| |
|
NBA Playoffs- Bulls capture East's No.1 seed
By Fakhouri Amjid PhilBoxing.com Wed, 25 Apr 2012

AFTER weeks of looking over their shoulders and constantly finding the Miami Heat closing on their heels, the Chicago Bulls can finally rest easy.
It's official, the Bulls will enter the NBA playoffs as the No.1 seed in the Eastern Conference. And they didn't need a single basket to attain the top ranking as the Boston Celtics crushed the Heat, 78-66, Tuesday night at the TD Garden in Boston.
The loss dropped Miami's won-lost record to 46-19, making Chicago uncatchable at 48-16 with two games left in the schedule. But the Heat did lock up the No.2 seed when the playoffs kick off April 28. The Bulls and Heat are in a collision course to meet in the Eastern Conference Finals, which will be a rematch of last year's battle won by the Heat in five games.
The Bulls play the Pacers in Indianapolis on Wednesday before closing out the season Thursday night at the United Center against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Both games have now been been rendered meaningless since the Pacers have already clinched the No.3 seed while the Cavs are out of playoffs contention with a dismal 21-43 record.
Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau had planned to play his starters at full force but now that the No.1 seed is on hand, Derrick Rose and company might not play "extended minutes."
Miami's Big 3 did not see action in Tuesday night's debacle. LeBron James nursed minor injuries, Wade tended to a dislocated finger while Chris Bosh was still bothered by hamstring problems.
The Celtics also had their share of injuries which led to stars sitting out. A hip flexor sidelined Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo was downed by a sore lower back while Ray Allen was hindered by a bad ankle.
Paul Pierce did play for 17 minutes and scored eight points, but it was seldom-used Sasha Pavlovic who carried the day for the Celtics. The former Cavalier drilled 12 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter where Boston turned a 52-52 tie into a 78-60 blowout with 1:07 left to play. (Fakhouri Amjid)
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Fakhouri Amjid.
Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:
Lieutenant Delfin Boholst: Soldier, Boxing Coach, Mentor By Emmanuel Rivera, RRT, , Sat, 30 May 2026O’Shaquie Foster vs Raymond Ford: Bad Blood Equals Good Fight By Chris Carlson, , Sat, 30 May 2026WBC Issues Rules Clarification for Designating David Benavidez Mandatory Challenger to Noel Mikaelian External Inbox Andre Courtemanche -- Big Media Buzz , Sat, 30 May 2026FOSTER VS. FORD – WEIGHTS AND THE FINAL WORD AHEAD OF TOMORROW NIGHT’S ACTION , Sat, 30 May 2026AWE to Air Live the WBC World Title Rematch of Kevin Lerena v. Ryad Merhy this Saturday , Sat, 30 May 2026Juego Todo exists in two powerful dimensions By Lito delos Reyes, , Sat, 30 May 2026‘The Homecoming’ Postponed in Vancouver , Sat, 30 May 2026Pound-for-Pound Puerto Rican Champion Oscar “El Pupilo” Collazo to Defend Unified WBA, WBO and Ring Magazine Minimumweight World Titles Against the Philippines’ Joey Canoy , Sat, 30 May 2026Canoy now trains at MP Davao for Collazo's fight By Lito delos Reyes, , Sat, 30 May 2026Johann Chua claims Duya Airplay Sport 5800 Charity Cup Crown, pockets US$50,000 tops prize By Marlon Bernardino, , Sat, 30 May 2026“While others debate governance, the IBA continues to deliver.” IBA CEO & Secretary General Chris Roberts OBE on the organisation’s resilience and global ambition , Sat, 30 May 2026MP Pro Announces Signed Undefeated Prospects J'Hon Ingram, Amir Anderson, David Lopez, and Kayla Gomez to Compete on "Pugilist Revolution" June 19 in Long Beach, California , Sat, 30 May 2026Canoy to challenge Collazo on June 20 By Lito delos Reyes, , Fri, 29 May 2026UNDEFEATED SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHT RONNIE ALVAREZ RETURNS TO THE RING ON JUNE 13 IN GLENDALE, ARIZONA , Fri, 29 May 202620 Matchups Set for 2026 Final X, presented by Kerberos Capital Management, To Determine 2026 USA Wrestling World Championship Teams , Fri, 29 May 2026RJJ Boxing & “RJJ Saving the Kids” Presents World Boxing Association International Middleweight Championship! Natasha “The Nightmare” Spence and Maricela “La Diva” Cornejo , Fri, 29 May 2026Taguig boxing clinic starts By Lito delos Reyes, , Fri, 29 May 2026Brico Santig Wins IBF “Most Active Promoter” Award , Thu, 28 May 2026FOSTER AND FORD IN FIERY FACE-OFF IN HOUSTON , Thu, 28 May 2026Tank Davis could return later this year By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Thu, 28 May 2026GM Joey Antonio to compete in Asean Sr chessfest in Singapore By Marlon Bernardino, , Thu, 28 May 2026Murat Gassiev to defend his WBA Heavyweight crown against Yoka at IBA PRO 19 , Thu, 28 May 2026‘Not a Kid Anymore.’ Edward Vazquez Talks About How He’s Matured While Training to Face Daniel Lugo on ProBoxTV in Friday, June 5, Main Event , Thu, 28 May 2026Remulla, Ferrer, Matro to grace Cavite Inter-Town Chess Tournament this weekend By Marlon Bernardino, , Thu, 28 May 2026McHugh next for Dy By Joaquin Henson, , Wed, 27 May 2026 |

|
|
|
|
|