Apr

19

Bulls Come Up Smelling Like A Rose Beat Celtics in O/T 105-103

Posted by Jeff Sack under NBA Game Recap, NBA PLAYOFFS 

Chicago Bulls rookie point guard Derrick Rose had his coming out party in the NBA Playoffs on Saturday and most likely it exceeded his wildest expectations as he led his team to a 105-103 victory over the defending NBA Champions the Boston Celtics.

Rose recorded a double-double including a game high 36 points as the team from the Windy City went into the “New Garden” and took the first game of the Post Season series. Gordon the number one pick in the 2008 NBA Draft accomplished something that former Bulls legend Michael Jordan did; defeat the Celtics in a Playoff game.

Boston going into the Playoffs severely handicapped without the services of All-Star forward Kevin Garnett who is out with an injured right knee have lost home court advantage in the series after the loss. The “Green Team” also were led by their point guard Rajon Rondo who scored 29 points and Paul Pierce added 23 more. Glen Davis and Kendrick Perkins both scored in double digits as well; however All-Star guard veteran Ray Allen never got in sync ending the game with just 4 points.

The Celtics also lacked any cohesion from their bench as nobody really stepped up to fill the void left by the absence of the “Big Ticket“. If Boston has any aspirations of not only defeating Chicago but going deep into the Post Season that must be rectified as quickly as possible.

Both teams came out strong in the opening period and the contest was knotted up at 28-28 at the end of the quarter. The Bulls kept scoring in the second but the Celtics offensive flow became a trickle. Chicago walked into their locker-room at the half on top 53-44.

The momentum would switch as the two sides returned for the third quarter. Rajon Rondo put the rock in the bucket from 9 feet away as the clock expired to put Boston on top by a razor thin margin of 72-71 as the quarter came to a close. The lead changed hands frequently in the fourth quarter as neither team ever held a margin of greater than 5 points at any time in the period.

The Celtics had a chance to win the game with 2 seconds left as Paul Pierce went to the line to shoot 2 with his team needing both buckets to win. However Pierce knocked down the first but missed the second and the contest went into overtime with the score 97-97. Tyrus Thomas scored the game winning basket with 50 seconds to play in the extra period as he drained a mid-range shot. Boston had numerous attempts to tie the score down the stretch but failed to capitalize.

Derrick Rose in his first Post Season game scored 36 points, dished off 11 assists, 4 rebounds and 1 steal while Ben Gordon had 20 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds. Tyrus Thomas dropped 16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks, 1 assist and 1 steal while John Salmons put in 12 points, 6 rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 steal. Joakim Noah recorded a double-double 11 points, 17 boards, 3 blocks, 2 assists and 1 steal.

Rajon Rondo dropped 29 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals and 1 block while Paul Pierce added 23 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal. Glen Davis scored 18 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks while Kendrick Perkins contributed 14 points, 8 rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 steal. Chicago now leads the first round Eastern Conference series 1-0. Game two will be Monday night in Boston with tip-off scheduled for 7:00 pm.

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