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The Chicago Bulls begin another playoff run without Derrick Rose on Sunday night when they welcome the Washington Wizards to the United Center. Catch the game as the first half of a doubleheader on TSN2 starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. Chicago is in the postseason for a sixth straight year and for the second time without Rose because of lingering knee issues. The Bulls got by without Rose in the first round last season, using a full seven-game series to dispose of the Brooklyn Nets, but the eventual two-time NBA champion Miami Heat bounced the Bulls in five games in the East semifinals. Now the Bulls are taking on a young and inexperienced Wizards team that won two of three meetings against them in the regular season. The Wizards have to play the first two games in the Windy City, where they are just 5-15 in the last 20 games. "The Wizards are a tough team, tough, tough team," said Chicago sixth man Taj Gibson. "They gave us so many problems in the regular season; great shooters. They got some great bigs in Nene and (Marcin) Gortat. John Wall is playing some phenomenal basketball. Bradley Beal is playing great basketball, too. Their bench is loaded up. Its going to be tough." When Rose went down early this season, the Bulls became Joakim Noahs team, although defense is still their calling card. Chicago finished tops in the NBA in opponents scoring (93.7 ppg) and second in opponents shooting percentage (43.2). The Bulls have ranked no lower than third in opponents scoring in head coach Tom Thibodeaus four seasons at the helm. Noah is headed toward a possible Defensive Player of the Year award, but his offensive game is what carried the Bulls. He averaged 12.6 points and led the Bulls with 11.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks. Noah played an integral part for Chicagos top defense, but also averaged a career-high 5.4 assists. Chicago won an Eastern Conference-best 36 games since Jan. 1 and won seven in a row before closing out the season with two losses in three tries. Washington is wet behind the ears when it comes to recent postseason appearances. It has returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2007-08, when it lost in six games to a young LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Wizards are facing the Bulls for the third time in the postseason, as they were swept 3-0 back in the first round of the 1997 playoffs and won a best-of- seven series 4-2 in 2005. "I feel like we like our chances against anybody if we play the right way," said Wall, who averaged 20.7 points, 8.0 assists and 4.0 rebounds in three games versus the Bulls this season. "We just have to go out there and play the way we know how to play, and play the defense were capable of playing. Were here and were focused and will try to leave a statement and see where it takes us." The Wizards received a big boost with the return of veteran big man, Nene. He missed a ton of time in the middle of the season, but came back for four games at the end. He averaged 14.3 points and should come in handy against the bruising frontline of Chicago. Washington took advantage of a weaker Eastern Conference to reach the playoffs and went 19-11 after the break. The Wizards closed the regular season with four straight wins and eight in the last 11 games. Portland Trail Blazers at Houston Rockets Two of the leagues best offensive units take center stage Sunday night when the Houston Rockets host the Portland Trail Blazers at the Toyota Center. Catch the game as the tail end of a doubleheader on TSN2 starting at 9:30pm et/6:30pm pt. The Rockets are the NBAs second-ranked offense at 107.7 ppg, followed by the Trail Blazers, who are fourth with 106.9 ppg. Houston secured the home-court advantage with a win on Monday against the NBAs best, the San Antonio Spurs. "We fought hard for it. It took a little longer than I hoped but we knew we had to get 54 wins and we got there with one to spare," said Rockets coach Kevin McHale. The matchup between the two squads has been decidedly in Houstons favor over the last few seasons. The Rockets have won nine of the last 12 meetings, including three of four this season. "Its the West. We dont care who were going to play, its going to be tough anyway," said Portland forward Nicolas Batum. "Houston is a good team, a great team. Theyve got a good group of players. We match up pretty well with them. Weve had good games, tough games." The Rockets were believed to be a serious contender for an NBA title when they signed prized free agent Dwight Howard in the offseason. Along with All-Star guard James Harden, they form a formidable one-two punch. Portland, on the other hand, was a bit of a surprise this season. The Blazers hadnt made the playoffs the last two seasons, but the core group stayed healthy and the bench improved significantly. These two teams met in the first round back in 2009, but oh how different they both are just five years later. Houston has no players on the roster from that team, which was led by Yao Ming, while only LaMarcus Aldridge and Batum remain for the Blazers. "It wont be easy. It is going to be fun," said Batum. "Excited finally for playoffs to start because we wait too much for