ANDY ISKOE
Heat at Bulls
Pick: Bulls -3
Miami is finally gelling and playing the type of basketball expected of them last summer when LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined Dwyane Wade on South Beach. Their ability to finally close out games had been an issue for most of the season. As a result of the Heat's efforts the past three games Chicago now faces elimination on their home court tonight. The Bulls remain a fundamentally solid and deep team although they lack the multiple options that Miami has finally displayed. Yet Chicago's defensive intensity should pay off with a strong fourth quarter tonight something they've failed to sustain in losing the past three games buoyed by the supportive home crowd that still clings to hope that the Bulls can come back. It now appears that Miami will indeed represent the East in the NBA Finals. Miami would like to wrap things up tonight but they will face Chicago's best and most desperate effort in seeking to prolong their season. The preference is to expect that one final effort from the Bulls and laying the small price is fair.
Heat at Bulls
Pick: Bulls -3
Miami is finally gelling and playing the type of basketball expected of them last summer when LeBron James and Chris Bosh joined Dwyane Wade on South Beach. Their ability to finally close out games had been an issue for most of the season. As a result of the Heat's efforts the past three games Chicago now faces elimination on their home court tonight. The Bulls remain a fundamentally solid and deep team although they lack the multiple options that Miami has finally displayed. Yet Chicago's defensive intensity should pay off with a strong fourth quarter tonight something they've failed to sustain in losing the past three games buoyed by the supportive home crowd that still clings to hope that the Bulls can come back. It now appears that Miami will indeed represent the East in the NBA Finals. Miami would like to wrap things up tonight but they will face Chicago's best and most desperate effort in seeking to prolong their season. The preference is to expect that one final effort from the Bulls and laying the small price is fair.
Jeff Benton Thursday's Action
30 Dime NBA seleetion on the Heat plus the points at Chicago in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. At the time I release this winner, Miami is a three-point undoerdog across the board both here in Vegas and offshore.
On Tuesday, I issued a 30 Dime winner on the Heat over the Bulls, and in this space I started my analysis with three words – “out of gas” – going to detail that I thought Chicago (and MVP point guard Derrick Rose) had hit an emotional and physical wall that was taking its toll in the fourth quarter of games. So what hapeened in Game 4? Chicago took a 5-point lead into the fourth quarter but couldn’t seal the deal, scoring just 17 fourth-quarter points and only eight in overtime, as Miami rolled to a 101-93 overtime victory as a five-point chalk.
Since blasting the Heat 31-19 in the fourth quarter of Game 1 (after outscoring them 24-15 in the third quarter of that contest), the Bulls have scored a grand total of 47 fourth-quarter points in the last three games. It’s been a combination of Miami’s stifling defense and the Bulls just being unable to draw up and/or execute a decent half-court game plan. Whatever the case, Chicago has been a completely diffeorent fourth-quarter team since Game 1, and I just don’t see them flipping the switch tonight – not with LeBron, Wade and the rest of the Heat smelling blood in the water.
Miami has now won 26 of its last 32 games going back to the regular season, going 11-3 in the playoffs. And with the exception of two halves of basketball (Game 3 at Boston and Game 1 at Chicago), the Heat have been virtually flawless in nine games over the last two rounds of playoffs. At the same time, the Bulls have looked extremely vulnerable in the last three games, and the main reason has been Rose’s stunning decline in play. Rose went 10-for-22 overall, including 3-for-7 from long range, with 28 points in Game 1. Since then, he is 23-for-69 (2-for-15 from 3-land), and although he’s scored 21, 20 and 23 points, they’ve all been very difficult baskets (and very few have come in the fourth quarter).
Put it this way: In Game 4 on Tuesday, the Bulls got 23 points from Rose, 20 points and 11 rebounds from Carlos Boozer and 20 points and seven boards from Loul Deng. And although he couldn’t get his shots to fall (3-for-10, six points), Joakim Noah had a game-high 14 rebounds. Conversely, Dwyane Wade had a subpar offensive night (5-for-16 for 14 points), and only three of Miami’s bench players got any playing time (and they combined for just 23 points. On top of all that, the Bulls outscored Miami 26-15 in fast-break points and 44-24 in the paint.
Despite all this, and despite having the ball in their best player’s hands on the final possesoion of regulation in a tie game, the Bulls still couldn’t come away with the victory to tie the series. Because of that, they now find themselves in a backs-against-the-wall situation. Well, call me crazy for being skeptical that all the things that went Chicago’s way in Game 4 (when they still couldn’t win) will go their way again tonight.
In the end, this smells like another game where the Heat seize control of a tight contest in the final five minutes as fatigue sets in with Rose and Bulls one more time and LeBron (who has scored 29, 22 and 35 points in Miami’s three victories in this series and is averaging 27 ppg in the Heat’s last seven wins) wills his team to victory..
30 Dime NBA seleetion on the Heat plus the points at Chicago in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals. At the time I release this winner, Miami is a three-point undoerdog across the board both here in Vegas and offshore.
