Bulls get a tough win over Spurs
The Bulls knew it was time to get serious.
They beat up on a long line of losing teams before the all-star break, which helped keep them near the top of the NBA standings despite all the injury problems.
But the schedule turned on Leap Day. Wednesday's trip to San Antonio began a stretch in which the Bulls will face winning teams in 10 of the next 12 games.
The Spurs were the NBA's hottest team, winning 12 of 13 games before the break, and they also had Tuesday off while the Bulls were pulling out a win over New Orleans.
So the odds were steep, but Derrick Rose wasn't going to let a tougher schedule slow him down. Rose scored 29 points, and the Bulls hit a string of clutch shots down the stretch to defeat San Antonio 96-89.
“Down the stretch, Chicago showed why they've won all those games,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said after the game. “They made shots and were real solid defensively.”
Rose gave Bulls fans a scare in the first half, when he bumped knees with San Antonio guard Tony Parker and went to the floor in obvious pain. After a couple of minutes, he got to his feet and stayed in the game.
Parker might be having the best season of his NBA career, averaging 19.4 points and 8.1 assists. But Rose doesn't lose many head-to-head matchups against top point guards. Parker finished with 11 points and 9 assists.
Rose put the Bulls ahead for good with 6:25 remaining with a driving layup that made it 77-75. On the Bulls' next trip, Kyle Korver knocked down a 3-pointer to boost the lead to 5 points.
The Bulls (29-8) didn't get great performances from many of their starters. Carlos Boozer scored 8 points and didn't play in the fourth quarter. Richard Hamilton, in his second game back from a monthlong injury layoff, hit 1 of 8 shots for 2 points.
“His shot didn't drop tonight, but they're his shots,” coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters after the game. “The encouraging thing, he got up today (after playing Tuesday) and felt great.”
Luol Deng (10 points) had a quiet night, until knocking down a pair of 3-pointers in the final five minutes. The second one effectively put the game out of reach at 92-86 with 39.6 seconds remaining.
mmcgraw@dailyherald.com