Rose, Hinrich lead Bulls past Bobcats, 96-88

Posted April 02, 2010 11:00 pm

Mike McGraw

For a few desperate minutes Saturday, it appeared the Bulls were about to be knocked out of the playoffs by discarded teammates Larry Hughes, Tyrus Thomas and Tyson Chandler.

Hughes and Thomas combined for 12 points during a 16-4 run to open the fourth quarter, one that sent the visiting Charlotte Bobcats into the lead and the Bulls pondering their playoff lives.

The Bulls still trailed by 6 points with less than five minutes remaining, then launched a passionate, season-saving 16-3 run and pulled out a 96-88 victory over Charlotte at the United Center.

The Bulls (37-39) remain 11/2 games behind Toronto for the final playoff spot in the East. The Raptors (38-37) had some scary moments, but won in overtime at Philadelphia on Saturday and will host Golden State today.

As usual, Derrick Rose (26 points) did most of the damage during the comeback. But Kirk Hinrich (24 points) knocked down the go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:19 remaining and Joakim Noah tossed down a dunk over Thomas that fired up the crowd.

Noah (11 points, 16 rebounds, 2 blocks) received a standing ovation when he checked out of the game and walked to the Bulls' bench with 35 seconds left.

"I think there was one point in the game where (Thomas) hit a jump shot and we were talking trash at him on the bench," Noah said. "He just mean-looked us real bad. He blocked one of my shots a little bit later in the game and I felt like he was just talking a little bit. But it felt good to dunk that."

Noah actually had plenty of praise for Thomas, the team's first-round draft pick in 2006 who was traded to Charlotte on Feb. 18.

"All those guys. You feel like you shared some experiences with Larry Hughes, with Boris Diaw on the French national team," Noah added. "The NBA is like a big fraternity. Seeing those guys always makes me happy and dunking on them makes me feel better."

The Bulls coasted through the first three quarters with a lead that hovered between 7 and 12 points. After Charlotte (40-36) stormed into the lead, the season could have flashed before the Bulls' eyes, because they can hardly afford to lose a home game now.

"I think all you can do in situations like that is stay focused and understand in a game, there's always going to be adversity," Noah said. "There's always going to be ups and downs. It's how you deal with them. We handled it pretty well."

It helped that the Bulls were closer to full strength than they've been in a few months, even though rookie James Johnson sat out due to a sore foot. Luol Deng started for the time since March 9, producing 12 points and 7 rebounds.

"I felt good," Deng said in the locker room. "I thought I'd be more tired out there, but I'm not."

The Bulls also pounded the glass for a 56-34 rebounding edge. Taj Gibson had another huge game, with 14 points and 15 boards.

Charlotte led 82-76 with 6:16 remaining after D.J. Augustin knocked down a 3-pointer. Noah's dunk over Thomas got the Bulls going. Rose added a driving lay in, then Hinrich's 3-pointer put the Bulls back ahead. Rose tacked on a beautiful hanging reverse to stretch the lead to 3.

Then after a Rose miss, Deng recognized that the referees weren't calling many fouls and ripped the rebound from Hughes' arms, then dropped a bank shot past Chandler to make it 89-84 with 1:15 left.

"When you're out on the floor, it's not about Larry Hughes or Tyrus Thomas. It's about us beating them," Deng said. "They made their run and we responded real well."

Mike McGraw's game tracker

Bulls 96, Bobcats 88

Stress relief: The Bulls' season appeared to be slipping away when Charlotte roared from behind to take a 6-point lead midway through the fourth quarter. But the home team responded with a 16-3 run to keep pace with Toronto in the playoff race.

Glass reunion: Ex-Bulls Tyson Chandler, Tyrus Thomas and Larry Hughes all played heavy minutes for the Bobcats. Some of their replacements, Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson, helped the Bulls build a whopping 56-34 rebound advantage on Saturday.

Guard help: Derrick Rose was his usual self, scoring 26 points. But Kirk Hinrich gave the Bulls a huge lift, scoring a season-high 24 points and knocking down the go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:19 remaining.

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