4B / SPORTS / WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2011 / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / KANSAN.COM
NBA
Rose leads Bulls past pesky Pacers,winning series 4-1
ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHICAGO — Derrick Rose scored 25 points, Luol Deng added 24 and the Chicago Bulls finally played like a top seed, knocking off the Indiana Pacers 116-89 in Game 5 to wrap up their first-round playoff series Tuesday night.
The top-seeded Bulls can breathe a little easier after getting a dominant performance by their MVP candidate and an emphatic win that came on the heels of four dramatic games.
They can also turn their attention to the Eastern Conference semifinals, where they'll meet Atlanta or Orlando.
Rose seemed just fine after spraining his left ankle in Game 4, hitting 8 of 17 shots. He dominated in the early going and came up big in the third after the Pacers pulled within four. He scored 10 points over the final six minutes, and Chicago ended the quarter on a
23-8 run to blow the game open.
The Bulls hit 14 of 31 3-pointers, including five by Keith Bogans (15 points) and three each by Deng and Rose. Deng also had seven assists and six rebounds.
Joakim Noah added 14 points and eight rebounds, and the Bulls won a playoff series for the first time since they swept Miami in the first round in 2007 even though Carlos Boozer scored just two.
Danny Granger scored 20 for the Pacers. Tyler Hansbrough added 14 points and 11 rebounds, but the Pacers trailed the entire way and committed 21 turnovers.
The Pacers had just scored seven straight to pull within 61-57 midway through the third when Rose and the Bulls put them away.
Taj Gibson actually started the barrage with a 19-footer. Then, Rose went to work.
He hit a 3-pointer, blocked Hibbert down low, and hit another 3. Then, he stole the ball from Nick
Collison and got fouled on the break, hitting 1 of 2 free throws to make it 70-57 with 4:32 left in the quarter.
Rose nailed another 3-pointer two minutes later to make it 75-60, and Bogans buried two more as the lead hit 82-65 with 42 seconds left.
Things took a nasty turn in the closing seconds when Josh McRoberts threw an elbow at Noah and got ejected.
The two were starting to run the other way after a missed 3-pointer by Rose. McRoberts swung his right elbow at Noah and missed, but he got called for the flagrant foul and got tossed.
Noah bit both free throws with 2.5 seconds left to make it 84-65.
The series win is another big step for a rebuilt team that leaped into the championship picture, igniting the fan base in a way not seen since Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen were leading the way.
Nam Y. Huh//AP Photo right during the
Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah, left, wraps up a rebound against Indiana Pacers center Jeff Foster and forward Josh McRoberts, right, during the first quarter in of an NBA playoff game last night in Chicago.
Indians pounce all over Royals as Masterson wins fifth straight
MLB
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Amy Sancetta/AP Photo
Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Louis Coleman comes off the field after finishing the seventh inning against the Cleveland Indians in a baseball game last night. Coleman gave up a three-run home run to Indians batter Shin-Soo Choo on his first pitch upon entering the game in the seventh.
CLEVELAND — Justin Masterson won his fifth straight start, a stunning personal turnaround from last season, Jack Hannahan hit two home runs and Shin-Seon Choo hit a three-run shot, leading the Cleveland Indians to a 9-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night.
Masterson (5-0) allowed three runs and five hits in 6 2-3 innings. A year ago, the right-hander started 0-5, lost 11 straight games over two seasons and went winless over a stretch of 17 starts — a club record of futility.
He's a different pitcher in 2011. The Indians are a different team.
They hit five homers and won their eight straight at home.
Grady Sizemore went three for four and hit a two-run homer in the eighth for the Indians, who are 14-8 for the first time since 2007, when they won 96.
Hannahan hit solo shots in the third and fifth off Luke Hochevar (2-3), and Choo connected in the seventh on reliever Louis Coleman's first pitch to make it 7-3.
Melky Cabrera homered and Alex Gordon extended his hitting streak to 19 games for the Royals. Kansas City has dropped four in a row.
Masterson's reversal has been one of the keys to the Indians' quick start. He finished strong in 2010, and has carried it over into this season. Of his five wins, four have come following a Cleveland loss and he's gone at least six innings in each start.
He was pulled in the seventh
with the Indians up only 4-3 and the tying run at second.
Reliever Tony Sipp came on and struck out Chris Getz, but the left-hander loaded the bases with none out in the eighth. Manager Manny Acta brought in Vinnie Pestano, who worked out of the mess by getting two pop-ups and a strikeout.
Choo's third homer gave the Indians some breathing room in the seventh. Hannahan and Asdrubal Cabrera singled before Royals manager Ned Yost pulled Hochevar. Choo, who came in
batting just 207, then blasted Coleman's first offering into the bullpen in center.
While the Indians' strong start may have surprised many around baseball, Acta always believed his team would be contending from the outset. And as for his club battling Kansas City for first in the AL Central, Acta couldn't care if it's April or October.
"It's good for baseball," he said. "It's good for both cities, both fan bases. Despite how early it is, we're happy about it."
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