Bulls-Suns Preview

By JUSTIN EINHORN
Posted Nov 13 2012 6:15PM

Having the best road record in the NBA helped the Chicago Bulls finish atop the Eastern Conference last season.

How they'll do away from home this season minus Derrick Rose remains to be seen.

The Bulls will double the number of road games they've played with a matchup against the improving Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night to open a five-game trip.

Chicago (4-3) did dominate its lone road game, but that 115-86 victory was against lowly Cleveland and came back on Nov. 2. The Bulls have since alternated wins and losses.

"We're going to get better," center Joakim Noah told the team's official website after Monday's 101-95 loss to Boston. "We've just got to keep fighting and not point fingers, stay together as a group."

Spending two weeks on the road may be a good time for that to happen. This five-game trek doesn't end until Nov. 24 in Milwaukee.

The Bulls were 24-9 on the road during the 2011-12 regular season but had a 6-7 mark, including playoffs, when Rose didn't play. The superstar point guard remains sidelined by a torn ACL suffered in the postseason.

Rose's replacement is Kirk Hinrich, but his status for this game is uncertain after sitting out Monday with a strained right hip. He was struggling anyway, shooting 31.0 percent over his last four games while averaging 4.5 assists.

Fellow offseason acquisition Nate Robinson took over the starting role Monday and had 11 points with seven assists.

Whoever plays the point for Chicago may have a tough matchup with Goran Dragic, the only Phoenix player to score in double figures in every game. He had 21 points and hit 4 of 5 from 3-point range in a 110-100 win over Denver on Monday.

Sixth man Shannon Brown added 19 points as seven players scored in double figures for the new-look Suns (4-4). They've won three of four, with Brown scoring at least 19 in each victory and only four in the loss.

"I just think everybody is getting a little more familiar with each other," coach Alvin Gentry said. "That's big. ... The idea of just knowing the guy a little bit better beside you."

No Western Conference team is turning the ball over less than the Suns (13.1 per game) after they committed six Monday.

Chicago has forced only 19 turnovers over the last two games and gave up 100 points for the first time this season Monday.

The Bulls' usually good defense and rebounding - they've lost the battle on the glass only once this season - can be greatly attributed to Noah. He's averaging a career-high 15.3 points and 9.4 rebounds but could get a challenge from Marcin Gortat, who has five double-doubles in his last seven games.

Chicago's Luol Deng has averaged 23.0 points over his last four games. The former first-round pick of the Suns has averaged 23.6 points and 9.4 rebounds in his last five visits to Phoenix.

The Bulls have won three in a row and six of seven against the Suns, including three straight in Phoenix.

Boozer helps Bulls outlast Suns 112-106 in OT

Posted Nov 15 2012 1:22AM

PHOENIX (AP) Carlos Boozer's latest big game against Phoenix came in handy when the Chicago Bulls blew an 18-point lead.

Boozer had 28 points and 14 rebounds, and the Bulls scored the first eight points in overtime to outlast the Suns 112-106 on Wednesday night.

Boozer, who scored 31 against Phoenix in the previous meeting last season, was a force at power forward again. He made 11 of 20 shots and had his way inside as the Bulls piled up 50 points in the paint. Luol Deng added 21 points and center Joakim Noah had 21 points and 12 rebounds.

"I just played off my teammates," Boozer said. "Rip (Hamilton) got me going in transition, Kirk (Hinrich) got me going with pocket passes."

Chicago scored six points on putbacks in a 10-0 run that gave the Bulls a 79-61 lead in the third quarter. But the Suns fought back in the fourth by being active on the offensive boards and defending with more energy.

"The lesson we have to learn is we have to play tough with the lead," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "I thought we got a little loose. We were throwing lobs and not strong with the ball."

Luis Scola had 24 points and 14 rebounds for Phoenix, while Sebastian Telfair scored 17 off the bench.

"We played extremely hard, we just couldn't come up with offense when we needed it," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "Defensively in the second half I thought we did a great job of just hanging in and shaving a few points here and there. The players are trying to learn each other. ... In the meantime, we just keep playing hard and keep competing, and somewhere along the line good things are going to happen for us."

Marcin Gortat banked in a hook shot to cut Chicago's lead to 91-88, and Shannon Brown made it 91-90 on a driving layup with 4:22 to play in the fourth.

Telfair's 3-pointer tied it at 93 with 3 minutes left, but the Bulls hit four of six free throws over the next 2 minutes to go up 99-95. Brown converted a three-point play and Boozer missed a jumper to give Phoenix another chance to take the lead, but Brown missed on a drive to the basket with 19 seconds to go.

Richard Hamilton hit one of two free throws to give the Bulls a 100-98 advantage before P.J. Tucker gathered in a loose ball and laid it in to knot the score at 100 with 9.4 seconds left.

Hamilton missed a chance for the lead, and Phoenix didn't have time to get off a shot before the buzzer to end regulation. The Suns found themselves in overtime for the first time since April 11, 2011, and it took them a little while to get acclimated.