that, now almost three years, so ready to start." The Rockets got healthy at the right time. Howard missed significant time late in the season with an ankle injury and starting point guard Patrick Beverley was shelved with a knee problem. Both came back before the end of the season and should be all-clear for the playoffs. Portland is healthy. This matchup is so even, down to the matching 54-28 records. Each team had two All-Stars in Howard and Harden for Houston and Aldridge and Damian Lillard for Portland. As expected due to both teams high offensive output, defense has suffered. The Blazers ranked 22nd in opponents scoring, while the Rockets were one rung below. "Its going to be a great series," said Harden. "There are so many guys that can score for them and for us. Its going to be a matter of the small things: who can limit their turnovers and rebound the basketball." Authentic Bryant Reeves Jersey . The stress, the waiting, the whispers about whether he doped during his stellar cycling career, all of it ended when - after nearly two years - federal prosecutors closed an investigation of him last week without bringing any charges. Authentic Lorenzen Wright Jersey . Donald Young lost in straight sets to Israels Dudi Sela 6-3, 6-0. Querrey, ranked No. 61, is the second-highest ranked American, ahead of Johnson (64). http://www.cheapgrizzliesjerseysauthentic.com/ . The outdoor event will be played on Dec. 31 between alumni of the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park, the home of the Philadelphia Phillies. 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The Canadiens have won three straight and six of their past seven games, pushing them two points ahead of Tampa Bay for second place in the Atlantic Division. However, the Lightning, who host the New York Islanders on Thursday, do hold two games in hand over the Habs. Detroit, meanwhile, enters Thursday as one of four teams tied for the last two playoff berths in the Eastern Conference. With 80 points, the Red Wings are seven in back of Tampa Bay for last of the Atlantic Divisions three automatic playoff berths, meaning theyll likely need to claim one of the Easts two wild cards to qualify for a 23rd straight postseason. Columbus, Detroit, Toronto and Washington each have 80 points, but the Red Wings are the only team of that group in action on Thursday. The Blue Jackets and Red Wings have 10 games remaining in their regular-season schedules, while the Capitals and Maple Leafs have nine and eight games left, respectively. Montreal picked up its third straight win in Tuesdays home meeting against the lowly Buffalo Sabres. Max Pacioretty broke a scoreless deadlock with 9:07 to play and Carey Price posted a 24-save shutout to lift the Canadiens to the 2-0 win over the basement-dwelling Sabres. Danny Briere added an insurance marker with Montreal on the power play at 16:54 of the third, while Price stood tall down the stretch to help kill off a late Canadiens penalty and secure his fifth shutout of the season and 24th of his career. "The goal is to make the playoffs," Briere remarked. "Were in control of our destiny and trying to rack up as many points as we can." The Canadiens won despite playing without forwards Travis Moen and Dale Weise, who were injured on the same shift in Monddays 2-1 shootout win in Boston.dddddddddddd Detroit, which will try to halt a two-game slide on Thursday, hasnt missed the playoffs since 1990. The Red Wings had a three-game winning streak snapped with Sundays overtime loss against visiting Minnesota and then fell 4-2 in an important road clash with Columbus on Tuesday. Cam Atkinson scored the winning goal for the Blue Jackets in the third period of Tuesdays game, but the decisive tally did not come without controversy. Columbus grabbed a 3-2 lead at 6:58 of the third period. The team skated the other way on a 2-on-1 and Matt Calvert let fly with a shot from the right wing that Red Wings goaltender Jimmy Howard stopped before Atkinson knocked in the rebound. However, the net was dislodged by Atkinson before the puck crossed the line, but Brendan Smith had pushed Atkinson into the net and the refs ruled it a good goal. "They knocked the net off and they still score," a frustrated Howard said. "I guess its something to remember in the back of our minds, you knock the net off it, just throw (the puck) in there. It should count." Ryan Johansen sealed the win for Columbus with an empty-net goal in the closing seconds. Gustav Nyquist had both goals for the Red Wings, while Howard made 24 stops on 27 shots. Beginning with Thursdays test, Detroit is playing four of its next five games on home ice. The Red Wings are only 15-11-10 as the host this season, but the club had won four straight in the Motor City before losing Sundays game against the Wild. Detroit is 2-0 against the Habs so far in 2013-14 and the clubs will meet once more in the regular season when Montreal hosts the Red Wings on April 5. The Red Wings have won four of five and six of eight overall in the series and have come out on top in the last two encounters at Joe Louis Arena. Montreal is opening a four-game road trip on Thursday and boasts a solid 20-14-2 record as the visiting club this season. 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