Morning Box Score: Bulls Take Series From Nets, Sox And Cubs Both Lose

By Amy Cavanaugh in News on May 5, 2013 2:00PM

Chicago Bulls 99, Brooklyn Nets 93

The Chicago Bulls defeated the Brooklyn Nets last night to take the series and earn themselves a playoff rematch against the Miami Heat. The Bulls were short Kirk Hinrich, who missed his third straight game with a bruised calf, and Luol Deng, who was tweeting from the ER on Friday after experiencing complications from a spinal tap. Luckily, they didn't need them—Joakim Noah and Marco Belinelli each contributed 24 points, and Carlos Boozer had 17. The Bulls had a 17-point lead going into the half, which shrunk to five points in the second half. Noah and Belinelli got a key offensive rebound and a three-pointer that sealed the game for the Bulls. The first game of the Bulls-Heat series will be in Miami on Monday.

Cincinnati Reds 6, Chicago Cubs 4

Thanks to a solid outing from Jeff Samardzija, the Cubs were up 4-2 going into the 8th, when Carlos Marmol entered the game and proceeded to walk two batters and hit Brandon Phillips to load the bases. He was pulled in favor of Hector Rondon, who gave up a single, a sac fly, a walk, and another sac fly to lose the game for the Cubs. Despite the pitching meltdown, the Cubs' offense wasn't exactly getting it done either—they had a grand total of three hits, two of which were by Alfonso Soriano.

Kansas City Royals 2, Chicago White Sox 0

Despite a strong start by Dylan Axelrod, the Sox pitcher was no match for Kansas City pitcher Jeremy Guthrie. Axelrod gave up two runs in the first inning, and eight hits overall, while pitching 7 2/3 innings. Guthrie gave up just four hits, two of which went to Paul Konerko, and the Sox couldn't manage to put anything together. Their season record is now 12-16.