Chapter 534 Plans Change, A Three-Pronged Annihilation

The Nuggets' hard-won double-teaming strategy was instantly shattered. He Xi Meng, using off-ball screens and then cutting to the basket, scored two more three-pointers and a layup! Just before the end of the third quarter, seeing that time was running out, He Xi Meng, under the double-team interference of Van Exel, Leonard, and James Posey, forcefully launched a buzzer-beater from near the logo. He Xi Meng himself didn't hold out much hope for this shot, as the angle and timing were truly rushed and forced. But for a top shooter, touch is everything! When you're hot, defense isn't a problem, space isn't a problem, distance isn't a problem, and even time isn't a problem... He Xi Meng's buzzer-beating half-court three-pointer, to the stunned eyes of the Nuggets fans, went straight into the basket! Four three-pointers and two two-pointers in half a quarter, directly scoring 16 points! At the end of the third quarter, Van Exel had 27 points and He Xi Meng had 25 points, with the gap between them narrowed to just 2 points! The Spurs' lead had already extended to 15 points! By rights, He Xi Meng and Duncan could have called it a night. As long as the score in the fourth quarter didn't get within 10 points for the Nuggets, they wouldn't need to play again. But He Xi Meng hadn't completed his "personal mission" for this game, so he needed Popovich to give him a few more minutes on the court in the latter half of the fourth quarter. "Why? I need a reason." "I need to surpass Van Exel in scoring." He Xi Meng didn't hide from Popovich, but he also didn't explain things clearly. Popovich frowned and got the game stats from Budenholzer. "You're trailing Nick by 2 points?" "Yes." "How many minutes do you need?" "If Van Exel stops scoring, one minute is enough for me... But, I expect him to shoot wildly at the beginning of the fourth quarter..." "Then rest first and see how he plays before deciding!" Popovich implicitly agreed to He Xi Meng's request, but asked him to wait off the court for now. He Xi Meng had no objections. Anyway, the point difference behind Old Fan wasn't much. As long as Old Fan didn't go crazy, there wouldn't be any major trouble in the last quarter. As expected, when the fourth quarter started, Van Exel continued to play, seemingly aiming to play the entire game? On the Spurs' side, although He Xi Meng was off the court, Popovich continued to field a double-point guard lineup against the Nuggets' double-point guards. However, this time, the double-point guards were two rookie freshmen: Parker and Arenas! Parker was matched up against Avery Johnson, and Arenas was matched up against Van Exel! It must be said, when two "pocket rockets" met, the defensive effect was quite good! Arenas had been unhappy with Van Exel's performance today: "Why can you shoot so recklessly on the court, but I can't? If I can't, you won't score in front of me either..." So, when Van Exel was on offense, Arenas would constantly make physical contact and engage in muscle battles, making Van Exel tense up and completely ruining his shooting touch. And when it was Arenas's turn to offense, he would specifically clear out his teammates and target Van Exel for a strong attack. Van Exel was stunned: "Do you have a grudge against me? You're targeting me right from the start?" "No! It has nothing to do with you! Whoever scores in front of me, I'll deal with them!" Arenas replied with a smug look. Van Exel's face was already quite dark, and Arenas's retort made it even darker and shinier... Arenas's unexpected emergence caught Van Exel completely off guard. Van Exel had originally planned to score another 13 points during the time He Xi Meng was resting to bring his total score for the game to around 40 points... That way, it would be extremely difficult for He Xi Meng to surpass him... Who would have thought that plans don't always work out as expected! This smelly kid wearing number 0, who came up with the Spurs' third lineup, with a flurry of punches, completely disrupted the shooting touch Van Exel had finally gathered. Or perhaps, it was because Van Exel had played too long in this game, and as his stamina declined, his shooting touch also showed a significant drop. Regardless, in the first half of the fourth quarter, Van Exel took 6 shots and only made 1, barely increasing his score to 30 points! "Good job! Gilbert!" When Arenas high-fived He Xi Meng after coming off the court, He Xi Meng didn't hesitate to offer his praise. "From now on, any opponent like this, I'll take care of them all!" Arenas said with full confidence. Although there was some exaggeration in the "Agent Zero's" words, it had to be admitted that Arenas had gained a certain advantage in this matchup at the beginning of the fourth quarter, successfully stopping Van Exel from continuing to score and helping He Xi Meng in the process! When He Xi Meng re-entered the game, Van Exel, with a weary body and mind, wanted to prevent He Xi Meng from scoring from three-point range. As a result, He Xi Meng did the opposite, faking a three-pointer multiple times before driving to the free-throw line and hitting a pull-up jumper. One shot, two shots, three shots! After these three shots, He Xi Meng's score reached 31 points, successfully surpassing Van Exel's 30 points! Van Exel was still unwilling to give up and gritted his teeth to take a shot. After three attempts, he managed to make a two-pointer, and He Xi Meng, turning around and facing Van Exel, hit a three-pointer in return... In the end, in this game between a top Western Conference powerhouse and a Western Conference doormat, the Spurs, with a 15-point advantage, defeated their opponents easily with a score of 107:92. And He Xi Meng, with personal stats of 37 points and 15 assists, overshadowed Van Exel's 34 points and 6 assists, achieving a three-in-one dominance in game, scoring, and assists, and winning this small bet between the two! After the game, He Xi Meng specifically found Van Exel to shake hands and express his gratitude: "Big Bus is on you now, I hope you can take good care of him for me!" "Twenty games, averaging 18 minutes per game, averaging 5 shots per game! Don't worry, a bet is a bet. As long as I'm with the Nuggets, I'll do these things!" "I believe you! I know you're a man of your word! Otherwise, I wouldn't have bet two million US dollars with you... Oh, by the way, I checked this season's schedule. We'll meet twice more... How about we continue our bet? For the next game, I suggest you go all out and focus on assists..." One bet in exchange for Van Exel's escort for 20 games. With three games in a season, if He Xi Meng won all of them, he could have Van Exel act as Big Bus's nanny for 60 games... He Xi Meng's calculations were adding up quickly, but would Van Exel agree to continue betting with He Xi Meng?