CHICAGO - Derrick Rose showed no effects of his injured left ankle as the Chicago Bulls pushed their way past the Indiana Pacers with a 116-89 first round playoff series-ending rout on Tuesday.Rose, who sprained his ankle on Saturday, sprung back to action with 25 points and the top-seeded Bulls ended put away the Pacers in a 4-1 best-of-seven series victory.
Meanwhile, the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers took a 3-2 series lead after they stung the New Orleans Hornets with a 106-90 victory, while Orlando kept their series alive with a 101-76 blowout of the Atlanta Hawks.
The Bulls will meet the winner of the Hawks and Magic matchup after winning just their second playoff series since 1998.
"I'm speechless right now," Rose told reporters. "I really can't believe it. It's a great accomplishment. I'm happy for my team mates and my coaching staff."
Chicago had battled through four close games with Indiana but ran away in Game Five.
The Bulls grabbed a 30-19 third-quarter advantage that gave them an 84-65 lead heading into the fourth.
Luol Deng finished with 24 points to support Rose and Chicago held the visitors to 39 percent shooting.
Danny Granger led the way with 20 for Indiana.
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