Get Up Eight Times

Continuing on from the first quarter…

Corzine and Davis get two more layups, followed by Isiah going into triple coverage and then travelling. Did I accidentally key up the 1991 Conference Finals? It’s 39-17. They’re making Dave Corzine look like Tim Duncan.

With John Salley and Dennis Rodman now on the floor, immediately you see blocking, cutting and dunking. Took long enough.

Pistons applying more press, and the Bulls have to run down that shot clock a little more than they’d like. Hasn’t made a dent in that lead though, because the Pistons can’t do anything right. Bill Laimbeer can’t help but “accidentally” blindside MJ after he turns over the ball.

Charles Davis decides to go one-on-one on Rodman. That’s always a dumb idea.

Chicago going fast, Detroit going slow. That’s a fantastic strategy when you’re down by 24. Let’s just take that 20 foot jumper the rest of the night, alright Bill?

You can tell Grant and Pippen are still young. Pippen isn’t in his famous defensive stance and Horace isn’t wearing goggles.

MJ hasn’t done much spectacular, but he rarely did against gritty Detroit. Just missed a nice layup opportunity, but he’s been running the pick and rolls to Corzine, knocking down on the perimeter, and has a quiet 18 points insofar. This is the quiet efficient Michael, the kind of player Chicago needed to take down the Pistons.

My favorite player on these Pistons teams was always Joe Dumars. Really the only Piston who gave you gritty numbers and great heart plays on the court without all the added whiny baggage. He just went through a spectacular sequence of hide-and-seek with Jordan where he shadowed him through the picks and kept his body between him and the basket–quintessential defense. He pretty much played the role Tayshaun did against Kobe in the 2004 Finals, although Kobe was far less self-aware than Michael was.

Shot of Phil Jackson talking up Dougie C. Hard to tell who the head coach is.

Detroit finally waking up with excellent halfcourt defense. Dumars following Jordan like a shadow and starting to make excellent passes. Only cuts the lead to 16 at the half.

The real key to Chicago’s dominance in the first half has been offensive rebounding. Lots of second chance opportunities thanks to Corzine, Cartwright and Grant, and the Pistons settled for the outside shot. Now 50-34 at halftime.