Late rally lifts Bulls into third seed; they'll face Bucks
Bulls fans were starting to wonder about Washington three minutes into the third quarter.
The Bulls needed a win over Atlanta on Wednesday to clinch the No. 3 seed in the East, but trailed 60-42 when the Hawks opened the second half with an 11-0 run.
Fortunately for the Bulls, they have a strong bench and Atlanta didn't really care whether it won or lost. Aaron Brooks sparked a comeback by scoring 23 points and the Bulls edged the Hawks 91-85 at the United Center.
So the Bulls did clinch the No. 3 seed and will face I-94 rival Milwaukee in the first round of the playoffs. Game 1 will be at 6 p.m. Saturday at the UC. This will be the first Bulls-Bucks playoff series since 1990.
If the Bulls had lost this game, they would have dropped to fourth place and gotten a rematch with Washington.
The Bulls reached 50 wins on the last day of the regular season, but there are concerns. Joakim Noah (hamstring) and Kirk Hinrich (knee) both sat out due to injuries. Taj Gibson (shoulder) left the game in the third quarter and Derrick Rose sat out the second half after feeling soreness in his left knee.
"I probably had it a couple weeks back," Rose said in the locker room. "There was no point in really fighting through it tonight. Playoff game, yeah. But tonight's game … and I believe in my teammates. That's one of the reasons why there was no pressure to stay out there."
The soreness was in the left knee. Rose just missed 20 games because of arthroscopic surgery in his right knee. He wasn't sharp in the first half against the Hawks, producing 2 points, 1 assist and 4 turnovers in 10 minutes of action.
"I felt it at the end of the second quarter," said Rose, who claimed it was his choice to sit out. "There is no point in rushing it. It is nothing serious at all. Just being cautious and resting it."
Gibson, meanwhile, said he got a cortisone shot in his left shoulder at halftime of Wednesday's game. Before the contest, his availability was considered questionable. He tried to play, but went scoreless with 3 rebounds in 20 minutes on the floor.
"I was in a lot of pain. Even in Brooklyn (on Monday) I was in a lot of pain," Gibson said. "I just kept playing, trying to be tough. I've just got to keep being tough. It's that time of year. You've got to push out all the excuses, push out all the negativity and it's time to go.
"I'll be feeling a lot better come Saturday. Another day of rest and practice and I'll be fine."
Jimmy Butler scored 21 points and Pau Gasol picked up his 54th double-double of the season with 18 points and 13 rebounds.
The Hawks (60-22) wrapped up the top seed in the East long ago. They played their regulars, but cleared the bench in the fourth quarter, when the Bulls managed a 21-13 edge to finally take control.
So after a long, trying season that featured 21 different starting lineups and 148 games lost to injury, the Bulls are ready to open the playoffs.
"It's going to be a fun series," Rose said. "(The Bucks are) a young, great team, great coach. They'll really push us to play hard. I'm happy with the games that I played in. Me being on the court has just knocked the rust off a little bit.
"My whole mindset going into this playoffs are no excuses and get the job done. That's my mindset."
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