Bulls get sloppy in loss
Before Tuesday night's Bulls-Sixers rematch, Philadelphia guard Andre Miller talked about being on the losing end of two memorable Derrick Rose highlights.
The Bulls rookie blocked Miller's fastbreak layup attempt from behind, then made the veteran guard fall down on a crossover move during the Bulls' 11-point win in Philadelphia on Sunday.
"I'm not going to take it personally," said Miller, who is 12 years older than Rose. "He just made a good move."
Miller came back the only way he could, by using his veteran savvy to get Rose in foul trouble and also scoring 28 points to lead the 76ers to a 103-95 victory at the United Center.
Rose sat out the final 7:44 of the first half with 2 fouls, then picked up his fifth foul with 5:42 left in the fourth quarter after Miller pump-faked him in the air. Rose never fouled out and produced 24 points but also committed 6 turnovers.
"(The foul trouble) got to me a little bit, being subbed in and out of the game," Rose said. "I was jumping in the air, he was jumping into me, getting fouls. Any team in the NBA wants to win if they just lost. They came here and paid us back."
The Bulls (8-10) were frustrated by the Sixers' defense throughout and coughed up 20 turnovers in the first three quarters alone. The home team fell behind by 16 early and trailed for the entire fourth quarter before finally tying the score with 17.6 seconds remaining on a Tyrus Thomas follow slam.
But more time on the clock just brought the Bulls more problems. They missed 11 of 12 shots during overtime, while Miller, who hit just 9 of 26 attempts on the night, scored 9 of Philadelphia's 13 points in the extra session.
"He's going to be a good player for a long time," Miller said of Rose. "But I'm sticking with it."
The Bulls missed their first 7 shots of overtime but stayed within 94-92 when Thomas (14 points, 13 rebounds) hit a pair of free throws with 2:51 left. On the other end, though, Miller converted a 3-point play and knocked down a jumper to put the Sixers comfortably ahead 99-92.
"We just didn't move the basketball well enough, didn't execute well enough, and they were a step faster than us for whatever reason," Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro said. "I knew Philly would respond. They didn't play well the other day and we did."
Del Negro had trouble finding effective options. Ben Gordon scored 18 points but missed all 5 of his shots in overtime. Drew Gooden had 6 turnovers and scored all 9 of his points at the foul line. Luol Deng (10 points) sat out the final 9:37 of the contest in favor of Andres Nocioni.
Trailing 90-83 with 3:04 left, Rose had a free throw and driving bank to begin the comeback. After the Bulls botched a fastbreak opportunity, a pair of free throws by Gooden brought them within 2. Thomas hit a runner in the lane with 40.3 seconds on the clock but not before Miller stepped in to take a charge.
With the pressure on, the Bulls got their fifth straight defensive stop when Iguodala (25 points) lost the ball with 23.9 seconds left. Rose got to the rim only to have his shot blocked from behind by Iguodala, but Thomas was there to slam home the rebound with 17.6 seconds remaining.
The Sixers held for the last shot of regulation, and Miller got a decent look on a corner 3-pointer but came up well short as time expired.
This was the Bulls' first home game in 17 days after posting a 3-4 record on the annual circus road trip. The first game back following a long trip always is dangerous in the NBA, although the Bulls had won their welcome home from the annual circus trek the past five years.
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