gave him a step.

Irving didn't choose a mid-range shot, but dribbled the ball back behind the three-point line and passed the ball to Smith to organize the offense.

Smith wasn't particularly talented, but he was a player with a super high basketball IQ. After receiving the ball, he faked a three-point shot to deceive Lamb, broke through to the inside, attracted Oriakhi's help defense, and then directly lobbed the ball above the basket. Plumlee jumped up and dunked for the score.

The emotions of the Duke fans in the arena were instantly ignited.

"What did I tell you? This is Duke, you can't defend all five of them at the same time!" Barkley shouted loudly at Smith.

Duke's starting lineup consisted of Irving, who was unstoppable on the drive, Smith, a basketball brain on the court, Singler, who was all-around on offense and defense, Kelly, who spread the floor, and Plumlee, a pillar under the basket. This lineup configuration was almost unsolvable in the NCAA.

Lamb's catch-and-shoot in the frontcourt missed, and Plumlee grabbed the defensive rebound.

Duke attacked to the frontcourt, Smith and Singler ran a pick-and-roll, and when Smith stepped out after the screen, he passed the ball straight into the inside. Singler caught the ball and scored against Lamb.

Duke had scored on all three of their first three possessions.

Calhoun stood up at this time and signaled to switch to a zone defense.

Walker and Tang Tian ran another pick-and-roll in the frontcourt. This time, Plumlee came over to help defend, and Walker passed the ball to Oriakhi under the basket.

Oriakhi laid the ball in from close range, but Plumlee was extremely talented and turned around and blocked Oriakhi's shot with a palm, and also grabbed the defensive rebound.

The Duke fans in the arena cheered constantly.

With this offense and defense, Plumlee had suppressed Oriakhi in terms of talent.

Duke attacked to the frontcourt again, and UConn was now playing a 2-3 zone defense.

After seeing this, Smith passed the ball to Irving, and Irving found Singler to run a pick-and-roll. After the screen, he retreated to the three-point line.

Walker pressed forward, and UConn's defense was very good this time.

Irving passed the ball back to Smith, and Smith's fake pass to the inside deceived Lamb, and then he suddenly pulled up for a three-pointer.

Lamb turned around and lunged forward to interfere.

"Swish!"

Smith made a three-pointer with Lamb's defense in his face.

7 to 2.

Breakthroughs, teamwork, three-pointers, Duke launched a tidal wave of offense at the start of the game.

Barkley looked at Smith, who had been silent, with a constant smile on his face.

This was a direct crushing in terms of talent.

In UConn's offense, Lamb's breakthrough layup after a pick and roll was against Plumlee.

Plumlee was 2.11 meters tall and had an excellent wingspan. He was a wall under the basket.

Lamb showed his talent, dodging in the air, but Plumlee jumped up and blocked his shot with a slap.

He was not only tall and had a long wingspan, but he could also jump very high!

The Duke fans in the arena whistled.

Less than three minutes into the start of the game, Plumlee had already contributed two blocks. Tonight, he was going to completely dominate the paint.

Nolan Smith grabbed a loose ball and launched a fast break on defense. After seeing Tang Tian retreat to defend at the first opportunity, he directly went up to meet him. When he reached the frontcourt, he passed the ball to Singler, who was following up on the weak side. Singler caught the ball and made a sudden stop for a mid-range shot.

"Swish!"

The ball went in!

9 to 2!

Duke had made four consecutive shots at the start of the game, and they came from four different people. This was truly an explosion of talent.

Calhoun reached out and called a timeout.

If they played man-to-man, Duke could use their matchup advantages, and if they defended the paint, the opponents had three-pointers. This Duke team was much stronger than the previous North Carolina team.

No wonder Singler was so confident. He had absolute confidence in his team's strength.

"Kenny, do you believe what we said now?" Barkley said with a smug look on his face.

"Charles, the truth is in the hands of a few people. The game has just begun," Smith retorted unconvincingly.

"You guy, really, just watch, they'll finish the game in the first half," Barkley had been optimistic about Duke, and after seeing Duke's performance at the start of the game, he was even more certain of this.