Bulls take first place from Celtics in the East

With a 98-79 victory over the Washington Wizards tonight, Tom Thibodeau's Chicago Bulls have overtaken Boston for sole possession of first place in the East. Coincidentally, they accomplished the feat while wearing Celtic green.

The Celtics have stumbled lately, losing their last three of four games. The losses coming to opponents with a combined 82-118 record.

Meanwhile, Chicago is hitting their stride just at the right time. Tonight's win was the Bulls' seventh in a row. MVP-candidate Derrick Rose scored 23 points for Chicago at home against the Wizards.

The Bulls move a half-game ahead of the Celtics, who have had a consistent hold on the number one seed nearly all season.

Boston had briefly slipped a half game behind the Miami Heat close to a month ago, but reclaimed the spot with a 85-82 win over the Heat just days later on February 13th. However, the Celtics won't get their shot at the Bulls until April 7th at Chicago.

Boston also has a tough stretch ahead of them, with three back to backs on the road in the next two weeks and four total remaining this season. That could easily translate to four losses for the C's. The Celtics are just 2-8 this season on the second night of a back to back on the road. With a rough stretch ahead of them, and now trailing Chicago for the number one seed, reclaiming it is going to be a lot more difficult for Boston this time around.