canihavu
04-10-2009, 05:51 AM
Thomas, Gordon lead Bulls over 76ers, 113-99
CHICAGO (AP)—Ben Gordon and Tyrus Thomas each scored 24 points, and the Chicago Bulls closed in on their fourth playoff appearance in five years with a 113-99 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night.
The seventh-place Bulls reduced their magic number to one over Charlotte, which visits Saturday, and moved a half game ahead of Detroit in the Eastern Conference.
Thomas set a season-high for points while converting a career-best 14 of 14 free throws. He scored 10 in the third quarter and Gordon added seven as the Bulls turned a 50-50 halftime tie into an 82-72 lead, before pulling away in the fourth for their 13th home win in 14 games.
The loss was the third straight for sixth-place Philadelphia, which is stumbling into the playoffs after a late-season collapse a year ago. Andre Miller scored 20 points—none in the fourth quarter—and Andre Iguodala added 19 for the 76ers, who trail Miami by a game and lead Chicago by just 1 1/2 .
They were ahead 61-58 before Gordon tied it with a 3-pointer five minutes into the third quarter to start a 20-6 run that put away the Sixers.
Both teams shot 52 percent, but the Bulls outscored Philadelphia 63-49 in the second half thanks to their unselfish play.
Derrick Rose had 16 points and eight assists, Brad Miller came off the bench to score 15, and the Bulls are on the verge of another playoff berth after a 33-49 freefall last year.
The Sixers appear to be in the middle of one again.
They clinched a playoff spot by beating Detroit on April 4, but since then have lost by 29 at New Jersey and by three at Charolotte—and have rekindled memories of last year’s collapse, when they dropped the final four regular-season games and got knocked out of the playoffs by the Pistons.
They were disjointed and clearly seemed to miss Thaddeus Young, their third-leading scorer, in the previous two games but got off to a promising start against the Bulls.
While Young missed his fifth game with a sprained right ankle, the Sixers rediscovered theirs and grabbed a 38-24 lead early in the second quarter.
It didn’t last, though.
Trailing 44-34 midway through the quarter, the Bulls jumped back into it with a 14-2 run in which Gordon hit two 3-pointers and Rose and Miller each scored four points.
Gordon sandwiched his 3s around Rose’s block on Louis Williams’ layup, tying it at 46. And Miller fed Rose for a fastbreak layup after a steal, giving the Bulls a short-lived 48-46 lead with about three minutes left in the half.
Two layups by Miller put the Sixers back ahead before Thomas dunked with 20 seconds left to tie it at 50.
Notes
Sixers coach Tony DiLeo said there’s a slim chance Young could play in one of the remaining regular-season games, although a more likely scenario is he returns for the playoffs. … The Sixers host Cleveland on Friday, visit Toronto on Sunday, host Boston on Tuesday and finish at Cleveland on Wednesday. … Bulls F Luol Deng will likely miss the rest of the season because of a stress fracture in his right tibia, unless the Chicago Bulls make a long playoff run. GM John Paxson said the Bulls want to avoid surgery so they’re using “total caution.” … F Tim Thomas missed his second game because of a family issue. The Bulls signed rookie G DeMarcus Nelson for the remainder of the season. He appeared in 20 games in the NBA Development League this season, most recently with the Austin Toros. … The Bulls host Charlotte on Saturday and visit Detroit on Monday before hosting Toronto April 15 in the regular-season finale.
CHICAGO (AP)—Ben Gordon and Tyrus Thomas each scored 24 points, and the Chicago Bulls closed in on their fourth playoff appearance in five years with a 113-99 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night.
The seventh-place Bulls reduced their magic number to one over Charlotte, which visits Saturday, and moved a half game ahead of Detroit in the Eastern Conference.
Thomas set a season-high for points while converting a career-best 14 of 14 free throws. He scored 10 in the third quarter and Gordon added seven as the Bulls turned a 50-50 halftime tie into an 82-72 lead, before pulling away in the fourth for their 13th home win in 14 games.
The loss was the third straight for sixth-place Philadelphia, which is stumbling into the playoffs after a late-season collapse a year ago. Andre Miller scored 20 points—none in the fourth quarter—and Andre Iguodala added 19 for the 76ers, who trail Miami by a game and lead Chicago by just 1 1/2 .
They were ahead 61-58 before Gordon tied it with a 3-pointer five minutes into the third quarter to start a 20-6 run that put away the Sixers.
Both teams shot 52 percent, but the Bulls outscored Philadelphia 63-49 in the second half thanks to their unselfish play.
Derrick Rose had 16 points and eight assists, Brad Miller came off the bench to score 15, and the Bulls are on the verge of another playoff berth after a 33-49 freefall last year.
The Sixers appear to be in the middle of one again.
They clinched a playoff spot by beating Detroit on April 4, but since then have lost by 29 at New Jersey and by three at Charolotte—and have rekindled memories of last year’s collapse, when they dropped the final four regular-season games and got knocked out of the playoffs by the Pistons.
They were disjointed and clearly seemed to miss Thaddeus Young, their third-leading scorer, in the previous two games but got off to a promising start against the Bulls.
While Young missed his fifth game with a sprained right ankle, the Sixers rediscovered theirs and grabbed a 38-24 lead early in the second quarter.
It didn’t last, though.
Trailing 44-34 midway through the quarter, the Bulls jumped back into it with a 14-2 run in which Gordon hit two 3-pointers and Rose and Miller each scored four points.
Gordon sandwiched his 3s around Rose’s block on Louis Williams’ layup, tying it at 46. And Miller fed Rose for a fastbreak layup after a steal, giving the Bulls a short-lived 48-46 lead with about three minutes left in the half.
Two layups by Miller put the Sixers back ahead before Thomas dunked with 20 seconds left to tie it at 50.
Notes
Sixers coach Tony DiLeo said there’s a slim chance Young could play in one of the remaining regular-season games, although a more likely scenario is he returns for the playoffs. … The Sixers host Cleveland on Friday, visit Toronto on Sunday, host Boston on Tuesday and finish at Cleveland on Wednesday. … Bulls F Luol Deng will likely miss the rest of the season because of a stress fracture in his right tibia, unless the Chicago Bulls make a long playoff run. GM John Paxson said the Bulls want to avoid surgery so they’re using “total caution.” … F Tim Thomas missed his second game because of a family issue. The Bulls signed rookie G DeMarcus Nelson for the remainder of the season. He appeared in 20 games in the NBA Development League this season, most recently with the Austin Toros. … The Bulls host Charlotte on Saturday and visit Detroit on Monday before hosting Toronto April 15 in the regular-season finale.