(单词翻译:单击)
Just like they did to the Blazers two weeks earlier, the Warriors punched the Jazz in the mouth to start Game 4, putting what seemed to be an early cap on their closing statement.
一如他们在两周前对开拓者所做的一样,勇士在今天比赛一开场就给了爵士当头一棒,这场系列赛收尾战看起来又将是另一场三节打卡的比赛。
But unlike the Blazers, the tougher Jazz clawed back and forced the Warriors to at least work into the fourth quarter, before Golden State eventually exterminated Utah's season: a 121-95 final, another Warriors' 4-0 sweep and an advancement to their third straight Western Conference Finals.
但与开拓者不同的是,更坚韧的爵士回击了勇士,让他们至少没能三节打卡下班。但最终还是无事于补,勇士以121-95再下一城,总比分4-0横扫对手,连续第三年晋级西决。
Now they await the winner of the Rockets and Spurs series, which sits at 2-2. If it ends in six, the West Finals start in Oracle Arena on Sunday. If it extends to seven, the West Finals start in Oracle on Tuesday.
现在他们只需要静静等待另一组西部半决赛的胜者,火箭和马刺目前战至2-2平。如果这轮系列赛六场结束,西决第一场将在当地时间周天于甲骨文中心进行。若双方酣战七场,西决揭幕战将推迟至下周二。
Either way, a rested, steamrolling Warriors team will be awaiting as monster favorites, having won 23 of their last 24 games dating back to mid-March and all eight of their playoff games by margins of 12, 29, 6, 25, 12, 11, 11 and 26 points.
不管怎么说,这支自三月中旬的过去24场比赛中卷走了23胜,在季后赛中以场均16.5分的巨大优势连续两轮横扫晋级的大魔头,即将获得充足的休息时间,在西决赛场以逸待劳。
But there were at least tiny moments of adversity on Monday night.
不过在今天的比赛中,他们还是遇到了一丁点小小的麻烦。
Early on, it didn't look like it'd be that way. After hitting only one shot in a slow Game 3, Klay Thompson opened the scoring with a pair of jumpers. Then Steph Curry hit a pair of 3s. Then Kevin Durant found Curry on a creative give-and-go layup on a baseline out of bounds play.
开局阶段,勇士看起来完全顺风顺水。在经历了上一场只进一球的低迷状态之后,克莱-汤普森终于找回了手感,连中两记跳投为勇士首开纪录。斯蒂芬-库里三分二连击之后,又在一次底线界外球回合中接到了凯文-杜兰特异想天开的传球完成上篮。
Meanwhile, the Jazz offense slumped against a locked in Warriors defense, missing their first 10 two-point shots and going only 6-of-25 in the first quarter. A 12-3 lead became a 21-7 lead became a 39-17 first quarter cushion — similar to the 45-22 first quarter they popped on the Blazers in Game 4.
勇士高歌猛进的同时,爵士却在对手的强力防守下亦步亦趋,前10次两分球出手全部打铁,首节25投仅6中。一开场12-3的比分,变成了21-7,再到39-17,勇士在首节就给爵士挖了个大坑——与对阵开拓者的第四场比赛中,首节45-22的大屠杀看起来如出一辙。
"We talked about getting off to a good start," Mike Brown said. "Our guys did that. But maybe I should've said let's get off to a good start and keep playing that way. That's the part I may have left out."
“我们谈到过打出好的开局的重要性,”迈克-布朗教练说道,“球员们做到了这一点。但我也许应该提到在打出好开局之后要记得保持,这部分我似乎漏掉了。”
Utah responded with a 14-2 flurry to start the second quarter, slicing through a now too relaxed Warriors defense as a surprisingly sluggish David West failed to protect the rim.
然而大卫-韦斯特脚步之慢超乎想象,没有护框者的勇士在防守端漫不经心,爵士也抓住机会,趁机打出了一波14-2的小高潮,拉开了第二节反攻的序幕。
Derrick Favors rammed a dunk on Draymond Green — the first time Green has rotated over, met an opponent at the rim and lost in this postseason — and then electric young point guard Dante Exum hammered one home.
