Bulls 104, Pacers 99
Derrick Rose scored seven of his playoff career-high 39 points in the final 1:50 as the Chicago Bulls came from behind and escaped with a 104-99 victory over the visiting Indiana Pacers in Game One of the Eastern Conference playoffs on Saturday.
Luol Deng added 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Kyle Korver went 4 of 4 from 3-point range and finished with 13 points for the Bulls, who closed the game on a 16-1 run.
Rose overcame an 0-of-9 day from beyond the arc by knocking down 19 of 21 free throws and adding six assists and six rebounds.
The MVP candidate took over down the stretch, driving the lane and spinning his way to the rim on two straight possessions to knot it at 99 with 1:27 on the clock. After a defensive stop on the other end, Rose drove toward the basket again and drew the entire Pacers defense before kicking it out to Korver for the 3-pointer that gave Chicago its first lead of the game, 102-99, with 48.4 seconds left.
The Pacers led by as many as 12 in the third and were up 98-88 with 3:38 remaining after seven straight points by Tyler Hansbrough.
Hansbrough finished with 22 points and Danny Granger poured in 24 for Indiana.
Game 2 is scheduled for Monday night in Chicago.