The Boston Celtics arrived in Chicago just hoping to
play their way back into their Eastern Conference playoff series
with the Bulls.
Now, with a win tonight at the United Center, the Celtics can
return home in a dead heat with the Bulls.
Boston drew even in the best-of-seven series with a 104-87 victory
on Friday night. In a game in which the Celtics saw a 20-point lead
dwindle to one early in the third quarter, Boston pounded the Bulls
from the perimeter with 17 3-point field goals and used fast-paced
ball movement to keep Chicago from ever getting close.
But after earning their first victory in the series, the Celtics
understand they will have to keep pushing in order to get their
second.
"It's certainly better to be down 2-1 than 3-0," Boston coach Brad
Stevens told reporters on Saturday. "We're going to have to play
with great purpose, be intentional about the way we approach
(tonight's game). We know it's going to be really hard and each game
is its own entity."
The Celtics relied on a balanced scoring attack to build their
lead. While guard Isaiah Thomas -- who scored 16 points, well off
his season average of 28.9 points -- didn't score as much as his
teammates have become accustomed to, he contributed nine assists.
Still dealing with the death of his sister, who was killed in a car
accident last weekend, Thomas hit back-to-back 3-pointers to widen
the gap after Chicago had drawn to within a point.
His teammates fed off his effort and then did enough to get within
a game of the Bulls.
"I felt like as a team, we had a much better rhythm (Friday),"
Celtics center Al Horford said.
The Bulls, meanwhile, struggled with pace in their first game
playing without injured point guard Rajon Rondo. Jerian Grant and
Michael Carter-Williams both struggled in Rondo's absence and
leading scorer Jimmy Butler was 7-of-21 from the field. Chicago
turned the ball over 18 times and had only 14 assists (compared to
Boston's 34) and the offensive woes -- coupled with the Bulls'
defensive issues -- all added up to the 17-point loss.
Now, like the Celtics did on Friday, Chicago will enter Sunday's
game looking to bounce back.
"We're in a good position," Bulls guard Dwyane Wade said. "One
thing Rondo did before he went out is help us win two games on the
road. Now we have two of the next three (games) on our home court
and we have to come in and care of business at home."
With Rondo out indefinitely, the Bulls won't have a lot of time to
make the adjustments they will need to get to within a game of
closing out the Celtics. Wade said after Friday's loss that Chicago
can't afford to use Rondo's absence as an excuse.
But given what's at stake before the series shifts back to Boston
for Game 5, the Bulls believe they can do what's needed to make the
Celtics' comeback efforts even tougher. Now, they will need to
carry out their plan on their home floor.
"I think a big theme of the playoffs should be possession by
possession, quarter by quarter, game by game," Bulls center Robin
Lopez said. "You just try to keep a level head, even with failure
and success. We're going to come back (Saturday) and look at the
film to make improvements."
Tonight's game can be heard on Good Time Oldies 1060 with the Pre-Game Show at 5.
The Cubs slammed three big homers as they clocked the Reds, 12-8, in Cincinnati. Wilson Contreras belted his first career grand slam, while Jason Heyward and Anthony Rizzo added three-run dingers. Jake Arrieta tossed six innings of five-run ball with eight strikeouts and got the win. The Cubs only needed nine hits to get 12 runs in their fourth straight win.
Joey Votto went deep for the Reds and finished with five RBI while Eugenio Suarez had a pair of solo homers. Cody Reed got chased after two innings to take the loss.
Carlos Carrasco allowed three singles over eight innings as the Indians blanked the White Sox 7-0 in Chicago. Carrasco struck out eight in his second win. Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Ramirez and Michael Brantley homered for Cleveland. The Indians won their fifth straight.
Chicago starter Mike Pelfrey failed to make it out of the fifth and took the loss. The White Sox have failed to score in the first two games of the series. The Pale Hose are 1-and-4 in their past five games.
Final game of the series will be played today in Chicago. The Pre-Game Show begins at 12:35 on Good Time Oldies 1060.
