Jeremy Lin's sensational run continued when he scored a buzzer-beating three-pointer, as the New York Knicks edged out the Toronto Raptors 90-87 and extended the winning streak to six games since the Taiwanese-American began playing.
'Linsanity' as it is called continues to infect fans both in the United States and Taiwan, where hundreds packed a Taipei pub in the early hours of the morning to watch the latest chapter in Jeremy Lin's stunning rise from bench-warmer to NBA star.
In what has now become a regular ritual whenever the New York Knicks play, fans in Taiwan gathered on Wednesday morning to eat breakfast and watch the latest chapter in the Jeremy Lin story.
This Taipei pub decided to open its door at eight o'clock in the morning to show the live telecast of the game between Knicks and the Raptors, with nearly a hundred fans packing the bar for the game to catch the NBA's first-ever player with Taiwanese parents.
And once again Lin didn't disappoint, hitting a game-winning three-pointer with less than a second to play to cap a finishing flurry of six straight points as New York rallied to beat the Toronto Raptors 90-87 - and extend the winning streak to six games since the Taiwanese-American sensation began playing.
In Taiwan, almost all news networks interrupted their regularly programming to report the result as Lin scored 27 points and added a career-high 11 assists in his first game since being named Eastern Conference player of the week.
Although born-and-bred in America, Lin's parents migrated from Taiwan and his ancestral link to the island has inspired many here who have been captivated by his rise from bench-warmer to improbable star.
A former outcast who had been searching for a job just a few weeks ago, Lin's turnaround has made reignited interest in the NBA in Asia after both the lock-out and the retirement of Chinese star Yao Ming in the off-season threatened its popularity.
At Taiwan's National University on Wednesday, Lin was all anyone was talking about, with student Ling Kang-an saying he respected the way the former Harvard student also played with his brain on the court.
Another student, Zhang Gan-yu, said Lin's rise from outsider to star makes him even more likeable than Yao Ming, who was already well-known when he made his way from China to the NBA.
SNTV