Eastern Conference

PHILADELPHIA - For the first time in the 11-year history of the new version of the Major Indoor Soccer League, the Blast will be playing for the championship. That was assured last night when three early goals and a standout defense carried Baltimore's entry to an 8-6 victory and the Eastern Conference title, dethroning the defending league-champion Philadelphia KiXX before 3,927 at the First Union Spectrum. The result put perhaps the hottest team in the MISL into a three-game title series against the survivor of Sunday's one-game Western Conference showdown between Milwaukee and Kansas City.

Bulls will be kings Tom Yantz Hartford Courant The allegiance for the Celtics is strong in New England, as it should be. With Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and company, they are always a team to be reckoned with. But they're no longer the best in the East. The Bulls will be No. 1. Coach Tom Thibodeau, the defensive mastermind and former Celtics assistant coach, has infused his team with confidence and an acute defensive mindset. The Bulls have the coach of the year and the MVP in Derrick Rose.

EASTERN CONFERENCE DETROIT vs. ORLANDO CLEVELAND vs. WASHINGTON TORONTO vs. NEW JERSEY MIAMI vs. CHICAGO WESTERN CONFERENCE DALLAS vs. GOLDEN STATE PHOENIX vs. L.A.LAKERS SAN ANTONIO vs. DENVER UTAH vs. HOUSTON

1. Washington Capitals 2009-10 record: 54-15-13, 121 points. Power play: 25.2% (first). Penalty killing: 78.8% (25th). Team goals-against average: 2.72 (16th). Leading scorer: Alexander Ovechkin 50-59 — 109. Outlook: They squandered a 3-1 series lead and lost to the eighth-seeded Canadiens in the playoff's first round, which should spark them. Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom (33 goals, 68 assists) were the only teammates to exceed 100 points last season, and Mike Green led NHL defensemen in scoring with 76 points.

Pacers@Wizards 7 p.m. [Comcast SportsNet] Here's the good news for the Wizards: The Pacers won't be playing for a new coach, unlike in Washington's last loss in Philadelphia. The Wizards have the worst record in the Eastern Conference, but at least can look down at the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Opponent: Charlotte HornetsSite: USAir Arena, LandoverTime: 7:30TV/Radio: HTS/WTEM (570 AM)Outlook: This is the second of the home-and-home series with the Hornets, who won Wednesday's game, 96-92. The defeat left the Bullets 3 1/2 games behind the Hornets, who hold the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference. C Jim McIlvaine bruised his shoulder in yesterday's practice and is listed as questionable.@

Basketball NBA: Suspended Nets F Kenyon Martin one game and fined him $7,500 for actions in game Saturday against Jazz. Named SuperSonics G Gary Payton Player of Week in Western Conference and Pacers C Jermaine O'Neal Player of Week in Eastern Conference. Football BRONCOS: Waived WR Keith Poole. Signed CB Delvin Hughley and G Michael Moore. Hockey NHL: Named Red Wings G Dominik Hasek Player of Week.

As the Eastern and Western Conference quarterfinal series approach conclusion, here is what happens next in the NHL's new playoff structure.The four surviving teams in each conference will be seeded according to regular-season points. The only exceptions are the regular-season division champions. If they advance, they will continue as the top two seeds in each conference.If one or both of each conference's division champs are eliminated, then the team with the next-highest point total moves up.If the seventh-seeded Washington Capitals advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals, they will play the New York Rangers, the Atlantic Division champs and No. 1 Eastern Conference seed, who eliminated the eighth-seeded New York Islanders yesterday.

Conference semifinals(Best of seven) Eastern Conference Ottawa vs. Philadelphia (Ottawa wins series, 4-2) New Jersey vs. Tampa Bay (New Jersey wins series, 4-1) Western Conference Dallas vs. Anaheim (Anaheim wins series, 4-2) Minnesota vs. Vancouver (Minnesota wins series, 4-3) Game 1-Vancouver 4, Minnesota 3, OT Game 2-Minnesota 3, Vancouver 2 Game 3-Vancouver 3, Minnesota 2 Game 4-Vancouver 3, Minnesota 2, OT Game 5-Minnesota 7, Vancouver 2 Game 6-Minnesota 5, Vancouver 1 Last night-Minnesota 4, Vancouver 2 Conference finals (Best of seven; *-if necessary)

Benching goalie Carey Price couldn't spark the Montreal Canadiens. Now Danny Briere and the Philadelphia Flyers are one win away from eliminating the Eastern Conference's top-seeded team. Briere scored the winner on a rebound with 3:38 left to lift host Philadelphia to a 4-2 win last night for a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Flyers, the worst team in the NHL last season, can eliminate the Canadiens in Game 5 on Saturday night in Montreal. "We have to find a way to get it done," Briere said.

NBA 'It's time to go uptown,' Eddie Jordan says of his 76ers Eddie Jordan was introduced as Philadelphia's new coach Monday with a promise that his Princeton offense can turn the 76ers into Eastern Conference contenders. "This team has a good core group, has future stars in the waiting, they've had playoff experience for two years," said Jordan, who was fired by Washington in November and is 230-288 in coaching stints with the Wizards and Sacramento Kings. "Now it's time to go uptown."

ORLANDO, Fla. - - When the last horn finally sounded Saturday night, the Orlando Magic and their fans partied like it was 1995. The sellout crowd inside Amway Arena roared. White, blue and silver confetti fell from the ceiling. The Magic had closed out the Eastern Conference finals in six games and ended Madison Avenue's dreams of a Kobe Bryant-LeBron James championship matchup. Kobe versus Dwight will have to do. With Dwight Howard leading the way with 40 points and 14 rebounds, the Magic defeated the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers, 103-90, to earn their first trip to the NBA Finals in 14 years.

Celtics@Cavaliers 3:30 p.m. [chs. 2, 7] Cleveland has already clinched its No. 1 seeding in the Eastern Conference, so Boston can't affect that, but the Celtics could certainly send a message for a possible Eastern finals matchup by beating the Cavs at home.

1 Double team: ESPN2 has a doubleheader (7 p.m.) of Ohio State-Michigan State/Texas-Arkansas, but Connecticut-West Virginia (7 p.m.) is on the unfortunate ESPNU. 2 Give them credit: We're not quite sure how recent financial machinations will affect the GMAC Bowl (Ball State-Tulsa, 8 p.m., ESPN). We'll have to check with our manager. 3 Eastern showdown: Two division leaders from the NHL's Eastern Conference - the Flyers and Capitals - meet in Washington (7 p.m., Comcast SportsNet)

WALTHAM, Mass. --Paul Pierce knew it. More importantly, he felt it. The Celtics' captain knew that if the team could just string together a few defensive stops against the Detroit Pistons in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals, it could overcome a 70-60 deficit with 10 1/2 minutes remaining. "Even though we got down 10," Pierce said, "I never felt like we were out of the game." The reason Pierce felt so supremely confident in Boston's defensive capabilities probably had something to do with the fact that the Celtics were the best defensive team in the NBA during the regular season and throughout the playoffs.

Benching goalie Carey Price couldn't spark the Montreal Canadiens. Now Danny Briere and the Philadelphia Flyers are one win away from eliminating the Eastern Conference's top-seeded team. Briere scored the winner on a rebound with 3:38 left to lift host Philadelphia to a 4-2 win last night for a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Flyers, the worst team in the NHL last season, can eliminate the Canadiens in Game 5 on Saturday night in Montreal. "We have to find a way to get it done," Briere said.