Ben Wallace has key free throw, block in Bulls' 94-93 win over Kings
Sacramento's Reggie Theus may be a rookie NBA coach, but he had no trouble recognizing that the Bulls have limited last-shot options beyond Ben Gordon.
So when the Bulls inbounded the ball with six seconds left in a tie game Saturday, the Kings immediately double-teamed Gordon.
The Bulls' alternative plan wasn't a great one, judging by the percentages, but it worked. Center Ben Wallace was fouled at the basket after taking a pass from Kirk Hinrich and swished the first of 2 free throws with 3.2 seconds on the clock to send the Bulls to an ugly 94-93 victory at the United Center.
"Somebody's got to be the hero. Why not me?" Wallace joked in the locker room.
Wallace finished off the win by blocking an 18-foot jumper by Sacramento center Brad Miller just before the final buzzer. Miller left the court yelling at the referees and argued that Chris Duhon fouled him from behind while jumping for the loose ball, but it's unlikely Miller could have gotten off another shot in time.
Wallace started the night shooting a career-high 50.9 percent from the foul line this season. But the game-winner was his only make out of 6 attempts on Friday.
"I was having a little back spasm and couldn't (bend) down as low as I wanted to get down on the free-throw line tonight," he said. "When it counted, I was able to get under it and make one for the team."
The Bulls (13-19) played without second-leading scorer Luol Deng due to left Achilles tendinitis. But that was nothing compared to the missing Kings.
Dressed in street clothes on the Sacramento bench were top scorers Kevin Martin (groin strain) and Ron Artest (elbow surgery), along with guard Mike Bibby, who has yet to play this season with a torn ligament in his thumb.
The Kings (12-20) were also coming off a tough loss Friday in Cleveland, but refused to make things easy on the Bulls.
The home team led 85-80 midway through the fourth quarter, then fell behind 91-88 with 2:07 remaining. The Bulls responded with 5 straight points by Gordon (20 points), whose 3-pointer with 1:17 left made it 93-91.
The Kings appeared to get a break on the next trip when Miller was fouled after he had already been stripped of the ball by Andres Nocioni. Nevertheless, Miller's 2 free throws tied the score with 1:03 remaining.
Gordon missed 2 shots on the Bulls' next possession, then John Salmons traveled for Sacramento to set up Wallace's heroics.
The best part of this win for the Bulls was the return of three players who had either been in a slump or stuck to the bench.
Nocioni led the Bulls with 26 points and ended his recent shooting woes with a vengeance, knocking down three straight 3-pointers and scoring 13 points in the opening five minutes of the contest. In the previous nine games, Nocioni averaged 8.7 points and shot 30.5 percent from the field.
"Sometimes I believe my problem right now is because I miss a lot of shots, I hesitate a lot," Nocioni said. "So today, I came in here with my mind ready to take my open shots with confidence. Don't think too much."
The Bulls got some much-needed support from two players who'd disappeared in recent days, Tyrus Thomas (14 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks) and Thabo Sefolosha (7 points).
On the other hand, Duhon is shooting 14.3 percent from the field (5-for-35) since joining the starting lineup and he's missed 23 of his last 24 field-goal attempts.