"Game-winner!"
"Blake does it again!!"
"Blake has hit game-winners against the Mavericks in back-to-back games!!!"
"BOOM!"
The instant the ball ripped through the net, a deafening wave of cheers erupted throughout the arena.
This was Phoenix's home court, and Blake had just buried a game-winner. The roar from the crowd was louder than a jet taking off.
As the final buzzer sounded, every fan in the building erupted. The atmosphere reached an unprecedented fever pitch, as if the roof of US Airways Center might be blown right off.
"We won!"
Mia Quinn jumped excitedly from her seat in the front row. She wanted nothing more than to rush over, hug Blake, and celebrate with him.
But before she could, Curry, George, and the rest of the Suns came charging onto the court like madmen, swarming Blake.
"Aaaahhh!"
Everyone crowded around him, screaming at the top of their lungs and celebrating yet another game-winner.
And this one had sent them to the Finals.
"BOOM!"
The already deafening arena suddenly erupted even louder.
What happened?
When Blake released the game-winning shot, almost everyone had been staring at the ball as it flew toward the basket.
But when the replay appeared on the big screen, they finally noticed what Blake had done.
The moment he released the shot, he had already turned around and spread his arms in celebration.
Then the ball dropped through the net.
The arena exploded all over again.
"Hahaha!"
"He celebrated before it even went in! Blake is ridiculously confident!"
"He couldn't buy a shot in the first half, but he still exploded in the end. Then he hits the game-winning three, turns around without even watching it, and starts celebrating early.
"That's Blake!"
"That was cold!"
"Hey, wasn't that just like Agent Zero Arenas turning around and celebrating before his three even went in?"
"Drop the 'wasn't that.' It absolutely was."
"Damn!"
"Blake has some serious confidence!"
"Hahaha! Back then we had Agent Zero Arenas. Tonight, we've got General Blake standing tall on the battlefield!"
"Bottom line: General Blake is awesome!"
"Hahaha, you guys are too much!"
The deafening cheers inside US Airways Center only grew louder, echoing throughout the arena and seemingly spilling out across the city of Phoenix.
...
Meanwhile, in the broadcast studio.
"Good heavens!"
Mike Breen blurted out his familiar catchphrase again.
Whenever he was completely overwhelmed by what he had just witnessed, the words seemed to come out on their own.
And this was far from the first time tonight.
Even after watching Blake hit another game-winner and taking a moment to collect himself, Breen still couldn't help saying it again.
It seemed like the only way to process the shock.
Van Gundy was just as excited. His face had turned red, and for a moment, he couldn't even speak.
"Ahem..."
Breen recovered first. He pushed the stats he had just organized toward Van Gundy and said, "A game-winner. Blake has done it again!"
"What a clutch player.
"Absolutely incredible.
"He really is made for moments like this!
"Whatever else you want to say, Blake hit the game-winner and carried the Suns past the Mavericks, closing out the series 4-1.
"So congratulations to the Suns. They've eliminated Dallas and advanced to the Finals."
"Absolutely."
Van Gundy smiled and picked up from there. "They were facing a peak Nowitzki and a Mavericks team that, at times, looked like everything was breaking their way in what could have become a legendary season.
"And Blake still found a way to drag Phoenix through.
"You have to admit, he was incredible.
"Now let's look at the numbers from the two stars at the center of this series, Blake and Nowitzki.
"On the Mavericks' side, 'The German Wunderkind' Nowitzki was backed into a corner and responded with an incredible performance. He finished with 51 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 blocks.
"That set a new personal playoff scoring high.
"It was also his best playoff performance of the season. Tonight, Nowitzki pushed his game to the absolute limit.
"On the Suns' side, the 'Monster Rookie' finished with 55 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks.
"Those numbers are spectacular on their own, but they also came with several records."
"Oh? What records did Blake break this time?"
Breen played along.
Van Gundy paused for a moment before continuing. "Blake hit 7 three-pointers and scored 27 points in the third quarter alone. For the game, he made 11 threes and finished with 55 points.
"First, those 7 three-pointers in one quarter broke the previous playoff record of 6, which Blake had shared with Antoine Walker.
"The new record is 7.
"His 27 points in the quarter also surpassed the previous playoff mark of 26, set by 'The Answer' Allen Iverson during his legendary 2000-01 season.
"The new single-quarter scoring record is 27.
"Then there are the 11 three-pointers he made tonight, breaking his own record of 10 from Game 7 against the Grizzlies earlier this postseason.
"And remember, those 10 threes had already been a record.
"In other words, Blake just broke the single-game playoff three-point record that he himself had only recently set.
"For a center to shoot like this is terrifying.
"And there's more.
"With 55 points tonight, Blake has now scored 50 or more in back-to-back playoff games.
"Across NBA playoff history, only Michael Jordan in 1988 had ever recorded consecutive 50-point games.
"Now Blake, as a rookie, has matched him.
"And in this five-game series, Blake scored 40 or more points in four straight games.
"Looking across NBA playoff history once again, only three players had ever scored 40 or more in at least four consecutive playoff games.
"Jerry West, 'The Logo,' did it in six straight games in 1965. Bernard King did it in four straight in 1984. Michael Jordan did it in four straight in 1993.
"Now Blake becomes the fourth player to accomplish it, and the only rookie.
"What he did tonight was extraordinary."
"Yes."
Breen nodded. After a brief pause, he summed up the series.
"When you look back at this entire Western Conference Finals between Phoenix and Dallas, it began as an evenly matched series.
"Both teams relied heavily on one superstar, but Blake was essentially an upgraded version of Nowitzki and had repeatedly gotten the better of him. At one point, the matchup looked heavily tilted toward the Suns.
"Then the Mavericks kept finding one 'X-factor' after another.
"Their role players kept breaking out. One after another, game after game.
"With Lady Luck seemingly on Dallas's side, people started viewing the series as even again, maybe even slightly favoring the Mavericks.
"But Blake refused to let luck decide it.
"In Games 4 and 5, even when everything seemed to be going Dallas's way and the Mavericks threatened to run away with both games, the 'Monster Rookie' answered.
"Back-to-back 50-point performances.
"Back-to-back game-winners.
"He beat Nowitzki, and he beat the good fortune that had been carrying Dallas.
"In the end, Phoenix took the series.
"And as the Suns' lone cornerstone, Blake was unquestionably the MVP of this matchup. He was the biggest reason Phoenix advanced.
"As a rookie, he took a team with an ordinary roster, one that had even been close to tanking, fought through one opponent after another, and carried them all the way to the Finals.
"A rookie leading his team to the Finals.
"What Blake has accomplished is remarkable.
"This Western Conference Finals was full of twists, heart-stopping moments, and incredible basketball. It gave us one unforgettable game after another.
"And now, one more time, congratulations to Blake and the Phoenix Suns.
"They're going to the NBA Finals!"