Miami’s LeBron James and Dwayne Wade were held at bay by Chicago’s aggressive defense, which allowed Wade 18 points and James 15, while league MVP Derrick Rose scored 28 points for the Bulls. Chris Bosh, the last of Miami’s trio, scored a playoff-high 30 points, but the game still ended at a 103-82 win for Chicago.
The victory was a continuation of the Bulls’ winning streak over the Heat during the regular season. Still, they were considered the underdogs before the game.
“There are a lot of opinions out there, but we’re not getting caught in that,” Luol Deng of Chicago said. “We’ve won 62 games. We know we’re a good team. In order to win you have to think you’re the best.”
Of the game, James said: “That will wear any team down.” He continued, “You play defense hard, then you get an offensive rebound and kick it out for a layup or a dunk, those are demoralizing for a defense. We have to figure out a way to clean that up.”
Meanwhile…
The Oklahoma City Thunder has closed on its spot in the Western Conference finals with a 105-90 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Coming back from their recent loss, Kevin Durant scored 39 points and nine rebounds for the Thunder. Tomorrow, they will begin the Western Conference finals versus the Dallas Mavericks.
After the game, Durant said “I was going to be aggressive no matter if I was shooting 10 for 30. My teammates kept pushing, kept getting me the ball, and I was able to get some good shots.”
Despite their loss, the playoff experience was greatly appreciated by the Grizzlies and Memphis fans. The team ended up victorious over the San Antonio Spurs, and gave Oklahoma a run for their money; all in the first NBA season in which Memphis won a single playoff game!
