The Chicago Bulls return home to the United Center on Tuesday facing a first round elimination after losing to the Wizards 98-89 at the Verizon Center on Sunday.
Trevor Ariza had a team-high 30 points for the Wizards on 10-of-17 from the field including 6-of-10 from long range and John Wall added a double-double for the hosts who bounced back nicely from their loss in the third game of the series. The Bulls starters struggled mightily and it was left for Taj Gibson to come off the bench for a game-high 32 points in a contest that was nowhere near as close as the final score line might indicate.
Monday the two-time defending champions, the Miami Heat, look to complete an opening round sweep of the Charlotte Bobcats at the Time Warner Cable Arena. LeBron James had 30 points, 10 rebounds and six assists on Saturday evening as the Heat eased by their hosts in a 98-85 triumph. The Bobcats continue to go in search of a first playoff win for the franchise, but appear to be over matched with James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade yet to be fully pushed.
That’s not the case in Indianapolis where the Indiana Pacers face a crucial fifth game in their series with the Atlanta Hawks at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Paul George dropped in 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Pacers at the Philips Arena on Saturday to tie the series at two games apiece. However the top seed in the Eastern Conference continues to look shaky at best over the first four games of the match up and the Hawks will look to grab a victory before returning to Atlanta for Game 6 on Thursday.
The Pacers are 251.00 to win the NBA Championship, while the Heat can be backed at 1.83.