The Golden Age of Basketball-Chapter 90 - 28 Truly Hard to Kill

In 1980, when Hakeem Olajuwon boarded a plane for the first time in his life and arrived in Houston, Texas, he didn’t behave like other Africans who had never been to America; instead of feeling overwhelmed as though he had stepped into a future world, he was composed.

At just 16 years old, he had already traveled throughout his native Nigeria, and his wealth of experience enabled him to remain steady and serene when encountering new things.

Therefore, even though the University of Houston, which had summoned him from Africa, didn’t send anyone to pick him up from the airport, he still found a payphone in the vast and unfamiliar airport and calmly called Coach Lewis, only to be told, "Just take a taxi over here."

This was just one of the countless times in his life when he was underestimated.

He had been mocked for being too tall when he was only ten years old; his first basketball coach had him stand on a bench to practice dunking, thinking that it would be good enough if this big guy, originally a soccer player, could learn to dunk.

Olajuwon knocked down the guy who mocked him with a punch and then proved time and time again with his dunks that he didn’t need a bench at all.

After he arrived alone at the University of Houston by taxi, he was determined to never let anyone look down on him again.

In the 1980-1981 season, he took Coach Lewis’s advice not to participate in official NCAA games and instead dedicated his time to academics and training.

For a whole year, he sweated profusely in the gym, going one-on-one against Moses Malone, transforming himself from a basketball novice who could only dunk into a powerful center who was skillful in every aspect and could do it all.

In the 1981-1982 season, his Houston Cougars made it to the Final Four; unfortunately, they lost to the eventual champions, North Carolina, in the semifinals.

In the 1982-1983 season, they went even further, reaching the NCAA championship game, only to lose to a team from North Carolina again—the NC State Wolfpack.

By 1983-1984, his most effective assistant and best friend, Drexler, had graduated and entered the NBA, while he stayed at school to continue fighting alone for that championship title.

FInally, they made it to the NCAA finals once again; reaching the Final Four three years in a row, all he needed was to win this game to achieve the ultimate goal in college basketball, so that he could move to a higher-level league without any regrets and prove himself on a broader stage to those who had underrated him.

Now, standing in the way of him and the Cougars was a Bulldog from the Northwest Region, and facing him across the court, contesting for the ball, was the Chinese center—Sonny Gan.

Both men looked at each other, their expressions as cold as the snow on the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, as icy as the rocks of the Himalayas.

The young Olajuwon looked even more fierce, his square face resembling a tribal totem, instilling fear in the heart.

In the season’s shot-blocking chart, Olajuwon led All-America with an average of 5.6 blocks per game, while Gan Guoyang was third with an average of 4.9.

The referee threw the ball into the air, and both men jumped simultaneously.

Gan Guoyang rarely lost a tip-off, but this time it was Olajuwon who touched the ball first, directing it towards his teammate’s side.

The Cougars gained possession, and the 1984 NCAA Finals officially began!

"Left side, left side! McPhie on the left! Cover the left position! Anderson, move inside, block this area!"

Gan Guoyang loudly directed his teammates on defense, their strategy at the start still a zone defense.

"I don’t think you have the energy to care about others," Olajuwon, standing in front of Gan Guoyang, suddenly said.

"No, I do," Gan Guoyang replied indifferently.

Olajuwon moved laterally from the right to the middle, looking to quickly establish positioning at the front of the basket for an advantageous attacking spot.

Gan Guoyang used a side-step and a half-circle front to lock Olajuwon while trying to disrupt Olajuwon’s reception with his right hand.

The Houston point guard, Franklin, tried to feed the ball inside from the perimeter, but finding the passing lane blocked up, he gave up.

Seeing he couldn’t receive the ball and that staying inside would be a three-second violation, Olajuwon had to give up the position and move to the left side of the basket.

In their first confrontation, Olajuwon didn’t gain the upper hand; he could feel the abundant strength and astonishing vitality emanating from Gan Guoyang.

This guy was definitely a tough opponent.

"...Olajuwon’s positioning is pretty impressive, but Gan’s front defense is also very tight; the Cougars find no way to pass the ball inside, but they still have Michael Young... Oh! Gan slaps his shot out of the air! But Olajuwon gets the ball, and his shot is good."

Michael Young’s driving floater was firmly blocked by Gan Guoyang.

In the ensuing chaos, Olajuwon grabbed the ball, yet instead of going for a forceful layup or dunk, he scored two points with a turnaround jump shot.

The University of Houston took the early lead, scoring the first points of the game, 2:0.

"Why didn’t you dunk? Afraid of getting blocked?" Gan Guoyang said after Olajuwon’s successful shot.