德里克-费沃斯在德雷蒙德-格林头上爆扣得手,这也是后者今年季后赛首次在换防后面对对手时吃瘪。紧接着,活力四射的小后卫丹特-艾克萨姆又完成了一记扣篮。
The Jazz parlayed that strong second quarter start with an 8-0 close, trimming the Warriors lead from 22 all the way down to eight by halftime. Then in the third quarter, they briefly kept it close. After a defensive breakdown led to a Shelvin Mack 3, which cut it to seven,
爵士在次节末段又打出了一波8-0的高潮,与开始时的那波14-2首尾呼应,将勇士22分的领先优势逐渐蚕食至8分。整个第三节,爵士都保持着接近的分差,在一次成功的防守后,谢尔文-麦克飚中三分将分差缩小到7分。
Durant and Curry chirped at each other about the breakdown. Mike Brown called timeout. On his way to the huddle, a frustrated Curry kicked a seat cushion into the stands.
库里和杜兰特对于彼此在这一回合中的表现颇有微词。布朗被迫叫了暂停,而在布置战术时,心烦意乱的库里甚至飞脚踹翻了坐垫。
"I meant to," Curry said.
“我故意那么做的。”库里直言。
"Beef," Draymond Green joked.
“真能发牢骚。”格林开玩笑称。
"Chemistry issues," Durant added.
“化学反应。”杜兰特补充。
But that moment of pressure only refocused a Warriors team that proved far superior to the Jazz in the second round.
然而这段小插曲却让这支远比爵士强大得多的超级球队更加专注了。
Out of the timeout, JaVale McGee hit a twisting layup and a rare jumper. Draymond Green hit his third 3 of the game and 20th in eight playoff games, turning and staring at a heckling fan in a light blue shirt behind the Warriors bench that had been heckling him.
暂停之后,贾维尔-麦基上反篮得手,他甚至还罕见地命中了一记跳投。格林命中本场比赛第三个三分,同时也是他今年季后赛的第20个,随后他转过身,对着勇士板凳席后面那个刚才对他喷垃圾话的浅蓝色衣服球迷怒目而视。
"He told me I'd shoot us out of the series," Green said. "I don't know if he keeps stats very well, but he's not very smart. I like messing with fans. It's fun."
“他说我的投篮会把我们自己投到出局,”格林表示,“我不知道他是否记准了这些数据,但他真不怎么聪明。我喜欢跟球迷闹着玩,这很好玩。”
Golden State's defense locked back in and its offense erupted again. If there was an offensive star to be chosen — and you had your choice of many — it was Curry, who efficiently put the Jazz to sleep with 30 points on 15 shots. In his 35 minutes, the Warriors outscored the Jazz by 35 points.
勇士找回了他们防守端的压迫力以及进攻端的爆炸力。如果要在众多发挥出色的球员中选出本场的进攻箭头,那一定是库里,他只靠15次出手就得到了30分。在他上场的35分钟时间里,勇士整整赢了爵士35分。
Durant wasn't nearly as productive as Game 4, when he popped 38 points, but his 18 points were pretty timely. During one of Utah's second quarter runs, he stemmed the tide with a pair of jumpers.
杜兰特尽管不像上一场砍下38分那么高效,但在他贡献的18分里,每一分都来得恰到好处。当爵士在第二节打出一波小高潮时,杜兰特接连命中两记跳投为球队止血。
Then during a third quarter spurt, he silenced the noise again with a big wing 3 followed by a lob dunk, set up by Draymond Green.
第三节爵士再次起势,又是杜兰特先是远距离三分得手,又接攻略的妙传完成空接爆扣,让接近沸腾的球馆瞬间鸦雀无声。
Durant finished with 18, Green had 17, Thompson had 21 on 16 shots and McGee was the fifth Warrior in double-figures, putting up 12 points in 11 minutes off the bench without even using his trusty lob game.
杜兰特17分,格林17分,汤普森16投贡献21分,麦基则是勇士第五个得分上双的球员,他连自己最可靠的空接都没用,就在11分钟的上场时间内得到12分。
And while the Jazz held sturdy at times, there really was never any doubt.
尽管爵士努力拼搏的精神可嘉,但这轮系列赛真的毫无悬念。
Utah didn't lead for a second in Game 1, Game 2 or the closeout Game 4, only sneaking ahead for about eight minutes in Game 3, before ceding it right back to the dominant Warriors, who roll on to the Conference Finals yet to be truly tested.
爵士在整个第一场、第二场和第四场没有取得过哪怕一秒钟的领先,只有在第三场趁着勇士打盹而短暂领先了8分钟左右,然后勇士就按回了统治模式的开关,然后……就没有然后了。勇士即将征战西决,终于迎来真正的考验。
"B-minus," Green said of his team's playoff performance to this point.
“勉为其难给个B-吧。”被问到目前为止勇士在季后赛中的表现时,格林如是说道。
更多精彩内容请关注微信公众号、新浪微博:篮球英文堂