James Heats Up to Even Series in Game 2

Local reaction to Bulls vs Heat 

The Village Inn was packed with fans preparing to cheer on the Bulls during Game 2 on Wednesday night. After the Bulls performance in Game 1, confidence was high to say the least.

“I am completely blown away that they smashed them by 20 points,” Ernesto Paras, 38, said before Game 2. “It just goes to show you how much Derrick Rose has come with his game.”

A number of people pointed to the play of the Bulls' frontcourt as making the difference for Chicago in Game 1 and potentially as the “X-factor” throughout the series.

“I think rebounding and defense,” Mark Berardi, 41, said when asked about the keys to another win before Wednesday’s game. “The Heat have LeBron and Dwyane Wade, but there’s no one on the front line who can compete with [Joakim] Noah and [Carlos] Boozer.”

With the Bulls trailing throughout much of the third quarter, the atmosphere at the Village Inn died down as the Heat built a larger lead. The Bulls needed to make adjustments in the fourth quarter, said some fans.

“They need to be more aggressive,” said a 30-year-old who gave his name as Tony D. “They could tighten up the defense a bit,” he said with the Bulls down by 6 points.

The Bulls went on an 8-2 run to start the fourth quarter and things looked up as the game was tied at 73-73. But the Bulls offense would muster only 2 more points the rest of the way.

Even with the loss at home, fans still remained optimistic about the Bulls’ chances in the series.

“I thought it was going to be a long series so I hope the Bulls can pull it off,” said a 29-year-old who said his name was Brian M.

“We’re going to win the series no matter what, even if it takes seven games,” Eddy O., 53 said.

Analysis 

Early in the season a lot was made of the Miami Heat's inability to finish games. But in Game 2 of the , LeBron James put some of that criticism to rest on Wednesday.

After the Bulls tied the game at 73-73 midway through the fourth quarter, the Heat closed with a 12-2 run to win 85-75. The victory evened the series at one game each, as Chicago heads to Miami for Game 3 on Sunday.

Since that game won't be broadcast on network television, fans can see it locally at , , , and . 

When the Heat needed buckets down the stretch, LeBron was the go-to guy. He scored 9 of the Heat’s last 12 points, including a big 3-pointer with the shot clock running down. The Bulls had no answer, not even from Chicago’s hometown hero and the NBA's most valuable player Derrick Rose.

Chicago’s offensive problems weren’t just a fourth-quarter issue. The offense looked out of sync for much of the game, and Rose didn’t attack the basket as often as he had in previous games.

The Bulls became a jump-shooting team for much of the night. After making 10 3-pointers in Game 1, the Bulls shot just 3-for-20 from beyond the arc in Game 2.

The Bulls' front line crashed the offensive glass on those missed jumpers and Chicago’s energy and athleticism helped pull in 17 offensive rebounds. But unlike in their series-opening win, the Bulls couldn’t cash in on those second-chance opportunities. The team had 14 more field-goal attempts than Miami, but shot just 34 percent from the field.

Taj Gibson was a big spark early in the fourth quarter, but didn’t have nearly the impact as Sunday night. His performance was representative of the entire Bulls’ bench, which combined for only 20 points on the night. In comparison, Miami’s Udonis Haslem had 13 points alone.

With their three big stars, the Heat tend to go into isolation mode on offense, especially in the fourth quarter. Also Miami’s ball movement was much improved in Game 2.

Whether it was Mike Bibby or Mike Miller creating shots for others off the dribble or Dwyane Wade and LeBron playing the pick-and-roll, the Heat were solid offensively. They scored 50 points in the paint, compared with 34 for the Bulls.

Following Game 2, both teams looked exhausted, even after a three-day rest. Miami coach Erik Spoelstra told his players after the game that it was going to take that kind of effort to pull off three more victories to reach the championship.

With the series tied at 1-1, the Bulls can still look at this game in a positive light. Despite the team’s woeful shooting and lack of production from the frontcourt, the Bulls still gave the Heat all they could handle and had several opportunities to take the lead late in the fourth quarter.

Don’t expect any 20-point blowouts from either side the rest of the way. Dig in, because it’s going to be a battle. Miami proved that much on Wednesday.