Bulls-Celtics: Boston Locks Down on Defense to Win Game Seven Against Chicago
The Celtics defense finally showed up. They had enough of Gordon and Rose, and were determined to shut them, and the rest of Chicago down. Their offense awoke after a stagnant first fourteen minutes, and, of all players, seldom-used fan-favorite Brian Scalabrine ignited a spectacular, dominating run.
The red-headed power forward who warmed the bench for a majority of the season drained a three-pointer, his lone strength, on a broken play to ignite the crowd. The crowd cheered as one, and would have reason to for the remainder of the quarter.
The Bulls maintained a seven-point lead on a jump-shot by Tyrus Thomas. This score by Thomas, one of his measly two in 17 minutes played, came at the eight-minute mark in the second quarter.
Chicago would only score two more points—free throws by both small forward John Salmons and center Brad Miller—the rest of the period. They committed six turnovers, and missed every shot they took from the field over these nightmarish eight minutes.
Meanwhile, the Celtics rarely missed. Aside from a turnover or two, Boston ran its offense to perfection, spacing the floor brilliantly, freeing the likes of guard Eddie House and foward Paul Pierce for open shots. The Celtics scored 22 points to the Bulls' aforementioned two.
Just like that, a ten-point deficit turned into a thirteen-point lead at halftime.
Chicago tried to climb back into contention, but despite the efforts of Rose and center Joakim Noah, they remained behind by double-digits for the first half of the third period.
The Bulls finished the quarter strong, cutting the margin to six on a three-pointer by Gordon. They had life, but though they quieted the crowd with a small 7-3 run to begin the fourth and final period to dwindle the deficit to three points, their offense wasn’t in a groove, and didn’t have the intensity of a team that could come back.
Chicago would get no closer.
The Bulls were tired, and rightfully so. After all, they had forced a Game Seven by outlasting the Celtics in three overtimes 48 hours before. Somehow, they managed to stay within reach against Boston.
I would have expected nothing less.
Gordon, who happened to play the least amount of minutes, 31, among the regulars in Game Six, was the freshest. He played like it, to the tune of 33 points. His input was misleading, considering he shot a lousy seven of 23 from the field, and benefited from a perfect 15 of 15 from the free-throw line.
The unrestricted free-agent-to-be scored a quiet fifteen points in the second half. His career with Chicago quite possibly may have ended.
Rose’s, however, just started. He, like Gordon, did everything in his power to will the Bulls to victory, desperately trying to pull their young team out of countless holes. He could not.
In spite of the series loss, a lot of good can be taken away from Rose’s performance. He didn’t play like a 20-year old rookie. Instead, he played like the superstar he has quickly become. He didn’t have the impact he would have liked in the deciding game—18 points, three assists, and no free-throws attempted—but nonetheless carried the team best he could. As he did all season long.
In the end, Chicago lost by ten. They were valiant, but had nothing left in the tank. They deserved to win.
The problem was, my bias aside, Boston did as well.
Maybe my cousin Matt was right in suggesting that the game should have been conceded, with both teams in a congratulatory embrace at mid-court. It was that kind of series.
There will never be another one like it.
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