Ginobili's shot fake seals the deal for Spurs
The Bulls fell behind by 6 in the final minute Saturday against San Antonio but still gave themselves a chance.
Andres Nocioni was fouled on a 3-point attempt and nailed all 3 free throws to bring the home team within 90-87 with 31.0 seconds on the clock.
Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro then decided to try for a defensive stop rather than fouling intentionally. The Spurs cleared out the middle for Manu Ginobili, who played cat-and-mouse for a few seconds with fellow Argentina native Andres Nocioni before Nocioni fell for a shot fake and committed a 3-shot foul of his own with 7.5 seconds remaining.
"It didn't feel familiar, because we don't go at each other that often," Ginobili said. "It's a shooting guard going at a power forward. My main goal in that situation was just to consume all the time possible. I was going to take that 3. I was feeling very confident. When I saw he was jumping, he was going to block that shot, so I tried to draw a foul."
Ex-Bull Mason excels: Here's an irrelevant bit of trivia: Jerry Krause stepped down as Bulls general manager in 2003, but five of his second-round draft picks are still active in the NBA - Roger Mason Jr., Michael Ruffin, Jake Voskuhl, Trenton Hassell and Maceo Baston.
Mason Jr., drafted in 2002, might be a strong candidate for the league's most improved player award if not for some impressive leaps from people like Devin Harris, Danny Granger and Jameer Nelson.
Mason has started 31 games for the Spurs, averaging 12.2 points while ranking third in the league in 3-point percentage at .475. He didn't shoot well against the Bulls on Saturday, missing 7 of 8 shots and scoring 4 points.
After beginning his career with quiet seasons in Chicago and Toronto, Mason migrated to Greece and Israel before re-emerging with the Wizards in 2006. He joined San Antonio as a free agent last summer.
"I've always been a late bloomer at every level," Mason said before the game. "I think my career is just getting started. No matter what anybody told me, I kept working."
As for playing with the Spurs, Mason said watching Tim Duncan up close has been surprising.
"He's more vocal than I thought and has more leadership skills," Mason said. "You see him on TV and he seems like a quiet guy, but he's got a good personality."
Bull horns: Two small forwards were the Bulls' top rebounders Saturday - Andres Nocioni with 15 and Luol Deng with 10. Tyrus Thomas didn't grab any rebounds in 19 minutes. ... Three days after preserving a win at Toronto by blocking a Chris Bosh shot, Bulls center Joakim Noah rejected Tim Duncan twice Saturday.