"You get down like that and these teams are tough," Tucker said. "There's a lot of good players. It takes so much out of you to actually fight back, to come back."

The Bulls won their fourth straight game in Phoenix, tying Miami and Oklahoma City for the longest active winning streak by a visiting team.

"We have a lot of vets on this team and we did a good job of being calm and letting the game come to us," Deng said.

The Bulls led 29-27 at the end of a back-and-forth first quarter. Boozer scored 10 points and Chicago shot 62 percent from the field.

The Bulls led by as many as seven points in the second, 40-33, before Scola heated up. He scored eight points during a 13-6 run that gave the Suns a 46-42 lead with 4:45 left in the first half.

Chicago stormed back with a 13-0 run, led by Boozer and reserve Jimmy Butler. Boozer scored 16 points in the first half on 8-of-12 shooting and the Bulls went 4 of 7 on 3-pointers while shooting 58.5 percent in the first half to lead 57-51 at the break.

Scola shot 8 of 13 and scored 16 points in the first half to go with seven rebounds.

The Bulls jumped out to a 63-54 lead, matching their largest advantage of the game, in the first 3 minutes of the third quarter. Noah stole a pass and dribbled from beyond halfcourt for a dunk to cap a mini-run.

Suns forward Markieff Morris went down hard in the closing seconds of regulation and walked slowly off the court with a bag of ice on his backside. He didn't return and is day to day with a bruised lower back.

NOTES: Hinrich returned to the lineup after missing Monday's game against Minnesota with a strained right hip. He scored three points and had seven assists in 27 minutes. ... Suns C Jermaine O'Neal was activated before the game after missing the previous five to attend to a family matter. He did not play. O'Neal has not played since Nov. 4 at Orlando. ... Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp sat courtside.

Notebook: Bulls 112, Suns 106 OT

Jonathan Dalton, For NBA.com
Posted Thu Nov 15, 2012 12:56 AM - Updated Thu Nov 15, 2012 9:27 AM

THE FACTS: Carlos Boozer scored a game-high 28 points and added 14 rebounds, and Rip Hamilton scored four points in overtime as the Chicago Bulls recovered after squandering an 18-point lead to beat the Phoenix Suns 112-106 on Wednesday night.

Luol Deng and Joakim Noah each scored 21 and Hamilton finished with 15 for the Bulls, who were opening their five-game, 12-day annual "circus" road trip. Kirk Hinrich, who missed the Bulls' last game with a strained right hip, returned and had three points and seven assists in 27 minutes.

Luis Scola scored 24 points and Sebastian Telfair added 17 for the Suns, who rallied from a four-point deficit in the final 64 seconds of regulation to take the game to overtime.

Hamilton had a chance to win the game in regulation, but his shot was blocked by Shannon Brown with 1.6 seconds remaining.

The Bulls scored on each of their first five overtime possessions, the last on an 18-footer by Noah, to open a 110-101 lead with 1:23 to go.

QUOTABLE: "We had a big lead and when you have a big lead sometimes you slip up."

-- Hamilton

THE STAT: In their past four games, the Suns have trailed by by 26, 22, 10 and 18 points. Phoenix has trailed by double digits in eight of nine contests this season.

TURNING POINT: Trailing by two, Telfair had the ball tipped away from him as he drove the lane. But the ball went directly to P.J. Tucker, who went up unopposed for a short jumper to tie the score at 100-100 with 9.4 seconds left in regulation.

QUOTABLE II: "Tonight wasn't out night, but it's all about the fight."

-- P.J.Tucker

HOT: Boozer hit 8 of his first 12 shots and finished 11-for-20. His 24 points were two fewer than he's scored in his last three games combined.

NOT: Beasley was 2-for-13 from the floor in regulation, with three turnovers and four rebounds. He recovered to score the Suns' first six points in overtime, but badly missed a 3-pointer in the final minute. Beasley has shot better than 33.3 percent only once this season.

NOTABLE: The Suns were playing their first overtime game since April 11, 2011. ... The Bulls were 4-for-11 from the field in the fourth, 5-for-11 in overtime. ... Chicago did not trail after tying the score at 46-46 on a Jimmy Butler layup with 4:25 left in the first half. ... Three Bulls players -- Hamilton, Hinrich and Nate Robinson -- all were called for technical fouls. ... Phoenix has dropped four straight to Chicago at home and seven of its past eight against the Bulls overall. ... The Suns lost for the first time this season when scoring 100 points (3-1).

UP NEXT: For the Bulls, Saturday @ LA Clippers, Sunday at Portland, Wednesday at Houston. For the Suns, Friday @ LA Lakers, Saturday vs. Miami, Wednesday vs. Portland.

• Bulls: Rose
• Suns: Frye, Garrett

• Bulls: Hamilton, Hinrich, Robinson
• Suns: --

• Lead Changes: 12
• Times Tied: 9

• Arena: US Airways Center, Phoenix, AZ
• Officials: #8 Marc Davis, #52 Scott Twardoski, #40 Leon Wood
• Attendance: 15305
• Duration: 2:35