The Indiana Pacers survived a late game surge to edge the Chicago Bulls, 89-84, on April 23 in game four of their first round Eastern Conference matchup. The Bulls maintain a 3-1 series lead.
Bulls guard Derrick Rose ripped Indiana in the first three games of the series and had intentions of sweeping the Pacers with another dominant victory in Indianapolis’ Conseco Field house.
Indiana held a comfortable led throughout most of the game, but Rose came alive in the fourth quarter, leading Chicago on a double-digit comeback in the final minutes. Rose finished with 15 points with 10 assists, while forward Joakim Noah added another double-double for Chicago with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Forward Carlos Boozer scored 15 points with 13 rebounds.
But the Pacers weren’t ready to end their playoff run just yet, scoring just enough points in the end to hold Chicago off.
“We’ve lost games like this recently where they have come back,” Pacers interim coach Frank Vogel told reporters after the game. “Today we grew, and we held them off.”
Forward Danny Granger led Indiana with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while former Georgetown University star center Roy Hibbert added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the Pacers. Swingman A.J. Price scored 10 off the bench.
“I think we deserve to be in the series,” Vogel said, during the postgame press conference. “I’m still upset that it’s 1-3. We should be up in the series.”
The series returns to Chicago for game five on April 26.