NBA Playoffs 2011 First Round: Eastern Conference Matchups (Part 1)
The National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2010-11 regular season ended on 13th April, 2011.
The participating teams in the Eastern Conference included the Boston Celtics, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte
Bobcats, Miami Heat, Orlando Magic and Washington Wizards.
However, only Chicago, Indiana, Miami, Philadelphia, Boston, New York, Orlando and Atlanta were successful in qualifying for the playoffs.
The first round of the 2011 NBA playoffs will begin on Saturday, 16th April.
Here is an overview of the first round matchups of the Eastern Conference:
Chicago Bulls vs. Indiana Pacers
The red-hot Bulls are all set to take on the Pacers in the opening game of their best-of-seven conference quarter-final series.
Bulls’ centre Joakim Noah was very excited ahead of the playoffs. Noah said, "It's a whole different environment, you are playing for something big. That is what it is all about, something you dream about playing in. Big stage. It does not get much better
than that playing in the NBA playoffs for the Chicago Bulls. It's going to be a lot of fun.”
The Bulls defeated the New Jersey Nets 97-92 in their last game of the season at the United Centre on Wednesday night to clinch the league's best overall record. They topped all teams with 62 victories in the 2010-11 season. The win also helped the Bulls
secure home-court advantage throughout the post-season.
Chicago and the San Antonio Spurs were tied at 61 wins for the season with one game to go before the playoffs. However, the Bulls won their last game, and San Antonio lost to the Phoenix Suns 106-103 at US Airways Centre.
Chicago finished with a season-best record of 62-20, which is their best since achieving a similar mark in the 1997-98 season, under the guidance of the dazzling Michael Jordan. In addition to that, the Bulls’ nine-game winning streak was their best since
March 2005.
The Pacers, on the other hand, finished the season with a 37-45 record. They qualified for the playoffs on 6th April, 2011, by defeating the Washington Wizards 136-112 at the Conseco Fieldhouse. The Pacers were flying high as they clinched their first playoff
berth since 2006.
Miami Heat vs. Philadelphia 76ers
The Heat, who closed the season at 58-24, begin the post-season at the American Airlines Arena on Saturday night against Philadelphia.
The Southeast Division champions, Miami, qualified for the playoffs by defeating the Los Angeles Lakers 94-88 on 10th March.
The Sixers ended the regular season at 41-41. Philadelphia had no trouble in thrashing the Nets 115-90, on 1st April, to secure seventh spot in the East. However, they lost all three meetings against the Heat this season.
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