Bulls' Rose enjoying hot streak

SAN ANTONIO -- Derrick Rose was not expecting to light it up from long range Tuesday at Houston's Toyota Center.

“It's funny, right before the game, I was shooting. I was telling (assistant coach) Ron Adams I never have a good shooting game in this arena and I was missing almost every shot,” Rose said before playing San Antonio on Wednesday.

“I thought it was going to be a long night. But during the game, I guess they were giving me shots and I was just taking them.”

Rose ended up knocking down 4 of 5 shots from 3-point range on his way to an attention-grabbing 33-point night in the win at Houston.

After going 1-for-8 from the field in the first quarter against Washington on Saturday, Rose got hot and stayed hot. He finished that game 7-for-12, went 13-for-20 against the Rockets, then 6-for-12 in the first half against San Antonio.

That's 59 percent.

“It feels good when almost every shot you throw up goes in,” Rose said. “The team gets into it. I had my brother and friend on the sideline (in Houston). It was a good feeling.”

Rose has talked about how coach Tom Thibodeau has never questioned his shot selection. Asked if any Rose shot is a good shot, Thibodeau drew the line.

“Well, there is such a thing as a bad shot, and when he takes one I'm going to let him know,” Thibodeau said with a laugh. “I want him to attack. That's the big thing.

“What he's done at the start of the game, he's done a great job establishing pace, getting players involved. Then when the fourth quarter comes, he's a little more aggressive.

“But everyone's in rhythm at that point. When you look at our 3-point shooting right now, he's created a lot of that. His penetration has pulled people in.”

Rose also has bought into Thibodeau's one-game-at-a-time plan for the circus road trip.

“Actually, I don't even know how many games are on this road trip,” he said.

Told there are seven total, Rose responded, “That's a lot of games. I knew how long we would be gone. I packed enough clothes.”