Noah fired up despite OT loss in Boston
BOSTON -- Talk about déjà vu.
Overtime in Boston, tough loss for the Bulls and a dejected Joakim Noah lingering in the visiting locker room as the last player to get changed.
Unlike that epic 2009 playoff series, however, the Bulls' season didn't end with Friday's 110-105 overtime loss to the Celtics in coach Tom Thibodeau's return to the Garden.
In this case, the season is just five games old and Noah looked forward to the finish.
“We're only going to get better,” Noah said. “When we do, it's going to get real ugly. For everybody who's talking crazy; all the trash people are talking right now, it's going to come back and haunt them. When it counts, we'll be ready.”
Noah didn't specify if the Celtics were talking crazy trash during Friday's game, but anytime Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce are on the floor, that possibility exists.
Noah had a costly turnover late in the overtime, but produced the best offensive night of his career. The Bulls' center scored a career-high 26 points and drained a couple of clutch 20-foot jumpers down the stretch.
For the second straight night, the Bulls dug themselves a deep hole in the second quarter, this time getting outscored by the Celtics 22-3 in the opening eight minutes. But after falling behind by 16, the Bulls chipped away and tied the score by the end of the fourth.
“For how bad we played, we still lost this game by a couple possessions, so that should give us something to be happy about,” Bulls guard Derrick Rose said. “When we gel, I think we could definitely be a player in this league.”
Facing constant double-teams, Rose produced 18 points and 9 assists. The Bulls finally went ahead on a C.J. Watson 3-pointer that made it 82-81 with 5:44 left. A few minutes later, Boston was back up by 6.
That's when Rose became a creator. He found Luol Deng for a pair of 3-pointers and Noah drained probably the longest shot of his pro career, a couple steps short of the 3-point line. Deng's second 3-pointer tied the score at 96-96 with 1:18 remaining.
After both teams missed shots, the Celtics threw the ball into the backcourt. Bulls guard Keith Bogans chased it down and called a sliding timeout with 23.3 seconds on the clock. Rose ran the time down and waved off a Noah screen, but lost control of the ball when he started a drive against Rajon Rondo.
“I was driving left and I guess I fumbled the ball,” Rose said. “I don't know what it was. The refs thought it was clean, so there's nothing I can say about it. I guess that made it our fault.”
The Bulls held a brief 1-point lead in overtime on a Kyle Korver 3-pointer. Ray Allen (25 points) knocked down a 3 for Boston on the next trip and a rare Allen dunk put the Celtics up 108-103 with 1:19 left.
Deng's tip cut the lead to 3 and Pierce missed with about 20 seconds on the clock. Noah grabbed the rebound and tried to take it upcourt himself, but Garnett tipped the ball away from behind for the Bulls' 20th turnover of the night.
“Big mistake,” Noah said. “I thought we had numbers in transition. I should have slowed it down.”
Pierce and Garnett combined to hit just 11 of 31 shots, while Rondo (10 points, 11 assists) slowed down his record-setting assist pace. Boston got timely contributions, though, from Glen Davis (15 points), Marquis Daniels (13) and Jermaine O'Neal (12).
Mike McGraw's game tracker
<P>Celtics 110, Bulls 105 (OT)</P>
<P><B>No lucky clover: </B>After rallying from a 16-point deficit, the Bulls had a chance to win at the end of regulation, but Derrick Rose lost control of the ball on a drive against Rajon Rondo. Boston hit more big shots in overtime.</P>
<P><B>Clutch shooters: </B>While the Celtics double-teamed Rose on every possession, center Joakim Noah scored a career-high 26 points and Luol Deng drained a couple of important 3-pointers late in the fourth quarter.</P>
<P><B>Fun to watch:</B> Boston coach Doc Rivers on the recent rivalry: “Whenever Chicago and Boston get together, something crazy happens. They've just been good games.”</P>