What that means: Bulls take Game 1 from Heat with impressive rout
How it happened: The Chicago Bulls saw the stars aligning for the Heat last summer, the “Big Three” free agents uniting in Miami on a quest for a championship.
Joakim Noah wasn’t conceding anything. Nor was Derrick Rose.
Chicago swept Miami in the regular season, and if the Bulls keep this up, they’ll knock the Heat out of the playoffs, too.
Rose scored 28 points, Luol Deng ably contained LeBron James and the Bulls struck first in the Eastern Conference finals, pulling away to beat the Heat 103-82 in Game 1 on Sunday night.
“We felt like we could compete against anybody,” said Noah.
“This is just a really exciting situation right now. The position that we’re in is unbelievable. … Nobody believed that we could be in this position right now.”
That belief, along with a major overhaul, led the Bulls to the league’s best record and rekindled an attitude not seen in the Windy City since the Michael Jordan era — when championships were an annual event.
Missing out on the Big Three? Seeing James and Bosh join Wade in Miami?
“We’re not worried about all the offseason stuff,” Rose said. “We’re not worried about it. We’re just trying to go out there and play hard, play with an edge, play with a lot of intensity.”
They certainly did last night , particularly during the second half. The Bulls went on a 10-0 run midway through the third quarter, then pulled away in the fourth.
As the final minutes ticked away, fans chanted “Over-rated!” and “Beat the Heat!”
Game 2 is Wednesday night in Chicago.
Result: Oklahoma beat Memphis 105-90
What that means: The Thunder wrap up the series in Game 7
How it happened: Kevin Durant followed his worst playoff performance with one of his best, taking the Oklahoma City Thunder from the brink of elimination to the Western Conference finals.
Durant scored 39 points for his best offensive outing of the series, Russell Westbrook became the fifth NBA player to record a triple-double in a Game 7 and the Thunder closed out the Memphis Grizzlies with a 105-90 win on Sunday.
“Durant came back after a sub-par game and showed the heart of a champion,” Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. “And Westbrook just played outstanding.”
Durant was a shell of himself in Game 6, the lowest-scoring game of his two postseason appearances. He routinely settled for jumpers, taking nine of his 14 shots from 3-point range, and had just one basket over the final 45 minutes during an 11-point outing.
“That wasn’t me at all in Game 6. I was so upset with myself that I kind of let my guys down by not playing my game,” Durant said. “No matter what, if I was shooting bad in Game 6, as long as I was aggressive. I wasn’t aggressive at all. This game, that’s what I told myself: ‘Come in aggressive, start the game off aggressive.’”
With Oklahoma City’s season on the line, the two-time All-Star who led the NBA in scoring the past two seasons was back at his best.
He heated up in the second quarter after an entertaining exchange with his mother, put the Thunder in control late in the third, then put it away with a pair of two-handed slams in the fourth.
“Durant is a special player, one of the best players in the NBA,” said Memphis star Zach Randolph, who was limited to an inefficient 17 points and 10 rebounds. “The kid is a gym-rat, he works hard. He’s one of my favourite players. You’ve got to give him kudos and give him respect.
“You see what he does night in and night out and he’s just relentless.”
The franchise is back in the West finals for the first time since 1996, when it was known as the SuperSonics and based in Seattle. That year, the Sonics moved on to the NBA finals before losing to Chicago.
Game 1 against the Mavericks is tomorrow night in Dallas.
While you were sleeping... here's what you missed in the NBA play-offs
Result: Chicago beat Miami 103-82
What that means: Bulls take Game 1 from Heat with impressive rout
How it happened: The Chicago Bulls saw the stars aligning for the Heat last summer, the “Big Three” free agents uniting in Miami on a quest for a championship.
Joakim Noah wasn’t conceding anything. Nor was Derrick Rose.
Chicago swept Miami in the regular season, and if the Bulls keep this up, they’ll knock the Heat out of the playoffs, too.
Rose scored 28 points, Luol Deng ably contained LeBron James and the Bulls struck first in the Eastern Conference finals, pulling away to beat the Heat 103-82 in Game 1 on Sunday night.
“We felt like we could compete against anybody,” said Noah.
That belief, along with a major overhaul, led the Bulls to the league’s best record and rekindled an attitude not seen in the Windy City since the Michael Jordan era — when championships were an annual event.
Missing out on the Big Three? Seeing James and Bosh join Wade in Miami?
“We’re not worried about all the offseason stuff,” Rose said. “We’re not worried about it. We’re just trying to go out there and play hard, play with an edge, play with a lot of intensity.”
They certainly did last night , particularly during the second half. The Bulls went on a 10-0 run midway through the third quarter, then pulled away in the fourth.
As the final minutes ticked away, fans chanted “Over-rated!” and “Beat the Heat!”
Game 2 is Wednesday night in Chicago.
Result: Oklahoma beat Memphis 105-90
What that means: The Thunder wrap up the series in Game 7
How it happened: Kevin Durant followed his worst playoff performance with one of his best, taking the Oklahoma City Thunder from the brink of elimination to the Western Conference finals.
Durant scored 39 points for his best offensive outing of the series, Russell Westbrook became the fifth NBA player to record a triple-double in a Game 7 and the Thunder closed out the Memphis Grizzlies with a 105-90 win on Sunday.
“Durant came back after a sub-par game and showed the heart of a champion,” Memphis coach Lionel Hollins said. “And Westbrook just played outstanding.”
Durant was a shell of himself in Game 6, the lowest-scoring game of his two postseason appearances. He routinely settled for jumpers, taking nine of his 14 shots from 3-point range, and had just one basket over the final 45 minutes during an 11-point outing.
With Oklahoma City’s season on the line, the two-time All-Star who led the NBA in scoring the past two seasons was back at his best.
He heated up in the second quarter after an entertaining exchange with his mother, put the Thunder in control late in the third, then put it away with a pair of two-handed slams in the fourth.
“Durant is a special player, one of the best players in the NBA,” said Memphis star Zach Randolph, who was limited to an inefficient 17 points and 10 rebounds. “The kid is a gym-rat, he works hard. He’s one of my favourite players. You’ve got to give him kudos and give him respect.
“You see what he does night in and night out and he’s just relentless.”
The franchise is back in the West finals for the first time since 1996, when it was known as the SuperSonics and based in Seattle. That year, the Sonics moved on to the NBA finals before losing to Chicago.
Game 1 against the Mavericks is tomorrow night in Dallas.
-additional reporting AP
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