Bulls Collapse, Heat Advance

It's only a matter of time until #epicfail starts trending on Twitter. The Bulls absolutely collapsed and gave away Game 5 tonight in Chicago. Holding a 13-point fourth quarter lead, the Bulls ended the game by allowing the Heat to rip off a 16-3 run that included clutch shots by Dewayne Wade and LeBron James. Wade completed a 4-point play while LeBron hit a three to tie the game at 79 and then another basket to put the Heat up 81-79.

While LeBron and D-Wade stepped up with clutch plays down the end, league MVP, Derrick Rose, wilted. In the last 90 seconds of the game, Rose committed a costly turn over, missed a potential game-tying free throw, and ultimately failed to create an open look for himself or a teammate on the final possession of the game, leading to him being blocked as time expired.

Credit where credit is due, Miami did everything they needed to do to win the game late, but Chicago choked tonight's game away much more than Miami won it. Entering the series I was a believer in Chicago and thought the Heat would suffer a hangover from their excessive celebration over Boston. While the Heat were hung over in Game 1, that didn't last and Chicago failed to close out another game where they had control late.

Even Russell Westbrook thinks the Bulls looked inexperienced tonight.

Phillies, Reds entertain Sportsomniacs

Despite an East coast venue, the Phillies and Reds treated us to a late night West coast finish, wrapping up at 1:19 am after taking 19-innings to settle at 5-4 Phillies. With over six hours of game time and a quality start from Roy Halladay, the Phillies relied upon 2B Wilson Valdez to come in and close out the game in the 19th.

After playing to a 3-3 tie in nine innings, the Reds and Phillies traded runs in the 10th, including a solo shot by Ryan Howard to keep the game alive. For the next several innings, relief pitchers for both sides locked down the offenses. In the top of the 19th, Philadelphia took Wilson Valdez from 2B and moved him to the mound. Ruiz became the first position player since Brett Mayne in 2000 to win a Major League game and the first since Babe Ruth in 1921 to win a game in which that player started in the field.

The game reminded me of the 22-inning marathon between the Rockis and Padres that I covered on this site in 2008. With a combined 600 pitches, 33 left on base and 16 pitchers used, the Phillies and Reds are both going to be dragging come 1:05pm today when the two meet again. Just as I did in 2008, I have to ask, would Ernie Banks make his famous "Let's play two!" call after a game like this?

Game 4 a "Must Win" for Chicago

The Bulls now find themselves in a 1-2 hole and facing game 4 on the road Tuesday. ESPN continues to trump on its overused statistic of 86% of teams winning game 3 in a 1-1 series go on to win the series. The 2004 Boston Redsox couldn't care less about statistics than the Bulls do right now. This has nothing to do with history and everything to do with the Miami Heat team that Coach Erik Spoelstra brings on to the court every night.

Despite coming out of the gates strong to start the game and reclaiming the lead late, the Chicago Bulls did not give the impression that they were going to steal their first road game of the Eastern Conference Finals. Miami controlled tempo throughout the second half and any time the Bulls got something going, it was quickly answered by a contested basket by Chris Bosh or LeBron James creating space for himself or another Heat player to knock down a shot.

While James, Wade and Bosh will have quiet games and the unlikely event of at least two of the "big three" struggling could certainly lead to a Bulls win, but the unpopular truth in Chicago is that the Heat at their best is likely better than the Bulls at their best. Game 3 helped to rectify Chris Bosh's credibility and he now has two 30+ point performances in the series.

Look for Chicago to come out with a strong focus on interior defense in game 4 and attempt to keep Lebron and D-Wade out of the painted area. While it ended badly in game 3, the Bulls would still rather have Chris Bosh beat them on a night than give easy interior baskets from the Heats perimeter players.

Ooooh No, Macho Man Dies at 58

Despite growing up as a "Hulkamaniac," toting my Hulk Hogan lunch box to school and cheering against Randy Savage each Monday Night, I was saddened to hear of the passing of the Macho Man.

Randy "Macho Man" Savage was killed Friday when he lost control of his Jeep Wrangler and struck a tree. His wife, Barbara, was also involved in the accident but is expected to fully recover from minor injuries.

To honor the former wrestling great, tonight I picked up a couple Slim Jims and dug out my old Wrestling Buddies out of a box in the basement, conducted some flying elbows off the top of the couch, and returned to childhood fantasies of Miss Elizabeth. Oooooh yeah, he will be missed.