The Dallas Mavericks decided to end their preseason on a high note with a victory over the Chicago Bulls Tuesday night. Chicago was glad to finally have Gordon back, but they were still without Luol Deng. Chicago was down two more players the Chicago Bulls waived free agents Andre Barrett and Justin Homan. Rookie Aaron Gray once again started in the line-up since he has been impressively consistent. Gray started the game off well by scoring 6 of the Bulls first 8 points. Then Josh Howard decided to answer back by scoring 10 points in a row for the Mavericks. By the end of the second quarter, the Mavericks had taken a 57-45 lead over Chicago.By the beginning of the second half, the Bulls were desperate for some sort of offensive spark. However, they were not able to find one. Chicago only managed 16 points in the third quarter, while Dallas was led once again by Josh Howard, who helped extend their lead. Josh Howard had already dropped a game high 19 points before he left in third quarter due to a wrist injury.
In the fourth quarter, Chicago finally picked it up on offense. Benchwarmers Thabo Sefolosha, Thomas Gardner, and Joakim Noah carried the offensive load for Chicago. All three finished the game with 12 points each. However, this was not enough to catch back up to the Dallas Mavericks, and the Bulls fell to the Mavericks, 88-96.
Dallas received strong contributions from guards Jason Terry, who finished with 16 points and shot 6-for-6 from the field, and Devin Harris, who finished with 13 points and 4 assists. Chicago and Dallas tied their preseason series by winning a game apiece.
Box Score of the Game
Video Recap of the Game
Thursday night was the Chicago Bulls preseason closer against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bulls started the game with their regular season projected starting line-up, which consisted of Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, Tyrus Thomas, and Ben Wallace. Milwaukee was without star shooting guard Michael Redd and center Andrew Bogut. Chicago took advantage of their absences by running the ball up and down the court. Luol Deng led the first quarter charge by scoring 8 of his 12 game points. Every starter scored in the first quarter.
The second quarter was pretty stagnant for both teams. Both teams only managed to score 22 points each. Chicago finished off the first half with a 52-43 lead. Ben Wallace left the second quarter due to a sprained left ankle. This would be the beginning of a string of injuries of Chicago big men during the game.
Ben Gordon opened the second by draining a 3-pointer. Ben Gordon even worked on his passing game by dishing out 3 assists. Joe Smith went on a tear at the end of the third quarter by scoring Chicago's final 8 points. This was by far Joe Smith's best performance of the preseason. Chicago opened up a 13 point lead going into the final quarter. However, Tyrus Thomas left the game in the third quarter due to a right foot injury.
Thomas Gardner put away the Bucks by scoring all of his 9 points in the fourth quarter. Mailwaukee's Yi Jianlian lead the Bucks in fourth quarter scoring by scoring 7 points. Joakim Noah was taken out of the game in the final quarter due to a right ankle injury. Despite the losses of Wallace, Thomas, and Noah, Chicago was able to hold on to their lead and finish off the preseason with a 97-81 victory over Milwaukee.
The Bulls finished off the preseason with a 4-3 record, but the damage had been done in the final game. According to "Blog-a-bull," Wallace and Thomas should be fine, but Noah could miss the season opener. Chicago will open its season on Halloween night in New Jersey against the Nets. New Jersey better have their candy bags ready because Chicago is going to be dishing out a lot of special treats for them, as well as some tricks.
No comments:
Post a Comment