THE PHILADELPHIA 76ERS fired Chicago a warning shot with a stirring second-half comeback to tie their Eastern Conference play-off series.
Shooting at nearly 60%, the Sixers reversed an eight-point deficit at half-time to win 109-92 last night and level the quarter-final series at 1-1.
It equalled the top-seeded Bulls’ worst loss of the season and came without injured star point guard Derrick Rose, who will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury. Jrue Holiday led the Sixers with 26 points, with Game 3 of the series to be played in Philadelphia on Friday.
Elsewhere, the Los Angeles Lakers took control of their series against the Denver Nuggets with a 104-100 win coming on the back of Kobe Bryant’s 38 points. The Lakers held off a late surge from the Nuggets and will take a 2-0 lead on the road after winning both games at the Staples Center.
Andrew Bynum backed up his triple-double in Game 1 with 27 points and nine rebounds for the home side.
The Boston Celtics tied their series with the Atlanta Hawks at 1-1 after staging a terrific fight back without stars Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen.
The Hawks appeared to be cruising to a 2-0 series lead while up by 11 points late in the third quarter, but the Paul Pierce-inspired Celtics turned it around to clinch an 87-80 win. Pierce scored the first seven points of the match and finished with 36 as well as 14 rebounds.
Joe Johnson had 22 points for the Hawks, who failed to capitalise on home-court advantage over the first two games.
