Bulls rally, but end up with 8th straight loss
The Bulls were full of surprises Tuesday in Memphis, even while supplying the same tired result.
The game tipped off without four visiting starters. The Bulls were missing Derrick Rose (left wrist sprain), Luol Deng (right calf strain), Kirk Hinrich (suspension) and Joakim Noah (plantar fasciitis, left foot).
The Bulls fell behind by 25 points with 2:31 left in the third quarter, which wasn't surprising. But then they rallied within 94-90 with plenty of time left but couldn't finish things off and lost again 104-97 at the FedEx Forum.
The Bulls (31-35) ran their losing streak to eight and gave up 100 points for the 11th straight contest, something they haven't done since 1986. It doesn't get any easier, with a game Wednesday in Dallas.
"There's a lot of basketball left, but we can't keep saying that," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "We have to find a way to get our guys healthy and then win some basketball games. I appreciate how the guys battled, but it wasn't good enough tonight."
Memphis might have taken the Bulls lightly and fell behind 22-11 early. The Bulls received strong performances from three of the players acquired in Feb. 18 trades.
• Acie Law started at point guard and scored 18 points.
• Flip Murray took on the role of undersized small forward and finished with a team-high 23 points, to go with 5 steals.
• Power forward Hakim Warrick, who began his NBA career with Memphis, scored 22 points off the bench.
After falling behind 81-56, the Bulls started to chip away at the lead, but still trailed 93-80 with five minutes remaining. That's when they found some reserve energy for a sudden 10-1 run.
Jannero Pargo assisted on a 3-pointer by Brad Miller and a dunk by Warrick, then finished a driving lay in and 3-point play to make it 94-90 with 3:39 remaining. The visitors had two chances to get even closer. First, Miller missed a 3-point attempt, then Pargo lost the ball on a drive through the lane.
Memphis finally stopped the momentum on a hook shot by Zach Randolph. Pargo had the ball poked away during another drive to the basket and Randolph finished a fast-break lay in, which sent the lead to 98-90 with 1:51 left.
After the advantage grew to 10, the Bulls closed within 100-95 and got the ball back with just under a minute remaining. Pargo tried to hit an open Warrick under the basket, but the ball was stolen, ending the Bulls' last good chance with their 19th turnover of the game.
"We didn't value possession of the basketball well enough and just turned it over too much," Del Negro said. "It's frustrating, because you don't even get a shot at the basket."
Following the game, Del Negro said he would have liked to have Law in the game at the end, but the third-year guard, who's barely played at all since joining the Bulls, was cramping up.
<p class="factboxheadblack">Mike McGraw's game tracker</p>
<p class="News">Grizzlies 104, Bulls 97</p>
<p class="News"><b>Just too late:</b> After trailing by 25 late in the third quarter, the Bulls closed within 4 late in the game and had two chances to get even closer. But 3 costly turnovers by Jannero Pargo crushed the comeback and sealed their eighth straight loss.</p>
<p class="News"><b>Fresh starters:</b> Among the Bulls starters were Flip Murray, who scored a game-high 25 points, and rarely-used Acie Law, who finished with 18 points.</p>
<p class="News"><b>Thabeet is back:</b> A few weeks after being sent to the D-League, Memphis' 7-foot-2 rookie Hasheem Thabeet started against the Bulls because Marc Gasol was out with an injury. Thabeet produced 10 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks.</p>
<p class="factboxheadblack">Bulls game day</p>
<p class="News">Bulls vs. Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday</p>
<p class="News"><b>TV:</b> Comcast SportsNet</p>
<p class="News"><b>Radio:</b> WMVP 1000-AM</p>
<p class="News"><b>Update: </b>The Mavericks haven't played since Saturday, when their 13-game winning streak was snapped by a 128-94 home loss to the Knicks. Yes, they lost to the Knicks by 32 points. So Dallas (45-22) should be rested and focused, while the short-handed Bulls are playing the second leg of back-to-back games. When the Mavs beat the Bulls 122-116 at the United Center on March 6, Dirk Nowitzki scored 27 points and rookie guard Rodrigue Beaubois notched a career-high 24. Guard Jason Terry is expected to return after missing five games with a orbital bone fracture.</p>
<p class="News"><b>Next:</b> Cleveland Cavaliers at the United Center, 7 p.m. Friday</p>