Rose stays close with Bucks’ Douglas-Roberts

Derrick Rose had an enthusiastic hug for his former college teammate, Chris Douglas-Roberts, before Monday’s game against Milwaukee.

Douglas-Roberts joined the starting lineup because ex-Bulls guard John Salmons was out with a hip injury. He took full advantage of the opportunity, scoring a game-high 30 points.

“I know what he can do, but I was a little bit surprised that he had the freedom, where (Bucks coach Scott) Skiles gave him the freedom to go out there and play,” Rose said. “He was tough. We had to double-team him.”

Rose and Douglas-Roberts spent just one season together at Memphis and led the Tigers to the NCAA title game before losing to Kansas in overtime. That was plenty of time, though, to develop a close friendship.

“It was like brothers,” Rose said. “Our whole team was like brothers — that’s one reason we went so far. We came up from the same background. Detroit (Douglas-Roberts’ hometown) and Chicago aren’t that much different, but we’ve got more stuff going on here.

“Cool guy, loves being in the gym. I’m happy to see that he’s playing well.”

Douglas-Roberts scored 20 points against the Bulls last season, leading New Jersey, which owned a 1-19 record at the time, to a win at the United Center.

Consistency has been the biggest issue with the 6-foot-7 swingman. Douglas-Roberts scored 30 points against Miami earlier this month, then 24 at New Jersey the next day. In the six games leading up to Monday’s meeting with the Bulls, he scored a total of 21 points.

Korver shots dropping:

Kyle Korver got plenty of looks Monday but knocked down just 3 of 11 shots in the win over Milwaukee.

Korver is the Bulls’ best long-range shooter, but this was just the second time in the last 21 games he attempted 10 or more shots in a single contest.

In the first 24 games, he took at least 10 shots on nine occasions. The turning point was roughly the date Joakim Noah left the lineup after having thumb surgery.

Before Dec. 17, Korver averaged 7.8 shots per game and connected on 44.7 percent. Since Dec. 17, he has taken 5.6 shots per game and hit 38.9 percent.

Vote from a friend:

Milwaukee’s Chris Douglas-Roberts lent his support to the Derrick Rose MVP campaign after Monday’s game.

“He’s the hardest guard to guard in the league right now,” Douglas-Roberts said. “Is he an MVP? He’s been running without (Joakim) Noah and (Carlos) Boozer and still winning. That is MVP caliber right there.”

Bull horns:

All-star starters will be announced Thursday night on TNT. In the last voting returns, Derrick Rose was on pace to start at guard for the East. … Bulls guard C.J. Watson, a Las Vegas native, will host a “Vegas Night” fundraiser Sunday evening at the Chicago Cultural Center. For more information, visit quietstormfoundation.com.