Miami Heat stifle Derrick Rose in game-2 of the Eastern Conference Finals
In game-1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Chicago Bulls put on a clinical defensive show, shutting down Miami Heats’ superstars Dwyane Wade and LeBron James. So how did Heat respond in game-2?
They locked down on Chicago’s MVP point guard Derrick Rose. Effectively they beat the Bulls at their own game.
The Heat have a Big Three trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. However in Chicago case, Rose is the only one. He is the creator and scorer in chief for the Bulls. When he fires, Chicago prevail and it is no coincidence
that Chicago falter when he struggles.
The Bulls were solid on defence once again in game-2 as well and held the Heat to 85 points, just 3 better than their game-1 loss. The real difference of the game however was the low output from Chicago, and that stemmed from a
poor shooting night from Derrick Rose.
Miami rightly identified him as the principle threat to their charge, not that the MVP needed any more identification, but this time, the Heat also made a plan to put the shackles on him and executed it to perfection. Rose has
averaged around 29 points against the Heat this season, so credit must be given to Miami for slowing down the exhilarating point guard.
Rose shot an abysmal 7-of-23 from the field and it didn’t happen by accident. Throughout the game, it was evident that Miami were determined to hunt him down. Mike Bibby followed him around like his life depended on it and the
double teams just kept on coming. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Joel Anthony also kept an eye on Rose and closed him down whenever he found any space or clogged down the lane when he threatened to penetrate.
Rose was hassled and hounded wherever he went on the court and couldn’t get any space to create an opportunity or time on the ball. He tried to pass it off to his teammates occasionally, but there weren’t many others capable enough
to carry the offense. In the end he was forced into a lot of contested shots, tough angles and driving into congested lanes.
Rose is a fantastic player though and his past performances give reason to believe that he will soon find a way through these tactics, or at least start hitting the target with more consistency. His teammate Luol Deng came to his
defence after the game,
“We’re never worried about missed shots,” Deng said. “You’re going to have nights where you miss shots. We did a good job of fighting back, but they won the fight [Wednesday night].”
The next game in Miami will be a litmus test for Rose and the Bulls. Derrick needs to pick up his game, but Chicago also need to find alternatives that can ease the burden on him.
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