Bulls-Pacers Preview

By KATE HEDLIN
Posted Apr 24 2012 10:38PM

Having clinched the top seed in the Eastern Conference while sitting idle the last few days, the Chicago Bulls could use the next game to rest Derrick Rose and Luol Deng before the playoffs.

However, coach Tom Thibodeau hinted earlier this week that might not happen.

Looking to get their starters some rare minutes together, the Bulls plan to be at full strength Wednesday night when they visit the Indiana Pacers.

Chicago clinched the East's best record for a second straight season Tuesday when Miami lost to Boston, giving the Bulls home-court advantage through the conference finals. They still have a chance to earn it through the NBA finals, currently tied with San Antonio for the league's best record.

Chicago is coming off a 98-83 win over Dallas on Saturday.

Thibodeau hinted Monday that no matter where the Bulls (48-16) stood going into Wednesday, he planned on using all of his starters, at least for a bit. It helped that the Bulls have had a three-day break since their last game.

"I like where we are in terms of having the opportunity to rest guys. ... We have no one in the top 25 in the league in minutes," he said. "It's good for us."

Injuries to Rose, Deng and Richard Hamilton have limited their time with fellow starters Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah to 14 games together. Rose returned Saturday following a three-game absence due to a sore foot. He's played in only four of Chicago's last 20 games.

As Rose continues to work off the rust - he scored 11 points against Dallas and admitted to some confidence issues when driving the lane - Hamilton is finally playing the way the Bulls envisioned. He scored at least 19 points for the fourth time in seven games Saturday and has reached double figures in four of five.

Deng scored a game-high 22 versus the Mavericks in his second game back after missing two with a rib injury.

While the Bulls haven't been at their best lately, going 6-5 this month, they look forward to fixing any remaining issues as the regular season winds down. Their finale is Thursday against Cleveland.

"Two more games, big games for us," Deng said. "We're still not there quite yet, but almost there."

These teams have split two meetings this season - both in Chicago - after Indiana's first-round playoff loss to the Bulls last April in a five-game series which included four games decided by five points or fewer.

"They put up a fight every time we play them," Rose said last month. "I think it makes us better as a team."

With the No. 3 seed in the East locked up, Indiana (42-23) rested three starters in a 103-97 win over Detroit on Monday. Paul George scored 27 points while Danny Granger, Roy Hibbert and George Hill got the night off.

The Pacers have won 12 of 14. While they figure to rest some of their starters in their regular-season finale, they realize the importance of chemistry and momentum.

"I just think in terms of mental preparation, just want to kind of keep the train going," David West said. "We've been playing some good ball. We've been sharing the load in terms of what we're doing. I think it's just a good idea to keep that rolling."

Korver leads Bulls past Pacers 92-87

By CLIFF BRUNT
Posted Apr 25 2012 10:50PM

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Even as the Chicago Bulls wrapped up another impressive victory, the question that has dogged them remained unanswered: Will Derrick Rose be ready for the playoffs after fighting through injuries all season?

Rose, last season's league MVP, finished with 10 points on 3-for-11 shooting to help the Bulls defeat the Indiana Pacers 92-87 on Wednesday night.

Rose has missed 26 games this season and he's just beginning to return to form after most recently dealing with injuries to his right ankle and foot. Though he couldn't finish like he normally does on his quick, furious drives to the basket, his unparalleled explosiveness was back.

"Every day is getting better," he said. "I'm not trying to do too much out there, just trying to play with the team, trying not to get reinjured. That's the biggest thing, and making sure I'm playing with a lot of confidence."

Rose, who had seven assists and just one turnover in 27 minutes, had 11 points and eight assists on Saturday in a win over Dallas after missing the previous three games.

"I think he's getting a lot more comfortable," Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau said. "His body is feeling a lot better and he needs to play. He needs to play in games. He'll get up to speed very quickly."

Kyle Korver scored 20 points, Carlos Boozer had 16 points and Joakim Noah had 14 points and 14 rebounds for Chicago. The Bulls ended the game needing just a win over Cleveland on Thursday or a loss by the San Antonio Spurs to clinch the top overall seed in the playoffs.

The Bulls said earning the top seed is a secondary goal.

"We're just trying to do what we can do as a team," Noah said. "We're just playing for ourselves. We just want to be playing well for when it really counts."

Lance Stephenson had a career-high 22 points in his first career start for the Pacers, who rested Danny Granger and Leandro Barbosa because they were locked into the No. 3 spot in the Eastern Conference. Indiana will have homecourt advantage against Orlando in the first round.

"Our last two games, the primary goal was to sharpen up for Game 1 of the playoffs," Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. "Our starters got some good reps tonight and so did our bench. We accomplished the goal of getting a good look at Lance Stephenson."

Chicago led 49-36 at halftime after shooting 50 percent from the field and outrebounding the Pacers 25-16. The Pacers shot just 5 for 21 from the field in the second quarter and were outscored 17-12.

Indiana went on a 7-0 run early in the third quarter to cut Chicago's lead to 55-47 and force a timeout.

The Bulls hung tough, and a fast break layup by Richard Hamilton pushed their lead back to 67-54. Chicago led 67-59 at the end of the third quarter.

A dunk by Taj Gibson increased Chicago's lead to 73-60.

