Big Fourth Quarter Propels Bulls To 3-2 Series Lead Over Hawks

The early stages of Chicago’s Game 5 on Tuesday night had all the makings of what Game 3 was for the Bulls. They jumped out to an early lead and looked to be running away with it, but the persistent Hawks would stay in it until the late-going in this one, with the Bulls eventually grabbing the 95-83 win.

The Bulls started off hot, leading by 11 points after the first quarter. Rather than Derrick Rose taking the early shots, which he did, it was Luol Deng who had the hot hand, scoring the first seven points for the Bulls in this one. As the Bulls pulled away early, Keith Bogans scored eight consecutive points to help the Bulls jump out to their early lead.

But the Hawks would not be denied. Aided by another sound performance from the youngster Jeff Teague, as well as some solid play early from Josh Smith, the Hawks crept back into this one in the second and early third quarters. Towards the end of the third, they would eventually hold their first lead over the Bulls.

It wasn’t as if the Bulls were playing poorly, either. The Bulls shot almost 49 percent from the field and were sound defensively, but the Hawks were also solid in their shooting, finishing with about a 48 percent. Even with the Atlanta rally, though, the Bulls held a one-point lead after three.

After blowing a double digit lead that they held early, many were certainly weary of the Bulls heading into the game’s final frame. Searching for energy, the Bulls got it from the usual source, as well as one that was a bit more unexpected for some.

The Bulls outscored the Hawks 26-15 for the quarter, with Rose accounting for 11 of those points. Coming up with another 11 of them was Taj Gibson, who did  not score in the previous three quarters. He provided a nice spark off the bench, which was absolutely necessary on a night in which Joakim Noah and Kyle Korver combined for zero points.

Atlanta didn’t do themselves any favors on Tuesday either. Despite a solid night from Josh Smith, and another sound performance from Teague, the  Hawks’ major scoring threats, Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford, fell silent once again. The two combined for 17 points, and 15 of those came courtesy of Johnson.

Even though it wasn’t the prettiest win for the Bulls, this shouldn’t come as anything new to fans. This isn’t a team that’s going to blow many teams out, even if they were able to decimate Atlanta in the regular season. Expect another gritty performance when the Bulls try and close out the series in Atlanta on Thursday night.

Bulls’ Strategy For Game 2 Against Hawks? Get The Ball To Luol Deng.

The Chicago Bulls were flat out awful on Monday night. They were sluggish and couldn’t hit the shots they needed as they fell 103-95 to the Atlanta Hawks in Game 1.

Derrick Rose struggled early, but did play better later on. However, he sprained his ankle and his status for Game 2 isn’t completely certain. Carlos Boozer continued his audition for the next film version of The Invisible Man. And Joakim Noah went back to his early postseason form after a few great games against the Indiana Pacers.

But there was actually one Bull who did impress on Monday, despite the disappointment the Bulls carried with them after the loss: Luol Deng.

Deng, for the most part, has been the Bulls’ real secondary scoring option this season behind Derrick Rose. He averaged a touch over 17 points and just under six boards per for the top-seeded Bulls.

This postseason he hasn’t been as electric, but he’s still been solid nonetheless. If anything, Monday’s game showed that he needs to play a bigger part in the offense than he has been thus far in the playoffs.

Against Atlanta in Game 1, Deng shot 8-of-12 from the field. He found the looks and had the hot hand, finishing with 21 points in the loss.

Yet, Deng didn’t get the ball nearly as much as he should have. Taking just 12 shots on the night when he’s one of the only guys actually making shots is really inexcusable, and for that the finger points at Derrick Rose.

He may be the Bulls’ best scoring option, but Rose should not be taking 27 shots, especially when he was struggling the way he did on Monday. He made just two of his 10 first half shots, which should have been an early indication that he should have been sharing the wealth in the latter parts of the game.

If Deng gets the ball more in Game 2 on Wednesday, the positives should stretch beyond just his scoring touch.

Joe Johnson killed the Bulls on Monday. He shot 12-18 and dropped 34 points on the night, including a perfect 5-5 from beyond the arc. Much of that goes back to the lack of touches for Deng, who found himself in a matchup with Johnson for a good portion of the night. More offensive production from Deng means more work for Johnson which could mean less trouble for the Bulls on defense.

With Derrick Rose not likely going to be at 100-percent heading into Wednesday, it’s important for him to get Deng the ball early and often. As long as he does that, things should be much easier for a Bulls team that only lost by eight, despite how poorly they actually played.

Tom Thibodeau Named NBA Coach of the Year

While C.J. Watson is busy spitting unofficial news of Derrick Rose winning the MVP award, one of the NBA’s awards for the 2010-11 season was officially announced on Sunday afternoon.

It was announced that Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau was named Coach of the Year for the National Basketball Association.

This really shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, though there were certainly other candidates worthy of the honor. That list included George Karl, who took a Carmelo-less Nuggets team to a top five seed in the Western Conference.

Nonetheless, it’s certainly incredible what Thibs has managed to do with this Bulls squad in just one season. After missing out on big name free agents like LeBron James and Chicago-native Dwayne Wade, the Bulls had to settle for the likes of Carlos Boozer and several role players to fill the void in their overhauled roster.

What they got out of it was the NBA’s best, and deepest, squad this season, finishing the season with a 62-20 mark and going undefeated against the powerhouse Miami Heat during the regular season.

After the Bulls parted ways with Vinny Del Negro, they joined the list of teams in search of Thibodeau’s services as head coach. Having been an assistant coach for several years in the league, Thibs was considered the best man for many coaching jobs, but he may not have been a more perfect fit for anyone but the Bulls.

