NBA Playoffs

The NBA playoffs provide some of the most interesting sports entertainment of the year. Not only do 16 teams participate a majority of the games are competitive for the whole time and the intensity of the game is turned up. Hard fouls, jawing, and stars taking over the game are routine in the playoffs. My favorite team, the Chicago Bulls are the 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. In the quarterfinals they took on the Indiana Pacers, the 8 seed and the only team with a sub-.500 record entering the postseason (37-45). Tickets at the United Center are both difficult to get and very expensive, but I really wanted to see the Bulls and league MVP Derrick Rose play.  When I heard that there were $25 tickets at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, I quickly purchased them before they sold out. On the morning of Saturday April 23^rd, I set out in the car with my dad and two of my friends, Jay and Ryan. Even though I wouldn’t be in the Bulls electric home arena, I would still be able to see them play. On the other hand, I thought it would be weird being among a few Bulls fans in an arena full of Pacer fans. I decided I would just keep to myself and cheer quietly for the Bulls.

Once I walked up to the Fieldhouse I was in for a huge surprise. Swarms of fans wearing Bulls red were milling outside, waiting to go in. Once I sat in my seats it was more of the same story. There were plenty of sections filled with red, including mine in the upper level. Pacer yellow was a difficult color to find! In essence, this was a neutral site game that more Bulls fans than Pacer fans showed up to. I realize that the Pacers are currently a somewhat pathetic professional basketball team, but that must be embarrassing for them to be invaded like that. Pacers star Danny Granger was none too happy with all of the Bulls fans: “It pissed me off.”  That said, it was awesome coming into enemy territory and cheering on the Bulls. When the Bulls came out to warm up there were loud cheers and chants of MVP for Derrick Rose. When the Pacers came out they were booed. The playoff atmosphere definitely lived up to its reputation. Throughout the game there were loud chants, and I saw a fight in the stands. All of the noise bothered Mike Dunleavy Jr. He was only 4/8 from the free throw line and he missed a critical free throw at the end that would have sealed the game. The funniest part was when they fired Pacers t-shirts into the crowd, and the Bulls fans would throw them back on the court, similar to what Cubs fans do with opposing home run balls. Had there not been a big Pacer logo in the middle of the court, you wouldn’t have known that the game was in Indianapolis.

Although the game was awesome to attend, the Bulls played very poorly for about 90% of it. Derrick Rose rolled his ankle in the 1^st quarter and had a terrible shooting night, going 6/22 from the field and only scoring 15 points; he did provide this crazy highlight reel dunk though. Joakim Noah and Kyle Korver had good games, and Carlos Boozer continued his playoff struggles, although you wouldn’t know it from his stat line. He had 15 points and 13 rebounds but missed many layups and played poor defense. If you’re getting paid $14 million, I expect better than that. For the Pacers, Roy Hibbert and Danny Granger led the way, combining for 40 points and 20 rebounds. The Bulls cut a 13-point deficit to 3 points with less than a minute remaining, but they could never get over the hump. In fact, the Pacers led the game the whole way. The Pacers ended up winning 89-84. Although I was disappointed with the result, I’m glad that I got to go. The Bulls ended up wrapping up the series in game 5 in Chicago, and they’re currently tied 1-1 with the Atlanta Hawks. It was cool to see a game in a different arena, and I was surprised at how good the seats were for that low of a price. I know that I’ll be back there again if the Pacers ever make the playoffs again.

Below you'll find some videos and photos that I took at the again. I apologize for the shaky camera.