wan, BC and, yes, Winnipeg, all could make the playoffs or

ATLANTA -- Kirk Hinrich made all the right moves for the Chicago Bulls in the final minute of the game. Not so much for Jeff Teague and the Atlanta Hawks. Hinrich buried six big free throws down the stretch and Teague had a couple of costly turnovers as the Bulls held on for a 107-103 victory at Atlanta on Tuesday night. Mike Dunleavy scored 22 points for the Bulls, who have won six of seven. Joakim Noah had 20 points and 12 rebounds, and Carlos Boozer finished with 17 points and 11 boards. Dunleavy also had eight rebounds and four assists. He was covered in ice bags as he sat slumped at his locker after playing all but nine seconds in the game. "I appreciate (coach Tom Thibodeau) giving me that nine-second breather at the end of the half," Dunleavy said with a laugh. "That made a big difference." The Bulls won after trailing by 14 points in the first quarter. "They put us in a hole; we fought out of it," Dunleavy said. "We just had to battle the whole game." Since Jan. 1, Chicago is 12-1 when holding its opponent under 90 points. No other team in the league has kept as many opponents under 90 in that span. Teague had 26 points for the short-handed Hawks, who have lost nine of 10. Shelvin Mack scored 17. The Bulls led most of the second half but never pushed the advantage to double figures. "I think they really wanted that game today," Noah said of the Hawks. "We really wanted that game, too. It wasnt pretty at times. Im just happy we were able to come out with the win." DeMarre Carrolls fast-break basket gave Atlanta a 100-99 lead, but Dunleavy answered with a layup. With 1:03 remaining, Carroll sank a 3-pointer to give Atlanta a 103-101 lead. With 43.2 seconds remaining, officials reviewed and confirmed a questionable foul called on Carroll on Hinrichs 3-point attempt. Hinrich made the three free throws to put Chicago in front again. Noahs steal from Teague got the ball back for the Bulls with 20 seconds remaining. Atlantas Kyle Korver stole the inbounds pass, giving the Hawks a chance to take the lead, but Teague stepped out of bounds behind the basket. Hinrich then made two free throws. Noah stripped Mike Scott of the ball on Atlantas next possession, setting up another foul shot by Hinrich. Coach Mike Budenholzer and the Hawks argued that Noah fouled Scott. "Do I think he was fouled?" Budenholzer asked after the game. "I just looked at it, and yes I do." Scott said Noah hit his arm but added "Cant do nothing about it now." Budenholzer also protested Carrolls foul on Hinrich but said after watching the replay he agreed with that call. Hawks All-Star forward Paul Millsap missed his second straight game with a right knee contusion and also will be held out on Thursday at Boston. The Hawks also were without centres Pero Antic (stress fracture, right ankle) and Gustavo Ayon (right shoulder), who had filled in following Al Horfords season-ending torn pectoral muscle. Budenholzer said morale isnt a problem. "I thought our group competed at a very high level for 48 minutes tonight," Budenholzer said. "Thats what were looking for, and thats what is most important to us." Korver hit 3-pointers on Atlantas first two possessions, extending his NBA record to 125 straight games with a 3. Korver added a third trey a couple minutes later, and his strong start seemed to spark the Hawks, who jumped to a 26-12 lead. Chicago closed the deficit with a 13-2 run in the final minutes of the opening period and start of the second quarter. The Bulls led 54-51 at halftime. Mack sank a short jumper with about 2 seconds remaining in the third period. D.J. Augustin, who had 10 points, then banked in a half-court shot for Chicago, lifting the Bulls to an 80-75 lead heading to the final period. NOTES: Glenn Frey of the Eagles, who played at Philips Arena on Monday night, had a second-row seat near midcourt. ... NBA Hall of Famer Julius Erving had a front-row seat and tipped his cap when called out by the P.A. announcer and cheered by fans. ... Bulls guard Jimmy Butler missed his second straight game with bruised ribs. ... Korver had 16 points and Carroll had 13. Cheap Cleveland Cavaliers Jerseys . The Brazil defender was substituted 13 minutes into Wednesdays 2-1 Copa del Rey win at Athletic Bilbao because of a right hamstring problem. Scans revealed a second grade tear which could keep him out for a reported four to six weeks. Cheap Cavaliers Jerseys Authentic . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Defensive Depth TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting the Toronto Maple Leafs have considerable interest in unrestricted free-agent defenceman Dan Boyle. http://www.cheapcavaliersjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=cheap-jordan-clarkson-jersey . The Incheon-based tea, of the Korea Baseball Organization said the deal for the 35-year-old Scott included a $50,000 signing bonus. Scott reached the major leagues with Houston in 2005 and hit 23 homers or more for Baltimore each year from 2008-10. Terrell Brandon Jersey . Im very excited about the playoffs, particularly in the Western Conference with amazing match-ups, as well as the wonderful local story in the Toronto Raptors. It should be a blast. Here are my predictions, but based upon my lousy prognostications during the NCAA Tournament, you might be better off going the other way on some of mine - particularly with the Raptors, who I hope and pray are able to win an incredibly difficult match-up. LeBron James Jersey . - Pierre-Maxime Poudrier scored twice and added an assist, and Antoine Bibeau made 43 saves as the Val-dOr Foreur downed the Baie-Comeau Drakkar 6-3 on Sunday to force Game 7 in their Quebec Major Junior Hockey League final series.