Game 1, Advantage D Rose and The Bulls

04 May, 2015

Derrick Rose scored 25 points and Pau Gasol added 21, leading the Chicago Bulls to a 99-92 victory over the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Monday night.

Looking like the MVP he was before being slowed by knee injuries, Rose helped the Bulls swipe home-court advantage from the Cavs, who were missing starters Kevin Love and J.R. Smith.

Jimmy Butler added 20 points and banked in a contested jumper with 30 seconds left as the Bulls closed it out.

Kyrie Irving scored 30 points and LeBron James added 19 and 15 rebounds for Cleveland, playing its first game since Love – one of the Cavs’ Big 3 – was lost for the remainder of the postseason with a shoulder injury.

Game 2 is Wednesday night.

The Cavs only trailed by four points in the final minutes, but they forced several 3-point attempts and James missed a tough layup with 51 seconds left.

Rose ran the show the way he used to before surgeries threatened his career, and Gasol, the steady 34-year-old Spaniard, made the Cavs pay for leaving him open by knocking down one mid-range jumper after another.

Gasol added 10 rebounds and Mike Dunleavy had 14 points – 13 in the first quarter when the Bulls burst to a 14-point lead.

The Cavs struggled from the start to find any offensive rhythm. Without Love to space the floor, Chicago had an easier time defending James and without Smith, who was suspended two games for striking Boston’s Jae Crowder in the face, the Cavs were lacking one of their best perimeter shooters.

Iman Shumpert did all he could, making four 3-pointers and scoring 22 points, but Cavs coach David Blatt spent the night unsuccessfully searching for the right combinations.

The Bulls have a healthy Rose, and that might be enough.

After the Cavs battled back from a 16-point deficit to tie it at 51-all, the Bulls took off, going on a 15-0 run highlighted by Rose’s jumper.

AP 

Image NBA Twitter 

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