Celtics Outlast Bulls in Game 7

In what TNT NBA announcer Kevin Harlan called "the most memorable series in Playoffs history", the Boston Celtics were able to close out the Chicago Bulls in Boston Saturday night. The 109-99 victory came in large part from Ray Allen's 23 points and Paul Pierce's 20 points, with their third amigo, Kevin Garnett, cheering them on from the bench in a 3 piece suit. Ben Gordon continued shooting the lights out with 33 points, while rookie sensation Derrick Rose added 18 points for the Bulls.

This game was won for the Celtics largely due to their bench scoring. In the 1st 6 games of the series, the Celtics' bench averaged 12.7 points, but in game 7 they added 30 points when it mattered most. The Bulls bench outscored Boston in 5 of the first 6 games. Add in a ton of game deciding and overtime-forcing amazing shots, and this series was easily a classic. The Chicago Bulls once again showed they are brewing a lot of talent for a future championship contender, should they add more veteran players. Derrick Rose displayed a performance as a rookie similar to a young Dwyane Wade years ago when he first got his taste of the playoffs. If the Bulls hold onto Rose along with Hinrich, Gordon and Noah, and add those much needed vets, they'll have a good shot at advancing deeper in the next year.

See Celtics eliminate Bulls in Game 7 at NESN

Next up for the Celtics will be Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic. Will the Celtics have the inside presence without Kevin Garnett to make it past Orlando? Or will it even matter? If Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo can have some hot shooting nights and rack up the points, the outside game may be enough to propel the Celtics forward. While the C's looked smug with victory Saturday night ,judging by this series, the Celtics may be out of gas by the time they get into Cleveland.