It certainly wasn’t pretty, but the Chicago Bulls came away with their fifth consecutive victory of the season over the Charlotte Bobcats, 86-81, to remain undefeated at the United Center this season and improve their overall record to 6-3. The game against Charlotte makes it the last home game of the month and ugly or not, the victory pushed them to 6-3 on the season.
Chicago didn’t have the game in control until a late three-pointer by Luol Deng with 27 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, giving the Bull an 85-81 lead. After a Charlotte timeout, Gerald Wallace airballed a 19-foot jump shot and Derrick Rose grabbed the rebound and split a pair of free-throws after being fouled.
The Bulls shot 36 percent from the field and 50 percent (6-12) from the three-point line, but ultimately won the game at the charity stripe, connecting on 26 of their 31 attempts. Chicago outrebounded Charlotte 54-44, but turned the ball over 16 times in the game.
The Bobcats were not able to capitalize on the Bulls giveaways, scoring just 10 points.
Chicago’s bench was outscored 36-16, but got balanced scoring from their starters as all five players scored in double-digits. Deng led the way with 21 points and eight rebounds, while Carlos Boozer chipped in 12 points and 17 rebounds.
Notables:
Derrick Rose scored 12 points and had five assists, but he shot 4-13 from the field and 1-5 from the three-point line… Joakim Noah scored 11 points and grabbed seven rebounds… Jimmy Butler was 4-6 shooting from the field, finishing with 14 points and five rebounds
