The Chicago Bulls pulled off a stunning upset of the Miami Heat in Game 1 of the Eastern conference semifinals and the team will be looking for another win on the road in Game 2 on Wednesday night.
The Bulls got some great production from Jimmy Butler and Nate Robinson and the team is also expected to get Derrick Rose back for the first time this season, giving the team another big boost. The Heat had a long layoff after their series with the Bucks that ended in a sweep and now LeBron James and company will work to get things even on Wednesday. Dwyane Wade is expected to play better on Wednesday and the team now knows how tough it will be to defeat the Bulls. Joakim Noah has been excellent while playing on barely one foot with a heel injury and the team will still be without Luol Deng and possibly Kirk Hinrich.
The Bulls are one of the toughest teams in the league and even though the Heat are expected to win the series, a Game 2 victory is a must after dropping the opening tilt. The Spurs and Warriors are also playing on Wednesday night after a close and exciting game on Monday night that saw San Antonio win in double overtime. The Warriors will be ready in Game 2 and they will take down the Spurs.
Sweeping the Bucks earned the Heat that week off, while the Bulls were fighting past Brooklyn, and the unusually long break carried the danger of Miami losing their edge. The defeat ended the Heat's franchise record-tying eight game post-season winning streak and was their second loss to Chicago at home this season.
Although James stepped it up after the break, finishing with 24 points on 8-of-17 shooting, Butler inspired the Bulls to a fourth quarter rally as they roared back from a seven-point deficit to grab the early advantage in the best-of-seven series.
Miami's Dwyane Wade, returning from a knee injury which kept him out of Game Four of the series sweep over Milwaukee was impressed with the 23-year-old Butler, who is playing like a veteran in just his second year in the league.