He came to a young, defensive squad, with a defensive, never-satisfied mentality. And it has paid off for a Bulls team that hasn’t had a truly successful season since Michael Jordan left in 1998. One of the league’s best teams defensively last season, Thibodeau took them to a whole other level and even 62 wins and a first round victory later, the team isn’t satisfied.

Perhaps no one has been affected by the presence of Thibodeau more than the MVP candidate Derrick Rose. Already an impressive future ahead of him coming into the season, Rose elevated his game to outstanding heights in just one season, leading a team that was without Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah for a good chunk of the season and staying out in front of the MVP race in the process.

But it’s that never-satisfied mentality that Thibs brings that has made this team so successful this season. All through the regular season, and after ousting the Indiana Pacers in five games in the first round, we hear how there is still work to be done and that the team hasn’t actually achieved anything yet.

In the City of Broad Shoulders, that’s music to our ears.

Bulls Close Out First Round With Impressive Win Over Pacers

It took up until Game 5, but the Bulls finally got the complete game that had been expected of them as the NBA’s No. 1 overall seed in this year’s postseason. They got off to a better start than they had in either of the prior four tilts, limiting turnovers and the playing time of Carlos Boozer in Tuesday’s 116-89 win, which eliminated Indiana from the playoffs.

Chicago started off hot on Tuesday, stretching their early lead to double digits, leading 36-25 after the opening frame. Despite concerns about his ankle injury sustained in Game 4, Derrick Rose started out hot and played the whole first quarter, hitting on five of his eight shots in the first.

Rose would go on to play just over 20 minutes in the first half, dropping 13 points. His minutes and points trailed only Luol Deng, whose 15 points led the team in the first half. The Pacers were able to narrow the gap a bit, to just nine points, by the end of the first half, but that wouldn’t matter for too long.

After a run by Indiana in the third quarter that pulled them to within just a few points, the Bulls went on a 23-8 run in the third quarter that would prove to be the real difference, as Indy was never able to recover from it. Rose finished the quarter with 12 points, and was backed from a surprising nine from Keith Bogans for the frame.

The fourth quarter was all about managing to keep the lead for the rest of the game, with Deng and Joakim Noah serving as the only starters to see more than 90 seconds on the floor in the fourth. The 24 points from the Bulls bench in the fourth matched Indy’s total for the quarter, and would help in propelling the Bulls to the Game 5 victory.

The biggest differences in Game 5 from the struggles in the previous games against Indy were the turnovers, as well as success hitting the three-ball. After turning the ball over 20-plus times in multiple contests in this series, the Bulls turned the ball over just 14 times on Tuesday night. Much of that goes back to the limited minutes of Boozer, who sat due to struggles and a foot injury. This opened the door for big minutes from Taj Gibson, who scored 10 points, in addition to his seven boards.

Chicago would also launch over 30 three-pointers in this one, shooting 45 percent from beyond the arc. Bogans led the way for the Bulls, dropping 15 points, all via the long ball. Rose and Deng also combined for six additional shots made from deep in the effort.

For the Bulls, it’s not time to sit and wait, while they wait and see who their second round opponent could be. More importantly, it’s the short layoff will give Rose ample time to heal that ankle. Though it appeared just fine and didn’t seem to effect his speed too much, you can never be sure with a nagging injury like an ankle sprain, meaning the time off will be good for the MVP candidate.

Familiar Scene As Bulls Scratch Out Road Win Vs. Pacers

In some ways, a No. 8 seed can be the hardest one to beat come playoff time. Just look at the Chicago Blackhawks on the NHL side of Chicago and what they’re doing to the Vancouver Canucks in these past couple games.

But while the Chicago Bulls aren’t having a level of trouble like that with these Indiana Pacers, it’s clear that Indy isn’t going to go away in this series until Chicago’s win total reaches four. They proved it again in another tight one on Thursday night.

Thursday’s tilt had a little different flavor, though, as the Pacers were finally able to put the breaks on Derrick Rose. Sort of.

The MVP candidate ‘only’ mustered up 23 points for the Bulls, who ended up winning 88-84 to take a 3-0 series lead, but he earned every single one of them.

Rose took a beating from an already physical Pacers team, who was in his face all night with trap defense and double teams, meaning that the Thursday would be all about the defense for the Bulls, since their offensive contributions were few and far between.

Aside from Rose, the only player to show up on the offensive side of things was Luol Deng, who came out of the gate firing. While the former Duke forward did fizzle a bit as the game went on scoring-wise, he did lead the team in minutes, with 45, while dropping 21 for the game. His best stuff came in the first half, with 14 points, seven in each quarter.

The Bulls still had to overcome their obstacles in this one, aside from the stingy defense against Rose, which included the turnovers that have plagued them, as well as the Carlos Boozer that has hurt them early in this series. Boozer reverted back to his Game 1 performance, shooting just 2-10 on the night, finishing with four points and 11 boards.

Even on a night where he didn’t play particularly well, it was Rose that was there to close the door for the Bulls at the end. Rose scored 14 points in the second half, eight of them coming in the fourth quarter, including a clutch layup to run the score up to 86-84 in favor of the Bulls.

The concerns are sure to grow with the Bulls having more troubles with this pesky Pacer squad, but this isn’t a Bulls team that is going to blow anyone out, for the most part. They’re going to be involved of plenty of grind-it-out type of contests. And while there is plenty of room for improvement, the simple fact is that good teams find a way to win the close ones.

The Bulls have done that so far and it’s going to take another defensive effort to put Indy down for good when the two meet for Game 4 in Indiana on Saturday afternoon.

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