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Look out below!
Thuffrin Thuccotash!
Two teams began this series looking for a clean win over lower-seeded teams that had struggled to close out the regular season. But that's not how it turned out for the favored New Jersey Nets and Denver Nuggets.
The Chicago Bulls and Golden State Warriors did themselves no favors at the end of the season, but once the playoffs started they pulled it all together. Both the Bulls and Warriors jumped out to a 3-1 series lead before their opponent knew what hit them.
Both the Bulls and Warriors lost game 5 (on the road) to keep the series alive and hit their home floor with a chance to close out the series.
Now they try to close out upset series wins and move on to the second round without any more injury.
Bulls host Nets, 8PM Eastern, TNT
The Bulls might be without Kirk Hinrich tonight (left calf) and are hoping Joakim Noah (plantar fasciitis) can play effective minutes.
The Nets' Joe Johnson also has plantar fasciitis, but Brooklyn's biggest problem is finding a way to win in Chicago. The Nets are 0-4 there this season (two regular season, two playoff games).
Warriors host Nuggets, 10:30PM Eastern, TNT
There's been a lot of verbal jabbing and physical play recently, but now the Warriors are back on their home court and the Nuggets are terrible on the road.
The big key in this game is keeping cool. The team that keeps coolest has a better chance to win. If the Warriors play their game, it will be tough for the Nuggets to win. But if the Nuggets can bully the Warriors a little bit while keeping their own heads about them, then anything can happen.