ANALYSIS
On Tuesday, I issued a 30 Dime winner on the Heat over the Bulls, and in this space I started my analysis with three words – “out of gas” – going to detail that I thought Chicago (and MVP point guard Derrick Rose) had hit an emotional and physical wall that was taking its toll in the fourth quarter of games. So what hapeened in Game 4? Chicago took a 5-point lead into the fourth quarter but couldn’t seal the deal, scoring just 17 fourth-quarter points and only eight in overtime, as Miami rolled to a 101-93 overtime victory as a five-point chalk.
Since blasting the Heat 31-19 in the fourth quarter of Game 1 (after outscoring them 24-15 in the third quarter of that contest), the Bulls have scored a grand total of 47 fourth-quarter points in the last three games. It’s been a combination of Miami’s stifling defense and the Bulls just being unable to draw up and/or execute a decent half-court game plan. Whatever the case, Chicago has been a completely diffeorent fourth-quarter team since Game 1, and I just don’t see them flipping the switch tonight – not with LeBron, Wade and the rest of the Heat smelling blood in the water.
Miami has now won 26 of its last 32 games going back to the regular season, going 11-3 in the playoffs. And with the exception of two halves of basketball (Game 3 at Boston and Game 1 at Chicago), the Heat have been virtually flawless in nine games over the last two rounds of playoffs. At the same time, the Bulls have looked extremely vulnerable in the last three games, and the main reason has been Rose’s stunning decline in play. Rose went 10-for-22 overall, including 3-for-7 from long range, with 28 points in Game 1. Since then, he is 23-for-69 (2-for-15 from 3-land), and although he’s scored 21, 20 and 23 points, they’ve all been very difficult baskets (and very few have come in the fourth quarter).
Put it this way: In Game 4 on Tuesday, the Bulls got 23 points from Rose, 20 points and 11 rebounds from Carlos Boozer and 20 points and seven boards from Loul Deng. And although he couldn’t get his shots to fall (3-for-10, six points), Joakim Noah had a game-high 14 rebounds. Conversely, Dwyane Wade had a subpar offensive night (5-for-16 for 14 points), and only three of Miami’s bench players got any playing time (and they combined for just 23 points. On top of all that, the Bulls outscored Miami 26-15 in fast-break points and 44-24 in the paint.
Despite all this, and despite having the ball in their best player’s hands on the final possesoion of regulation in a tie game, the Bulls still couldn’t come away with the victory to tie the series. Because of that, they now find themselves in a backs-against-the-wall situation. Well, call me crazy for being skeptical that all the things that went Chicago’s way in Game 4 (when they still couldn’t win) will go their way again tonight.
In the end, this smells like another game where the Heat seize control of a tight contest in the final five minutes as fatigue sets in with Rose and Bulls one more time and LeBron (who has scored 29, 22 and 35 points in Miami’s three victories in this series and is averaging 27 ppg in the Heat’s last seven wins) wills his team to victory..
WUNDERDOG SPORTS
Game: Kansas City at Baltimore (12:35 PM Eastern)
Pick: Baltimore -160 (moneyline)
Pick: Total UNDER 8.5 -105
Game: Cincinnati at Philadelphia (1:05 PM Eastern)
Pick: Total UNDER 7 -105
Game: New York Mets at Chicago Cubs (2:20 PM Eastern)
Pick: Chicago Cubs -140 (moneyline)
Pick: Total UNDER 6.5 +100
Game: Oakland at Los Angeles Angels (3:35 PM Eastern)
Pick: Total UNDER 7 -125
Game: Florida at San Francisco (3:45 PM Eastern)
Pick: Florida -110 (moneyline)
Pick: Game Total UNDER 7 +100
Game: Chicago White Sox at Toronto (7:05 PM Eastern)
Pick: Toronto -150 (moneyline)
Game: Arizona at Colorado (8:40 PM Eastern)
Pick: Colorado -160 (moneyline)
Game: Kansas City at Baltimore (12:35 PM Eastern)
Pick: Baltimore -160 (moneyline)
Pick: Total UNDER 8.5 -105
Game: Cincinnati at Philadelphia (1:05 PM Eastern)
Pick: Total UNDER 7 -105
Game: New York Mets at Chicago Cubs (2:20 PM Eastern)
Pick: Chicago Cubs -140 (moneyline)
Pick: Total UNDER 6.5 +100
Game: Oakland at Los Angeles Angels (3:35 PM Eastern)
Pick: Total UNDER 7 -125
Game: Florida at San Francisco (3:45 PM Eastern)
Pick: Florida -110 (moneyline)
Pick: Game Total UNDER 7 +100
Game: Chicago White Sox at Toronto (7:05 PM Eastern)
Pick: Toronto -150 (moneyline)
Game: Arizona at Colorado (8:40 PM Eastern)
Pick: Colorado -160 (moneyline)
