Bulls gain ground with 95-87 win over Wizards

Posted April 02, 2010 11:00 pm

Mike McGraw

Luol Deng was on the floor for the first time since suffering a right calf strain on March 9. Joakim Noah made his first start since Feb. 3.

Maybe the Bulls are finally ready to make a serious playoff push. Friday's 95-87 win at Washington brought them within 11/2 games of eighth-place Toronto in the race for the final playoff spot in the East.

The Bulls (36-39) have seven games remaining, starting tonight at home against Charlotte. The Raptors (37-37) play in Philadelphia tonight.

"I try to remind everybody that we're going to be in the playoffs, we've just got to continue to win," Derrick Rose said after the game. "Even though the task is going to be hard, we're still going to fight and try to come together."

Deng came off the bench and logged an impressive 28 minutes against the Wizards (22-53). He hit 6 of 8 shots to finish with 14 points and 6 rebounds. Deng knocked down a clutch 3-pointer with 4:45 left after Washington pulled within 5 points.

"The longer I was out there, I actually felt better," Deng said. "I really don't know how (the calf) is going to respond. The other day from practice it tightened up a little bit, so I'm sure it will be a little tight, but it's feeling good right now."

Guard Kirk Hinrich was also back on the floor, despite a sprained left ankle that cause him to sit out the second half against Phoenix on Tuesday. He shot well in the first half, then finished with 10 points and 5 assists in 33 minutes.

Noah played 27 minutes, equaling the most time he's spent on the court since returning from a three-week break due to plantar fasciitis. Noah produced 10 points and 8 rebounds, along with the game's best highlight.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Noah grabbed a defensive rebound, dribbled up the court and threw a nice lob pass to Rose for an alley-oop dunk. That play capped an 11-3 run and sent the Bulls ahead 87-78 with 6:18 remaining.

Rose led the Bulls with 24 points. Rookie Taj Gibson had yet another big game, finishing with 14 points, 16 rebounds and 4 blocks.

Gibson has six double-doubles in his last eight games and during that span has averaged 13.5 points, 11.4 rebounds and 2.1 blocks, while shooting 51.2 percent from the field.

"Nice team effort," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "It wasn't our best basketball, but we found a way to win and we got the defensive stops we needed in the second half."

Rose was shaken up twice in rapid succession during the second quarter. First, he scored on a driving layup, fell to the ground and grabbed his left wrist. Not long after, he poked the ball loose, then tripped over a Wizards player who dove to regain possession. Rose landed hard on his back and sat on the ground grimacing for a few seconds while Mike Miller drained an open 3-pointer.

Rose hurt his hip and left wrist in separate collisions with Orlando's Dwight Howard during the past seven weeks. Rose stayed in the game, though, and drained a 23-foot pull-up jumper at the buzzer to give the Bulls a 53-50 halftime lead.

The Wizards have lost 17 of their last 18 games and extended a franchise-record home losing streak to nine.

Mike McGraw's game tracker

Bulls 95, Wizards 87

All hands on floor: The Bulls were as healthy as they've been since before the all-star break. Luol Deng returned from a calf strain and scored 14 points. Kirk Hinrich played three days after spraining his left ankle against Phoenix. Joakim Noah was back in the starting lineup for the first time since Feb. 3. No wonder the Bulls won.

Role reversal: Midway through the fourth quarter, Noah grabbed a defensive rebound, dribbled up the court himself, then tossed a perfect alley-oop pass to Derrick Rose for a dunk. That play sent the Bulls ahead 87-78.

Jordan watch: The Bulls have another must-win game Saturday at the United Center against Michael Jordan's Charlotte Bobcats. Toronto plays in Philadelphia on Saturday.

Bulls game day

Bulls vs. Charlotte Bobcats at the United Center, 7 p.m.

TV: Channel 9

Radio: WMVP 1000-AM

Update: By beating Milwaukee in overtime on Friday, the seventh-place Bobcats (40-35) stayed 4 games ahead of the Bulls in the standings. Stephen Jackson scored 32 points against the Bucks, despite hitting just 11 of 28 shots. Ex-Bull Tyrus Thomas missed two games this week with a sprained ankle, then played just 3 minutes on Friday. Another ex-Bull, Tyson Chandler, is back on the floor after missing 31 games. The Bulls and Bobcats have split a pair of games this season, with both teams winning at home. The Bulls finish the regular season at Charlotte on April 14.

Next: Tuesday vs. Milwaukee Bucks at the United Center, 7 p.m.

Article Categories
Basketball Chicago Bulls NBA Other Sports Pro Sports Sports Sports Leagues Sports Types