Boston Celtics Chicago Bulls Game 4 Predictions

Written April 25, 2009 by Jason Lowry

Bulls Celtics After all the hype the Bulls had going into game 3 at Chicago, it was the Boston Celtics who came to play, as they dominated the Bulls 107-86 to take a 2-1 lead and regain the home court advantage. Game 4 is scheduled for Sunday afternoon, and the Bulls will be looking to even the Series 2 game a piece, while the Celtics will look to take complete control and a 3-1 lead with the series heading back to Boston. In game 3 everyone for the Celtics had it going, as 5 different players scored in double figures. Rajon Rando continued his excellent play scoring 20 points with 11 rebounds and 6 assists. While Ray Allen came back to earth scoring just 18 after scoring 31 in game 2, Paul Pierce got it going scoring a game high 24 points. For the Bulls Ben Gordon was the leading scorer for this team with just 15 points, after the Bulls had two different guys score close to 40 in the first two games. Both John Salmons and Kirk Hinrich scored 14 points, and were the only other Bulls to score more than 10 points. Derrick Rose had just 9 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists, in easily the worst playoff game of his brief career. With game 4 just around the corner here is a look at what I think each team needs to do to win, and my prediction on who comes out on top against the spread.

What the Celtics have to do to win: If the Celtics come out and play game 4 like they did game 3, this team is going to be heading back to Boston with complete control of this series. The scoring was balanced and the defense was outstanding, forcing the Bulls into 22 turnovers. Its hard to stop this team when Rondo, Allen, and Pierce all have it going, as the Bulls looked completely overmatched in game 3. The Bulls are going to come out fighting for their life in game 4, so this team will have to be ready to match the intensity they bring. I wonder what this team will look like if Rondo has a bad game, as he has been unstoppable in the first 3. The Celtics also got some really good bench play out of Stephon Marbury, as he came in and gave the team 13 points and 5 assists, something he will have to continue to do if this team wants to make it back to the NBA Finals. I don’t think the Celtics will run away with game 4 like they did in game 3, but I think they are in prime position to win this game. Bet the Celtics +2.5 at Sportsbook.com.

What the Bulls have to do to win: It was pretty ugly for the Bulls, as they were terrible from the free throw line, poor from the field, and they had more turnovers than assists. The Bulls need Rose to return the form of game 1 when he took over the game. The Bulls have to make their free throws in game 4 if they want to even this series, they were just 63% from the line, not very good for a team that led the league in the regular season. The Bulls will need either Gordon or Salmons to step up if they want to beat the Celtics. But the number one thing is holding on to the basketball, it was very sloppy play for the Bulls who looked so good in Boston. The Bulls know they can hang with this team, they just have to make their shots and play tough defense. Bet the Bulls -2.5 at Sportsbook.com.

My Prediciton: Celtics +2.5. The Bulls are still favored to win the game, but I really like Boston to come out and win this game. The way the Celtics played against the Bulls in game 3, is good enough for this team to compete with Orlando and Cleveland. I expect this game to be close, but Boston wins by 4-5 points.

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