Bulls Even Series With 90-82 Win Over Nets [Video]
The Chicago Bulls have evened up the series with the Brooklyn Nets after a big 90-82 win Monday night. Joakim Noah battled through an apparent right foot injury and led the Bulls with 11 points and 10 rebounds as the series now moves to Chicago.
The Nets started their run to the NBA finals with a 106-89 win in game one against the Bulls on Saturday, but it wouldn’t slow down Chicago at all, even without star point guard Derrick Rose. The Bulls came out with much more energy on Monday and stepped up defensively in the second half to hold off the Nets in game two.
The Bulls only led by one point at the half, but they went on to hold the Nets to two baskets in the third quarter before pulling away. Noah wasn’t effective in game one but he turn things around on Monday and was aggressive in the second half.
Seven of Noah’s 10 rebounds came in the second half as he battled for every loose ball and kept the Nets on their heels. The Bulls went on a 9-2 run to end the third quarter and stopped a late rush by the Nets in the fourth to even the series.
Noah was the centerpiece while Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng also finished with double-doubles in the win. Boozer pitched in 13 points and 12 rebounds while Deng added 15 points and 10 rebounds of his own.
Kirk Hinrich also finished in double-figures with 13 points and Nate Robinson added 11 points off the bench as Tom Thibodeau’s Bulls came back to life after a shaky start in game one.
The Bulls pressure took the Nets energy away quickly and kept the Brooklyn crowd out of the game all night. Deron Williams and the Nets never found a rhythm and will now hit the road in hopes of regaining momentum and the series lead.
“We just gotta execute a lot better,” Nets interim coach P.J. Carlesimo said after the game. ” We have to defend more the way we did in the first half of game one.”
Defense wasn’t the only problem for the Nets as shooting became an issue in the second half. The Nets shot just 35 percent in the game and had one of their worst quarters of the season after making 2-of-19 shots in the third.
Deron Williams finished 1-for-9 from the floor with 8 points while Joe Johnson ended at 6-for-18 with 17 points. The Nets also struggled from behind the arc and went 4-for-21 from three-point land as a team.
Here are the full highlights from the Bulls crucial win in game two:
The Bulls’ defensive pressure got the Nets out of sync as their play turned sloppy after a slow start in each half. It was a complete turnaround from game one when the Nets shot 56 percent from the field and beat the Bulls by 17 points.
Can the Brooklyn Nets get back on track in game three or will the Chicago Bulls return home and take control of the series?
[Image via Keith Allison]
