Kayce's spectacular dunk completely ignited the Texas home stadium.
The sound from 72,000 people caused a slight issue with the microphones at the commentary desk.
"That was a very aggressive choice. I thought Kayce would try to draw a foul, but I didn't expect him to dunk over Thabeet in the end," Smith was still savoring that incredible dunk.
"I've said it before, Kayce has excellent talent. He has great height and wingspan, and his vertical leap is also outstanding."
Reggie Miller understood Kayce's physical condition. He was very optimistic about this young, talented kid. As a UCLA alumnus, he always defended players from his alma mater.
"In the second half, the University of Connecticut needs to find a way to get the ball into the paint better; their perimeter players have too many turnovers," Smith still favored Thabeet, continuing to praise him.
"UCLA's perimeter pressure was successful. I believe they will continue this tactic in the second half, and they will start their counterattack," Reggie Miller continued to support his alma mater.
NCAA halftime was a carnival for advertisers, with various sponsor activities on site, and the audience enjoyed it all.
After seeing Kayce's dunk, Britney grabbed Annie and started jumping and screaming excitedly; Britney loved seeing Kayce show off.
Anne had also shouted excitedly at the time, but she had calmed down now. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at Britney, who was still chattering beside her.
"Alright, Britney, have a drink. I think your throat must be smoking," Annie said, annoyed.
"Hmph, my throat is fine. Kayce is just too cool!" Britney was still a bit infatuated. Looking at the broad-minded Annie, Britney...
"You little pervert!" Instantly, the two beauties started bickering, captivating the nearby onlookers.
In the UCLA locker room, Coach Ben first gave a few words of encouragement, then immediately began tactical arrangements.
"We did well in the last 5 minutes of the first half. Pressure their ball-handlers, give them physical confrontation, don't reach in easily, maintain pressure. Holiday did great!" Coach Ben praised Holiday's defense.
"We need to pick up the pace of our offense. We need to run, we need to wear down their big men! Play more pick-and-rolls with the 5, Thabeet can't defend out there. Collison, you need to control the tempo on the court!"
Collison immediately nodded in understanding. In the first half, he had been constantly battling Price, and his shooting had been a bit off. He was also good at fast-paced play.
"Be more decisive on offense, Kayce. Shoot assertively. It doesn't matter if you miss, we'll immediately retreat on defense. We'll give up fighting for offensive rebounds. On defense, you can foul, you can double-team; their free throw percentage isn't very high."
Kayce indicated he understood. He was also a bit tired from playing in the first half; every rebound contest required a lot of effort.
His stamina was dropping a bit fast, but with halftime and a few timeouts in the second half to rest for a few possessions, he should be able to last the whole game.
After the old man finished speaking, the rest of Coach Ben also began to remind the players of the problems that occurred in the first half, and the teammates also started communicating.
"Kayce, how did that dunk feel?" Holiday asked curiously.
"It felt pretty good, but I think a face-to-face poster dunk would be even cooler!" Kayce said calmly, showing off.
Upon hearing this, his teammates started to cheer, and the locker room became a riot, their tension slowly dissipating.
After the dunk, Kayce felt a sudden surge of energy, probably due to an issue with the Dream Space. Unfortunately, he would only know what happened after entering his dream past midnight.
The second half quickly began; promotion or going home depended on these last 20 minutes.
Both sides started with very intense physical confrontation. Against the University of Connecticut's pick-and-roll, UCLA chose to fight through every time, with Collison and Holiday taking turns applying physical pressure.
The ball eventually went to Thabeet, but he received it uncomfortably. Just as he was about to put the ball down, Kayce stepped forward and directly stripped the ball.
"Beep!" The whistle blew. Kayce committed a reaching foul. Coach Ben applauded his players, signaling them to defend that way.
The inbound pass came, and the ball returned to Thabeet's hands. The interior big man desperately held his ground, but Thabeet's clumsy post moves ultimately prevented him from scoring.
Kayce secured the rebound and immediately passed it to Collison, who was already preparing to fast break. The entire team accelerated. Without waiting for the opponent to get back on defense, after three passes, Holiday on the perimeter shot a three-pointer.
"Swish!" The ball swished through the net. The 3-pointer went in, and the deficit was only 1 point. Holiday roared, releasing his emotions.
The huge cheers throughout the arena lifted the spirits of the UCLA players. They began to aggressively hound the University of Connecticut's ball-handlers, and this defense was effective.
Price's jump shot missed, and the long rebound was grabbed by the interior big man, who immediately passed it to Kayce, who had already accelerated.
Kayce caught the ball and drove straight to the opponent's basket, swinging the ball in the air.
A powerful windmill dunk!
"Slam!" The ball was forcefully jammed into the hoop.
The stadium erupted in cheers. UCLA had taken the lead for the first time in the game.
"UCLA's successful defense has allowed them to take the lead," Reggie Miller's passionate voice came from the commentary desk.
The University of Connecticut players realized they had underestimated their opponents. They once again intensified their ball protection, trying to get the ball into the paint as much as possible. Unfortunately, Thabeet's skills were still a bit rough, and his shooting percentage began to drop.
Within 7 minutes of the second half, both sides traded leads. The University of Connecticut also called a timeout and made player substitutions, but the score difference just couldn't be extended.
Because of Thabeet's stamina issues, he struggled with UCLA's fast-break offense. The increased tempo made him uncomfortable, his stamina dropped, his free throws became unstable, and his outside shooting percentage also declined. He was starting to wear down.
With 5 minutes and 22 seconds left in the game, Coach Ben also called a timeout. The old man was ready to put all the starters back in to overwhelm the opponent with one final push.
"Their stamina is an issue. They're going home. Rebounds, protect our rebounds. Speed up the tempo, shoot decisively. Their big men can't defend out there, attack him!"
Coach Ben began to motivate his players. Kayce knew his teammates needed him to step up and score. He hadn't frequently defended the paint in this game precisely for this moment!
Kayce gave Collison a hand signal, indicating that he would finish this possession.
A simple pick-and-roll, attacking Thabeet who couldn't defend the pick-and-roll, creating an open look from the perimeter, a 3-pointer shot directly.
"Swish!" The ball swished through the net.
They defended the opponent's offense, then transitioned to offense. Using the same tactic, Thabeet stepped up to defend, but Kayce accelerated past him, leaned into Thabeet's body, and made a reverse layup.
The University of Connecticut's interior players were severely fatigued, and their outside jump shot missed again. Kayce grabbed the long rebound and immediately drove the ball.
Facing the defender, he executed continuous crossover dribbles, shifted the defender's weight, and then gracefully stepped back for a 3-pointer.
"Swish!" The 3-pointer went in again.
The University of Connecticut called a timeout.
Inside the stadium, UCLA fans were cheering wildly. They saw the hope of victory, and the gamblers erupted with enthusiasm, screaming and yelling.
The timeout couldn't save the University of Connecticut's decline. UCLA was playing with wild abandon. Collison and Holiday both started driving aggressively. Teammates knew that getting to the free-throw line was the best offensive option at this point.
Thabeet was already a defensive liability!
Ultimately, 68 to 60, UCLA successfully advanced, sending their opponent home.
When the final whistle blew, Kayce leaned on his knees, his stamina pushed to its limit.
"Going full power from the start, this game was really tough," Kayce complained inwardly, feeling exhausted.