(SportsNetwork.com) - Its been 106 years since the Chicago Cubs have won a World Series. They may have taken a step toward ending that drought late Tuesday night, as the Cubs reportedly agreed to a 6-year, $155 million deal with left-hander Jon Lester, reuniting him with former general manager Theo Epstein. After missing out on Masahiro Tankaka last winter, there was no way the Cubs were going to miss out on another ace. Especially Lester. They were the one team in this whole process that never wavered. There were times we heard the Boston Red Sox were out, we had heard the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers were no longer options. Whether it was true or not, we never heard that about the Cubs. The only thing we ever heard on them was that they were the frontrunners to get him. And apparently they were. It just made so much sense. With all due respect to Max Scherzer, Lester was the best pitcher on the market. Hes a bulldog and he wins in October. If you are a team that is on the cusp of getting ready to compete, there is no better pitcher to have at the top of your rotation than Lester. The Cubs are coming. Youd be out of your mind to say the club is going to win a World Series, because, well, you know, after all they are the Cubs, but they are a heck of a lot closer now than they were yesterday. Lester was in the midst of another magnificent season for the Red Sox in 2014, but with the team out of contention and his pending free agent status, Boston sent him to the Oakland Athletics at the non-waiver trade deadline for slugger Yoenis Cespedes. Oakland may have struggled after the trade, but Lester certainly wasnt to blame, as he went 6-4 with a 2.35 ERA and was a key reason why the Athletics reached the American League Wild Card Game. Overall, Lester was 16-11 with a 2.46 ERA last season. Lesters real value, though, comes in the postseason, where he has established himself as one of the best big game pitchers in baseball. So, as the Cubs eye their first World Series title since 1908, they now have an ace who has won all three of his starts in the Fall Classic and has only surrendered one run in 21 innings of those contests. As big a winner as the Cubs are in all this, there may not be a team happier than the Philadelphia Phillies. Withh Lester off the board, Boston desperately needs a front of the line starter.dddddddddddd Scherzer doesnt make a whole lot of sense for them. If they werent going to go much higher money wise to bring Lester back, I cant imagine them getting into bed with Scherzer, who reportedly wants north of $200 million. Desperate times call for desperate measures, though. like the New York Yankees, you can never really count the BoSox out on anything, but the guy they are going to target is Phillies lefty Cole Hamels. The Red Sox were linked to Hamels right at the start of the offseason and they probably could have had him for a little more than a song and a dance. But everything has now changed. The Phillies know the Red Sox are desperate and now Boston general manager Ben Cherington is going to have to give up a player, or two, that he did not want to. Xander Bogaerts, Blake Swihart, Mookie Betts. They are all in play now. And dont forget Yoenis Cespedes either. Two of those guys may have to go in a deal to get it done. And Philadelphia should hold out for as much as it can. Thats what makes the Oakland Athletics deal of Jeff Samardzija even more puzzling. We all knew they were going to deal him, but how about they wait until Lester signs and maybe build up some sort of bidding war with the teams that missed out on him. I just dont know what the As are doing. They got nowhere near enough for Josh Donaldson, they traded an All-Star first baseman in Brandon Moss for a 25- year-old infielder who has never played above Double-A and that was all after they signed Billy Butler to a $30 million deal. Oh and the shortstop they got from the White Sox in the Samardzija deal is far less of a prospect than the one they surrendered in the original Samardzija trade. But Billy Beane is a genius, so we just have to nod our heads and accept what hes doing, right? Think about what you thought of the As the day after the Lester trade. Now think about where they are today. Lets put it this way, they are lucky the Houston Astros are in the AL West. But, if you have been paying attention, they may not be the doormat they have been in recent years. Lester, though, was the first domino to fall at these Winter Meetings. Maybe now well start to see some movement. ' ' '