2011 MVP living up to expectations.The Chicago Bulls took the driver seat of their Eastern Conference semifinals match up with the Atlanta Hawks after a 99-82 road win last night at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta led by their MVP Derrick Rose.
Rose flared up the Hawks with a career high 44 points seasoned with 7 assists and 5 rebounds to regain homecourt advantage in the series and push the Hawks to a seemingly "must-win" situation this coming Game 4 to be held once again in Atlanta.
Hawks had no answer for Rose since the opening tip-off allowing him to score 17 points in the 1st Quarter, much to the dismay of the home fans as the series shifted to the Phillips Arena for the first time.
Jeff Teague was the lone bright spot for the Hawks scoring 21 points but he was repeatedly punished in the defensive end by the wide arsenal of moves Derrick Rose showed throughout the game.
Chicago's bench was exceptional for this game as they sparked a pivotal second quarter push to pad the lead to double digits while their starters rested in the sidelines. CJ Watson, Taj Gibson and Ronnie Brewer did a good job starting the second quarter from both ends of the court, giving their team the spark they needed to stay comfortably ahead.
Josh Smith accounted for a respectable 17 points and 13 rebounds but he attempted a lot of long jumpers that did not get him much success and the frustrations from the crowd mounted as Game 1 heroes Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford was limited to 10 and 7 points respectively.
The Bulls head to Game 4 hoping to get a commanding 3-1 series lead while the Hawks hope to knot the series at 2-2 before heading back to the Windy City.
