Additionally, on the team's wings, Coach Kahan boldly employed freshman Charlie Villanueva, pairing him with sharpshooter Rashad Anderson.
Villanueva, one of the primary future rivals of Yi Jianlian in Qin Yue's memory, stands at an impressive barefoot height of 208 centimeters.
He is agile, and can provide the team with certain firepower from the outside.
As for Anderson?
Although historically, this guy never played in the NBA...
But as a strong shooter standing 196 centimeters tall and weighing 98 kilograms, his three-point shooting accuracy this season reached 40.7%, averaging 2.6 three-pointers per game for Kang University.
Okafor, Armstrong, Villanueva, Anderson, Gordon...
This five-man lineup that Coach Kahan is particularly fond of during the March Madness not only has an astonishing average height but also combines athletic ability and outside firepower.
Moreover, when the team struggles to open up the game, they can instantly bring in top reinforcements like Josh Boone, Marcus Williams, and Tariq Brown into the battle...
This is a rare super team in the historical records of NCAA:
——Connecticut Huskies.
Only by overcoming them can Wake Forest make it into the elite eight, the ultimate roadblock.
On the night of the 24th.
When Qin Yue, who prides himself as "Barkley's successor," and his teammates stepped into Meixi Arena...
The only positive news Wake Forest could gather before the game might be that tonight, due to Qin Yue's identity as "Barkley's successor," they could garner neutral fans' favor.
Indeed.
Similar to the Captain Team they played against in the previous round.
Kang University is also a team "exiled" by the selection committee. (Note ①)
In fact, in some ways, they are even worse off than the Devil's Deacon Team and the Captain Team.
Geographically, they were exiled from the northeast of the United States to the southwest of the United States.
As both Wake Forest and Connecticut are expeditionary forces, on this night, recalling Barkley's Phoenix fans, of course, sent their applause and cheers to Qin Yue and his Devil's Deacon Team.
Tonight, the Devil's Deacon Team playing "home" has already secured the advantage of location and fan support.
But on the court, as Connecticut started their first attack amidst boos after the jump ball, the Wake Forest players instantly felt the pressure brought on by this Connecticut team.
On the outside, Gordon stepped past Gray in one move and nailed a three-point shot!
This silky and smooth personal ball-holding attack, even in the seasoned eyes of Qin Yue, seemed a bit unreasonable.
Gray did his best defensively just now.
But...
This is the caliber of a star player.
The more crucial the game, the more you can gauge a player's Level through it.
Some players seem to be born for big moments.
Back to Wake Forest's attack.
Facing Okafor actively matching up with him, Qin Yue, since entering March Madness, felt pressure sitting in the low post for the first time.
Okafor, a player who, upon entering the NBA, can immediately achieve a "15+10" per game average, faced off against many familiar names in games during this period.
"I remember you weren't so soft when playing Matt Frej earlier." On the court, Okafor suddenly said to Qin Yue.
Upon hearing this, Qin Yue knew Okafor was implying he was bullying the weak but chose not to engage in a battle of words.
But in the next moment...
Qin Yue, getting increasingly infuriated, instinctively dug into the low post.
Mike Breen, responsible for commenting on this match, smiled at the sight and said, "Emeka already laid out a heavenly net inside; how will Qin respond to this consensus strongest college student in America?"
At the top of the arc, seeing Qin Yue dive into the low post, Paul immediately signaled to Gray, who was lurking on the wing.
At this moment, the competitive nature in Paul similarly did not wish for his inside partner to be intimidated by Okafor in the game.
In fact, if Qin Yue indeed left the low post to screen for him just now, Paul might have, in disappointment, quoted Kobe's famous saying to Qin Yue:
"Put away that damned screen, get back into the low post and go one-on-one with Emeka Okafor!"
On the court, Qin Yue quickly launched an attack on Okafor after receiving the ball.
However, no matter how hard he tried, Okafor could handle it with ease.
Unlike previous opponents Qin Yue faced, Okafor's defense in the low post was battle-tested.
Throughout his college career, Okafor's average blocks per season were over 4.
With the repute gained in college basketball, he was known for his demonic low post defense and as an offensive-enhanced version of Wallace.
Nonetheless, what Okafor hadn't anticipated while remaining unmoved was that Qin Yue's post play wasn't solely reliant on brute strength.
"Post play relies on rhythm."
In the low post, after a feigned move, Qin Yue suddenly attempted to start off in the opposite direction.
In that instant, Okafor, finding it tough to gauge Qin Yue, shifted his focus.
Then, Qin Yue deftly halted his momentum, completing a spin opposite to Okafor's direction of movement.
At that moment, Qin Yue's talent was unmistakably apparent.
But inside, even before he completed the spin, Armstrong, alongside Okafor, accomplished a clamp from front and back!
Seeing this, Qin Yue instinctively recalled his teammates' usual positioning habits and quickly passed the ball to the baseline corner.
Due to Armstrong's help defense, Connecticut's overall defense inevitably had to retract.
Thus at the baseline corner, they naturally left Justin Gray, who had been waiting there for some time, unmarked.
Ever since Paul lobbed the ball to Qin Yue, Gray had quietly been lurking here.
Swish—!
On the court, Gray, with a swift move, tied the score for the Devil's Deacon Team.
Meanwhile, on the bench, Ronnie Evans, always adept at enlivening the atmosphere, hastily waved his towel and shouted at the Connecticut players on the court: "You think being first in America and double-teaming can contain Qin?
He's the 208-centimeter Magician!"
Actually, given tonight's arena environment, which was overwhelmingly loud...
The Connecticut players on the court couldn't hear Evan's earlier taunts at all.
But Qin Yue's assist nonetheless truly penetrated the entire defense of Kang University!
From the commentary box, Mike Breen said: "Connecticut needs to be cautious; tonight, Wake Forest's raptor evidently is calmer than we anticipated."
Meixi Arena, the match continued.
Next, it's Connecticut's turn to attack.
...
Note ①: Don't be surprised; the NCAA selection committee does indeed act this way. But historically, Connecticut, exiled to the Phoenix Region, still managed to decimate the entire Phoenix Region, proving absolute strength.
PS: Begging for new book collections, monthly votes, and recommendations!