Doubly difficult for Bulls to handle double-OT loss
The Bulls received another rude reminder that there is no reward for extra effort if it comes with sloppy execution.
For the second time in four days, the Bulls lost an overtime heartbreaker at the United Center. They were outscored 9-1 in the final minute of the second overtime Thursday to land on the short end of a 115-109 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.
"Obviously, it's tough to take, tough to swallow for our guys," Bulls coach Jim Boylan said. "I told our guys to not be down."
The Bulls, who led by 14 points in the third quarter, had possession with the score tied and the clock running down in the second overtime, but Ben Gordon had the ball slip out of his hands, leading to an acrobatic fastbreak lay-in and 3-point play by Portland guard Jarrett Jack with 19.3 seconds remaining.
"I tried to pump-fake the guy and get him in the air and lean in for the 3, but the ball just slipped right out of my hands," Gordon said. "I tried to get back and swat the ball out of his hands. I didn't think I touched him. I tried to hit the ball and kind of ran right past him. I was surprised to hear the whistle blow."
After Jack's 3-point play, Bulls forward Joe Smith was fouled on a putback attempt but missed the second of 2 free throws. When Portland's James Jones buried 2 shots from the foul line, the Bulls trailed by 4 points with 12.2 seconds remaining, and the game was essentially over.
The Blazers (20-13) won for the 15th time in 16 games, while the Bulls remain a long way from being even an average team at 12-19.
"That was a gut-check game," said Portland guard Brandon Roy, who finished with 25 points and 11 assists. "It was a big win for us."
The Bulls played without Luol Deng after halftime, but got incredible scoring efforts from Gordon and Smith. Gordon hit 15 of 27 shots for 32 points, while Smith went 11 for 17 from the field for 31.
The home team was usually playing catch-up down the stretch and survived Portland's failure to score on the final possessions in the fourth quarter and the first overtime.
Late in the first overtime, Ben Wallace blocked Jack's jumper, but the Blazers grabbed the rebound and Travis Outlaw (21 points) buried a 17-footer as the shot clock expired to put the visitors ahead 102-100 with 18.2 seconds left.
On the Bulls' next trip, Smith rebounded an errant Gordon shot, was fouled and knocked down both free throws with 10.2 seconds on the clock. Jack then missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Neither team led by more than 4 points in the fourth quarter. The Bulls were able to even the score by grabbing an offensive rebound after Wallace missed a pair of free throws, leading to a Gordon jumper that made it 88-88 with 1:05 remaining.
Deng sat out because of tightness in his left Achilles' tendon and is planning to have an MRI exam this morning. He didn't look like himself from the start, missing 5 of 6 shots and scoring his only basket on an offensive rebound.
Thabo Sefolosha did not dress Thursday due to a sprained right ankle.