"I can beat you with just my jump shots."

Their battle began from the first second, both physically and mentally.

The Bulldog quickly scored as well, with McPhie taking a pass from Stockton off a screen in the corner and hitting a mid-range jumper.

Following that, Olajuwon responded with a sudden cut to the basket, receiving a high lob pass from his teammate and scoring with a powerful two-handed dunk!

He had managed to shake off Gan Guoyang’s attempt to front him, clearly demonstrating that in terms of offensive talent, he possessed a better feel for the game under the basket than Ewing.

"You said you would only shoot," Gan Guoyang "accused" Olajuwon of breaking his promise.

Olajuwon didn’t pay him any heed, feeling quite good about the start of the game as he quickly got into his rhythm.

Having watched the game tapes of Georgetown and Gonzaga, Gan Guoyang’s explosive power and exquisite offensive skills had impressed Olajuwon, who had been concerned whether he would be able to guard against Gan’s offense.

At the start of the match, it was the first time in his college career that Olajuwon met a player who matched his own strength, even feeling that this opponent might be even more powerful than himself.

Gonzaga’s perimeter shooting missed, but Gan Guoyang grabbed the offensive rebound. Rather than going up strong, he continued to set up the offense by passing to Stockton.

Facing Olajuwon, Gan played cautiously. He could sense the immense explosive power within this ’black panther,’ knowing too well that any careless shots would be blocked.

Gan began to establish his position in the low post, aiming to gain the advantageous terrain to overpower Olajuwon on his own.

His positioning was still dominant, and while Olajuwon’s defense was ferocious, Gan managed to secure his spot steadily.

Such strength and technique were something Olajuwon had never encountered in college basketball before; it reminded him of the first time he went up against Moses Malone during the summer of his college years.

At that time, the core player of the Rockets, Malone, used to train at the University of Houston and have Olajuwon as his training partner.

Once Malone secured his position in the low post, he was as immovable as a tree with deep roots.

Gan Guoyang did the same, receiving the ball successfully, dribbling with his left hand while turning right, as Olajuwon spread his arms wide, leaning forward and cutting off the path to the baseline on the right side.

But this was merely a feint from Gan; after turning slightly to the right and feeling Olajuwon’s defensive pressure on his back, he immediately switched to a left turn, attacking the front of the basket.

Hook shot!

Olajuwon tried to laterally move to continue blocking Gan, but Gan surprised him with a hook shot.

Sky hook!

"Swish!" The ball went in, and Gonzaga scored two points!

This was the first direct confrontation between Gan and Olajuwon, with Gan getting the early edge with his superior positioning technique and skilled hook shot.

Gan rarely used the Sky Hook in low post plays; he found it cumbersome and usually preferred to solve problems with turnaround jump shots.

However, facing Olajuwon, he needed to use his left hand to fend off the defense, which allowed his right hand to be more relaxed.

Olajuwon remained expressionless, not asking for the ball on offense but setting a screen for Michael Young after getting the ball.

Michael Young’s mid-range jumper from the right baseline went in.

Before the game, Coach Lewis told Olajuwon not to try outscoring Ah Gan or be swayed by his smooth talk, advising him to play as usual.

"He’s flashier, has stronger offensive capabilities, better technique. But no matter, winning the game is all that matters," Lewis said to Olajuwon before the game.

Lewis shared a similarity with John Thompson, as he also liked to carry an old towel -- though his was red with polka dots. (Another coach with this habit was Jerry Tarkanian from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who was known for biting on towels at the sidelines and dubbed "Shark Tarkanian." They lost to Georgetown in the Sweet Sixteen that year.)

Olajuwon kept Coach Lewis’s words in mind, not letting his individual matchup with Gan Guoyang get to him.

Eight minutes into the first half, a whistle from the referee brought a timeout call from the Gonzaga team.

Houston was leading by 5 points, 17:12, ahead of Gonzaga. The Bulldogs needed some changes.

Gan’s individual performance was exceptional; he scored 8 of the team’s 12 points, but Houston played even better as a whole. Their set offenses were patient and their perimeter shooting highly accurate.

Olajuwon scored 4 points, barely contesting Gan in the low post, instead wholeheartedly supporting his teammates’ outside offense and focusing most of his effort on defense.

No matter how Gan’s offensive play was or how he teased with words, Olajuwon remained unmoved, as silent as a rock and concentrated on what he had to do.

Gan sat on the bench taking big gulps of water, thinking to himself that Olajuwon was indeed tough to beat.

Also, hasn’t Fuxi arrived yet? Was she still coming or not?