Hawks at Bulls
THE STORY: The Atlanta Hawks were an afterthought when the postseason started. They are certainly at the forefront in the minds of the Chicago Bulls right now. The Hawks shocked the Bulls in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, jumping out early and finishing strong while refusing to let Derrick Rose or the hostile crowd get to them. The pressure will be on Chicago when it hosts Game 2 on Wednesday, trying to prevent Atlanta from taking a commanding 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven set.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT
ABOUT THE BULLS: Chicago shot under 30 percent in the first quarter and Rose did not score a point until less than five minutes remained in the first half. For all of their troubles, the Bulls still managed to take the lead in the third quarter. The problem was the end of the third and into the fourth, as the Hawks shredded the Bulls’ league-best defense by bridging the final two quarters with a 27-9 burst. Rose ended up with 24 points and 10 assists, but struggled to shoot 11-of-27 from the floor and did not attempt a free throw after averaging 12 attempts from the line in the first round.
ABOUT THE HAWKS: Joe Johnson spent most of the regular season drawing criticism for a lack of production after signing the biggest free agent deal of a wild 2010 summer. Johnson proved his worth in Game 1, scoring 34 points and shooting 5-of-5 from 3-point range. The veteran guard capped the big run in the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer and had no trouble shaking off Chicago defensive stopper Keith Bogans amongst a slew of defenders. Jamal Crawford stepped up as well, pouring in 24 points off the bench for the Hawks.
WHO’S HOT/WHO’S NOT: Luol Deng carried the Bulls offensively through the first half on Monday and finished with 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Josh Smith struggled from the floor for Atlanta, shooting 3-of-11 and just 2-of-4 from the line for eight points.
KEY STATISTIC: Shooting percentage. Chicago led the NBA in defensive shooting percentage in the regular season, holding opponents to 43 percent from the floor. Something went wrong in Game 1, as the Hawks went off at 51.3 percent.
LAST WORD: Rose provided the scare of the night for the Bulls when he twisted his left ankle on the final play and had to be helped off by teammates and trainers. Rose sprained the same ankle in Game 4 of the first round against the Indiana Pacers. As a result, Rose was less explosive in Game 5, although he still managed 25 points in the clinching game.