A big, easy victory for Bulls
Here are some ideas for ending the Bulls' seven-game road losing streak:
• Mandatory pregame meal of hot dogs and deep dish pizza.
• Replace all music in their MP3 players with The Blues Brothers.
• Show the Dunkin' Donuts race inside the locker room at halftime.
They might stink on the road, but at the United Center things couldn't be better. The Bulls won their sixth straight home game on Saturday, and for the third time during the streak they blasted one of the league's best teams. They led by as many as 32 points during a big, easy 97-79 victory over the New Orleans Hornets, who were 9-1 in their previous 10 games.
"They played like the game meant something to them and we didn't," New Orleans coach Byron Scott said. "That's the bottom line."
While moving back into sole possession of eighth place in the East, the Bulls (30-37) knocked down 10 of 25 shots from 3-point range and had an impressive assist-to-turnover ratio of 25-7. Ben Gordon ended a brief shooting slump by hitting 11 of 17 shots for 27 points, while forward John Salmons knocked down 9 of 15 for 24 points.
It's understandable why Gordon would feel comfortable playing at the United Center, but Salmons has been on the team for only three weeks.
"You always want to play at home," Salmons said. "We have the support of good fans, you get to sleep in your own bed, you can go home at night."
Wait a minute, isn't Salmons still living out of a hotel room?
"I'm still in a hotel, but in general ...," he said with a smile.
The Bulls hit 8 of 10 shots, including 4 from 3-point range, during a 21-2 run early in the second quarter that stretched a 5-point lead to 48-24. New Orleans closed within 14 points by halftime, but Salmons opened the third quarter with a pair of 3-pointers and the margin was never less than 15 the rest of the way.
The first official matchup between point guards Derrick Rose and Chris Paul never really materialized into a legitimate subplot.
Coach Vinny Del Negro assigned Salmons the task of guarding Paul, and the Bulls continued their trend of switching everything on defense. So Paul often found himself working against center Joakim Noah after a high screen. Besides Paul, the Hornets (41-24) use nothing but big guards, so Rose defended 6-foot-8 forward Julian Wright, and Ben Gordon took 6-7 Rasual Butler.
Paul was impressive, scoring with remarkable ease for someone whose true height is probably a shade under 6 feet. He hit 13 of 20 shots to finish with 29 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds.
Rose focused on spreading the wealth and scored just 4 points to go with 7 assists. After the game, Paul had nothing but compliments for Rose, whom he first met at last summer's Team USA training camp in Las Vegas.
"I think he's a lot faster than me and a lot more explosive than me and he's a lot more athletic," Paul said. "I should be asking what I see of myself in him. I think he's adjusted to the game very well."