Indiana made one more push. A fast break layup by Stephenson cut the Bulls' lead to 78-71 with 5:57 to play, but Chicago maintained control.

Thibodeau said the Bulls will play their regular lineup on Thursday.

"It will be about the same," he said. "We'll see where we are. I want our starters to get more time together, so it will be similar to tonight. We'll see how the game unfolds. I just want us to continue to take it step by step."

Thibodeau said the Bulls need the game against Cleveland to get sharper.

"There's always things you can do better and we need to work on, but we're getting there," he said. "Our starters haven't played a lot together all year so it was a good opportunity for them to get some quality time on the floor. I thought that was good for us."

Rose wants one more chance to prepare for a pressure situation before the postseason begins.

"If the game was in a crazy type of game and at the end I need to take over, that's what I'm going to try to do," he said.

Notes: Indiana shot 50 percent in the first quarter, but trailed 32-24 at the end of the period. Chicago outrebounded Indiana 12-6 in the first quarter. ... The teams combined for just one turnover in the first 12 minutes. ... The Pacers honored their ABA championship teams from 1969-70, 1971-72 and 1972-73 at halftime. All surviving members of those teams were invited. ... Indiana had just its sixth sellout crowd of the season.

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Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/cliffbruntap

Notebook: Bulls 92, Pacers 87

Posted Wednesday April 25, 2012 11:00PM

By Tom Rietmann, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: The Chicago Bulls, pursuing the league's best record and a home-court advantage through the NBA Finals, produced an workmanlike effort in dispatching the Indiana Pacers 92-87 on Wednesday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The injury-plagued Bulls played with their regular starting group intact for only the 15th time this season. They are 13-2 in those games. Three starters scored in double digits -- Carlos Boozer with 16, Joakim Noah with 14 and Derrick Rose with 10. But it was sub Kyle Korver who led them with 20 points in 22 minutes, including a pair of important 3-pointers to hold off Indiana down the stretch. Chicago's bench players totaled 39 points, and reserve center Omer Asik had nine rebounds. The Bulls (49-16), No. 1 in the Eastern Conference, went into the night tied with San Antonio for the best record in the NBA. The Pacers (42-24) are locked in at No. 3 in the East.

QUOTABLE: "I liked the way the starters started the game. I thought it got us off to a good start. And our bench, you can't say enough about those guys. ... (It was) just a lot of good stuff from the bench guys."
-- Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau

THE STAT: Indiana's Lance Stephenson got the first start of his two-year career, replacing Danny Granger, who rested a sore knee. Stephenson hit 10-of-15 shots and scored a career-high 22 points.

TURNING POINT: Korver's nine-point output in the second quarter helped the Bulls to a 16-3 run, leading to a big lead of 15 points. The Pacers, who started the game with 10-of-18 shooting, slumped to 1-of-13 to help the Bulls' cause. Chicago's 41-26 cushion with 6:44 left before the half proved too large for the Pacers to overcome.

QUOTABLE II: "I just think that he's gotten more comfortable. He was out a long period of time. When he comes back, he usually gets up to speed pretty quickly. He said this morning he's feeling a lot better, and that's after two days of practice, too. That's a real good sign."
-- Thibodeau on point guard Derrick Rose, who had 10 points and seven assists in only his second game back after missing 16 of 19 with various injuries.

HOT: Joakim Noah pulled down a game-high 14 rebounds, giving him double digits for the fifth time in six games. ... The Chicago defense held the Pacers under 100 points for the first time in 10 games.

NOT: The Bulls' Richard Hamilton scored just four points after getting 19 in Saturday's victory over Dallas and producing double-digit scoring in four of five games. ... Indiana's Paul George, with seven points, failed to score in double figures for the first time in four games.

QUOTABLE III: "We accomplished the goal of getting a good look at Lance Stephenson. He really had a heckuva basketball game. Everybody knows the talent the kid has. It's a matter of growing."
-- Indiana coach Frank Vogel

GOOD MOVE: Vogel's decision to keep Stephenson in the lineup in the fourth quarter made the game winnable. Stephenson scored 12 points in the fourth quarter on 5-of-6 shooting, including two 3-pointers.

BAD MOVE: The Pacers tried a lot of things, but their inability to rebound with the Bulls kept them from making the game closer, especially early. The Pacers' leading rebounder was Lou Amundson with seven.

NOTABLE: Few Pacers fans left their seats during Wednesday's halftime. The Indiana club honored its three American Basketball Association championship teams during halftime ceremonies. Members of the 1970, '72 and '73 teams were on hand. Mel Daniels, a star center during Indiana's ABA days, drew especially loud cheers. Daniels will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in September. ... The Pacers had only 11 turnovers, giving them 11 or fewer in six of their last seven regular-season games. ... Chicago's 27 assists matched the most against Indiana in the last 19 games.

UP NEXT: For the Pacers, the regular season has ended. They will open the playoffs against Orlando, the No. 6 seed. For the Bulls, Thursday vs. Cleveland.

• Bulls: Scalabrine
• Pacers: Foster, Granger

• Bulls: --
• Pacers: --

• Lead Changes: 0
• Times Tied: 0

• Arena: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
• Officials: #9 Derrick Stafford, #45 Brian Forte, #36 David Jones
• Attendance: 18165
• Duration: 2:05