Bulls beat Pelicans, gain ground in playoff race
The possibility of missing the playoffs turned out to be a great motivator for the Chicago Bulls.
They won their fourth straight game Sunday, matching a season high, by holding off the New Orleans Pelicans 117-110 at the Smoothie King Center. The Bulls have gone 6-3 since losing Dwyane Wade with an elbow injury, but coach Fred Hoiberg wasn't ready to say his team is playing better without the veteran all-star.
“I don't think that's the case,” Hoiberg told reporters after the game. “Dwyane especially when we get into fourth quarters, if we get a little bit stagnant, he's a guy that we can give the ball to and good things happen.
“I'm proud of the guys for stepping up, especially our young guys when they've gotten that great opportunity to play. Dwyane continues to work. We'll see him in New York (on Tuesday). He continues to ramp up his activity.”
Jimmy Butler delivered another efficient performance, scoring 39 points on 14 of 26 shooting, and the Bulls got good contributions from the bench. Bobby Portis (21 points) and Joffrey Lauvergne (15) were hitting from the outside, combining to hit 6 of 9 shots from long range.
The Bulls finished 13-for-26 from 3-point range, making double-digit 3s for the seventh straight game. Rajon Rondo barely missed a triple-double, finishing with 10 points, 9 assists and 9 rebounds.
Butler logged 42 minutes in Saturday's win over Atlanta, playing the entire second half. So an important stretch for the Bulls on Sunday was the start of the fourth quarter, when Hoiberg needed to give Butler some rest while also protecting an 8-point lead.
The second group delivered as Michael Carter-Williams started the fourth with a driving bank shot and Portis added a hook shot over DeMarcus Cousins. Lauvergne and Portis both hit 3-pointers to build the lead to 100-81 with 8:36 left.
The Bulls succeeded in getting Cousins frustrated, which has never been difficult. In the fourth quarter, Cousins was called for 2 offensive fouls, once for pushing Carter-Williams while the two were running upcourt, then for putting his shoulder into Rondo on a screen.
When New Orleans pulled close at the end, Paul Zipser delivered the defensive play of the night, blocking Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday to ruin a 2-on-1 break while the Bulls led by 6 with less than a minute to play. Butler's jumper with 19.6 seconds on the clock put the game out of reach.
It was an interesting night for anyone paying attention to the lower East side of the standings. The Bulls, Atlanta, Miami and Indiana all tipped off at the same time. Every team surrounding the Bulls, including Milwaukee, lost Sunday.
The Bulls (38-39) now trail the fifth-place Bucks by 2 games and sixth-place Atlanta by 1 game. The Bulls would lose a tiebreaker to either of those teams. The Bulls have a 1-game lead on the Heat and Pacers, and would win any tiebreaker against those teams. The Bulls' last five games are against teams that have been eliminated from the playoffs.
“We've just got to worry about ourselves,” Hoiberg said. “Every day get in the gym, get in the film room, continue to learn, continue to make positive strides forward as a basketball team. I've been really happy with the guys' approach lately and hopefully it continues like that these last five games.”
The Bulls used a smart strategy of pushing the pace at the start of the game, hoping the Pelicans, with little to play for, wouldn't match their effort.
The Bulls led 17-8 early and never surrendered the lead. Anthony Davis led New Orleans with 30 points, while Cousins had 26.
• Get the latest Bulls news via Twitter by following @McGrawDHBulls.