Even though this American team is weaker, they still managed to reach the final four after a tough fight. Hawkins, while perhaps only a second-tier point guard in the US, has few peers internationally who can consistently suppress him.
He Xi Meng is one of them. However, if Hawkins weren't so fixated on isolation plays and instead utilized screens from his teammates, even He Xi Meng couldn't guard him for the entire game. Therefore, Hawkins still had opportunities, it just depended on how he chose to seize them. During China's third possession, He Xi Meng called for Da Zhi’s high pick-and-roll. This time, Hawkins didn't sag back passively. Instead, he let He Xi Meng drive into the paint, leaving the task of help defense to the inside presence of Brad Miller.
With Hawkins not sagging and Brad Miller positioned too low, He Xi Meng actually had an opportunity for a floater. However, He Xi Meng chose not to shoot. Instead, he drew Brad Miller's defense, then pulled back with a euro step, and delivered a low-hand pass to Da Ba, who was positioned to Brad Miller’s rear side. Da Ba caught the ball, rose up, and calmly scored two points with a bank shot.
Between scoring himself and assisting a teammate, He Xi Meng chose to assist.
The game had just begun, and He Xi Meng needed to mobilize his teammates as much as possible to have any chance of defeating the American team.
China started strong, consistently outplaying the Americans. Because He Xi Meng anticipated the American strategy, correctly guessing they would focus on penetration and attacking the basket, he concentrated China's defensive strength in the paint. Specifically, the twin tower strategy of Da Zhi and Da Ba somewhat stifled Brad Miller’s effectiveness inside the paint for the American team.
With their tactics suppressed, the American team was forced into a passive role. In the first quarter, they were outscored by China 21-27, trailing by six points.
He Xi Meng played the entire first quarter without a minute of rest, scoring 10 points while dishing out 4 assists and grabbing 2 steals.
Early in the second quarter, Zhang Bing, wanting He Xi Meng to get some rest, substituted Adi Jiang in for him to play with the reserve lineup. The result was nearly disastrous.
Trajan Langdon, who came off the bench for the American team, hit two incredibly difficult three-pointers in a row, completely erasing the point difference and nullifying He Xi Meng's efforts in the first half.
Trajan Langdon is currently the starting shooting guard for Duke University and has not yet entered the NBA; he is a collegiate player...
But this is the nature of this American team; they might not have a significant advantage on the main battlefield, but they will occasionally come up with unexpected shots.
What’s more troublesome is that you can never predict who will break out in a particular game. For instance, today it’s Trajan Langdon from Duke. In the previous game, it might have been Kivangarist playing in the Italian league, and in the next game, it could be Gerald Green playing in the Turkish league...
Since no one is the main star, it means anyone has the potential to become the assassin.
Head coach Zhang Bing immediately turned his gaze to the bench where He Xi Meng sat. It was less than two minutes into the second quarter…
He Xi Meng understood Zhang Bing's intention. In fact, He Xi Meng had no intention of resting in this game; he was prepared to play all 40 minutes. It was Coach Zhang who felt He Xi Meng needed a break and thus substituted Adi Jiang in for him early in the second quarter.
He Xi Meng knew that Coach Zhang meant well and didn't refuse. However, Trajan Langdon's two consecutive "bang-bang" three-pointers instantly put the entire Chinese team on edge!
He Xi Meng initially thought only Head Coach Zhang Bing was looking at him. However, after a quick scan, he realized that besides Zhang Bing, the assistant coaches like Zhang Yide and his teammates like Da Zhi and Yao Ming were all looking at him...
"Alright! I guess I won't rest anymore..."
He Xi Meng said nothing. He stood up, pulled off the white towel draped over his shoulders, and signaled to Zhang Bing that he was ready to come back in.
Zhang Bing let out a long sigh and immediately requested a substitution from the scorer's table. Adi Jiang went off, and He Xi Meng checked in.
During the rotation, China's lineup consisted of Yao Ming, Sun Jun, Zheng Wu, Li Xiaoyong, and He Xi Meng.
Due to the injuries of Gong Xiaobin and Hu Weidong, China's forward rotation was somewhat stretched thin. But the good news was that Hu Weidong's injury wasn't severe, and he was already planning to play through it. However, He Xi Meng vetoed it directly!
As He Xi Meng had said before, playing through an injury posed too great a risk for the player! He Xi Meng didn't want Old Hu to jeopardize his professional career for the World Championships.
But this reason didn't convince the eager-to-play Hu Weidong. He Xi Meng had to resort to another, more brutal reason: "If you play with an injury, won't you drag the whole team down? Against an opponent like the United States, if you're not at full strength, wouldn't it be better not to play at all?"
Old Hu couldn't argue with He Xi Meng and turned to Head Coach Zhang Bing for help.
Zhang Bing turned his head away, pretending not to see Hu Weidong's pleading gaze. He cleared his throat and said in a low voice, "Xi Meng is making a valid point! Not letting you play is for your own good! How about this, you rest for one more game! If we win this game, you can focus on preparing for the finals. If we lose this game, don't have any regrets, and we can still fight for third place! Third place is also quite good... I think third place is the goal we should be striving for..."
Hu Weidong was thus forced to stay on the bench, watching his teammates battle the Americans on the court with immense frustration and helplessness.
He Xi Meng's first play after returning to the court was an isolation drive, a forced three-point attempt from beyond the arc. Unfortunately, the ball bounced off the rim. However, Yao Ming made a great effort to tip the offensive rebound to He Xi Meng, who had cut in. He Xi Meng caught the ball, took flight, pulled back with a euro step to evade the American defender, and finished with a rare two-handed dunk, igniting the fast break.
On the other end, Trajan Langdon, who had already made two consecutive shots, attempted to repeat his strategy of shooting from three-point range!
He Xi Meng anticipated that Trajan Langdon wouldn't stop there and was subtly moving closer to him. As Trajan Langdon faked out Li Xiaoyong and gained space to attempt a shot, He Xi Meng quickly slid over from the blind spot on the wing, disrupting Trajan Langdon's jump rhythm. He leaped high and delivered a solid super block, sending the ball flying towards the frontcourt!
After successfully blocking the shot, He Xi Meng accelerated instantly, gaining possession of the ball before anyone else. He then drove into the American half, executing a very American-style dunk with a 360-degree spin in the air before finishing with a two-handed slam, ending the play.