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Dan Peters
Sports Editor
Oak Park
Journal
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Bulls
end the season with another come from behind win … Beat the Nets 97-92
Spurs late loss give
the Bulls the Number one seed in the Playoffs and home court advantage
By Dan Peters
The Bulls and their “Bench Mob” showed
Wednesday that they are ready for the grueling playoffs which start on
Saturday against the Indiana Pacers.
Wednesday’s
97-92 win was yet another game the Bulls let slip away in the third
quarter. Chicago led by 13 at several points during the second quarter,
but the pesky “Nets” from New Jersey played as if they were in the
Playoffs, chipping away before taking the lead. Trailing 68-58, the
Nets scored 15 straight points midway through the third period.
The Bulls
responded by running off 10 in a row to close the period and pulled
this one out in the end, with Kyle Korver scoring seven points in the
final four minutes.
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It seemed the
Bulls bench played well together as a unit. When the regulars came in,
it looked as though they were not on the same page… But you must
remember this team has Derrick Rose.
Rose was
non-existent in the first half. Rose showed his “MVP” abilities to take
charge and be a leader and bring the Bulls back into the game. His
teammates followed his lead, stayed focused and gave the Bulls the win
and momentum that any team looks for with the playoffs looming.
Kyle Korver came up big down the stretch to finish with 19 points, Rose
scored 15 and the Bulls won their ninth straight.
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"I'm happy, I'm definitely happy," Rose said. "I wouldn't like to be on
a losing team, but what's the point of celebrating now when you can get
knocked out in the playoffs?"
Noah knows
how big this is. "It's a whole different environment," Noah said.
"You're playing for something big. That's what it's all about,
something you dream about playing in. Big stage. It doesn't get much
better than that playing in the NBA playoffs for the Chicago Bulls.
It's going to be a lot of fun."
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On top of the World..
The Chicago
Bulls earned home-court advantage throughout the playoffs later
Wednesday with San Antonio's 106-103 loss to Phoenix. Had the teams
tied for the best record, a random drawing would have decided the
overall No. 1 seed because all the tiebreakers were even.
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The Coach is as
focused as his players (above
he is focused on
the ref...)
With the win
Wednesday, Thibodeau tied Paul Westphal (62 wins with Phoenix in 1993)
for the most victories for a first year head coach, this after already
surpassing the legendary Bill Russell (60 with Boston in 1967). But he
hardly sounded excited about the possibility when asked about it
Wednesday.
The importance of
the win tonight against New Jersey and to have at least a share of the
best record in the NBA….
“It’s
important from the standpoint that you want to put as many things in
your favor as possible,” said Thibodeau. “To say seeding is not
important, that’s not true. We want to get as many wins as we can.”
“All that
stuff I’m not concerned with at all,” remarked Thibodeau. “The only
thing I worry about is us winning and our team.” And this team has his
back
With the win
tonight, the Bulls have improved 21 games from their 41-41 season
in 2009-10, which is the third-best single-season turnaround in team
history. The Bulls, also had the best record in the NBA after the
All-Star break at 23-4.
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Let the Accolades begin
Joakim Noah was named the CDW & IBM
Community Player of the year. Derrick Rose was awarded the Eastern
Conference Player of the month. Just the 1st of many awards yet to come
for this team and Rose.
The fans know who
their best player is..They chanted “MVP, MVP” every time Rose had the
ball in his hand, almost to a distraction at times. But in the end,
Rose stayed focused when the team needed it.
There is excitement
in the air again in the United Center, and it’s not the Blackhawks. The
reigning Stanley Cup Champs are also in the playoffs, opening
their post-season Wednesday as well in Vancouver. This should make the
“Mad House on Madison” rock for some time. As the temperatures outside
are getting warmer, so is the action inside
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Let the Playoffs begin
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