The Bulls inability to put away Atlanta has
turned their series into a best-of-three affair.
Game 5 is set for Chicago’s United Center
tonight with tip-off at 8 PM ET (TNT) with the series knotted at two wins apiece.
Chicago opened as an 8.5 point favorite with the total at 181 at the NBA
betting window.
It’s hard to imagine the Atlanta Hawks getting this
far when you consider they lost their final six games of the regular season to
finish with just 44 wins. Now they’re threatening an upset of the top seeded
Bulls who finished the year with 62 wins and the best record in the NBA.
The Chicago Bulls seemingly had the momentum after
winning on Friday to take a 2-1 lead but the Hawks, with their proverbial backs
against the wall, bounced back to assure them of a return trip to Atlanta for
Game 6. In addition the pressure is now squarely on Derek Rose and the Bulls in
the pivotal fifth game.
There’s one sure bet in this series and that has been
the Chicago defense which has been consistently inconsistent. In the first two
games, the Bulls allowed 103 points in Game 1 but only 73 in Game 2. Friday
night in Atlanta, Chicago dominated 99-82 as Rose scored a career-high 44
points. It looked as though the Bulls had solved the offensive inefficiency and
defensive breakdowns that had plagued them during the first round and into the
first two games against the Hawks. But all those problems returned in Game 4 as
Rose managed 34 points and 10 assists, but shot 12-of-32 from the floor.
Chicago’s defense broke down in the fourth quarter and allowed Atlanta to close
with a 16-4 burst en route to a 100-88 victory.
Maybe it’s the bad ankle or the fact he’s
trying to do too much but Rose himself admitted to taking too many shots and
driving the lane too often. He took 32 shots in
Game 4 making just 12 of them. One of the reasons Rose kept diving into
traffic was because the Bulls could not hit from the outside - they were
3-for-16 from 3-point range in Game 4. Luol Deng and Kyle Korver were the worst
offenders, combining to shoot 1 of 11. On a positive note, Carlos Boozer shook
off his turf toe injury draining seven of 10 shots while scoring 18
points.
Sharing
the wealth
Atlanta spread it around Sunday and it paid
off with a wire-to-wire victory. Josh Smith played perhaps his best game of the
season with 23 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists. Joe Johnson added 24
while Jeff Teague continued his stellar work as a fill-in for the injured Kirk
Hinrich averaging 16 points per game in the series.
Atlanta did a better job in the rebounding
department in Game 4 grabbing 36 boards to Chicago’s 37. In the Bulls two wins,
they’ve outrebounded Atlanta by big margins, 58-39 and 47-34. In Atlanta’s Game
1 win, the Hawks actually had a one-rebound advantage 38-37.
Hawks
Flying High
The Bulls are 53-36-2 against the spread and the Hawks
are 44-48 ATS this season. Atlanta has covered in seven of its last 10 overall
while Chicago is 3-8 in its last 11 home games. The Bulls are also 2-8 ATS
in their last 10 home games against teams with a losing road record while the
‘over’ is 4-1 in their last 5 games. The under has cashed in on 14 of Atlanta's
last 20 games.
Harvey’s take: The NBA playoffs have been one big upset from the
opening tip. San Antonio got knocked out in the first round by Memphis, the
Lakers got swept in round two by Dallas and Boston is on the ropes in its
series against Miami. That tells me that anything is possible tonight including
another Atlanta victory. Grab the Hawks and the points.