At 8 p.m., the playoff series opener between the Bobcats and the Bulls kicked off.
Compared with the closing game, the Bulls started much more aggressively.
Skiles knew Carlisle couldn't handle the combination of Hinrich, Sefolosha, Ronald Murray, Luol Deng, and Yao Ming, so he increased the playing time of this lineup.
The effect was good. In the first quarter, they were up 26 to 20, and in the second quarter, 28 to 23. The Bulls had a high shooting percentage with 22 in 41 by halftime, leading the Bobcats by 11 points at 54 to 43!
However, in the third quarter, Zhang Yang, who was 3 for 10 in the first half, finally got hot. He went 6 for 9 in the quarter, including 2 for 3 from beyond the arc, and scored 14 points in the quarter without any free throws. Along with Felton's 9 points and 4 assists, the two partnered to overpower the Bulls with a 36 to 24 single-quarter score!
79 to 78, the Bobcats played a dominating quarter, taking the lead!
