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 Chicago enters the challenging portion of the slate on a sour note
after dropping a 125-94 decision to Golden State at home on
Wednesday, the squad's fifth loss in seven games. "It's
embarrassing, man," Bulls guard Derrick Rose told reporters after
his team gave up its most points in regulation since Nov. 3. "We let
go of the rope and stopped communicating. If you don't have
communication on the defensive side when you're playing a team like
that, it can get ugly." The Celtics have also struggled to get stops
of late, having given up an average of 116.7 points in a 1-2 road
trip. Guards Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley combined for 40 points
in a 115-109 loss at Toronto on Wednesday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, WPWR (Chicago), CSN New England (Boston)
ABOUT THE BULLS (24-17): Rose was the bright spot in the loss to the
Warriors with 29 points and he has scored at least 20 in consecutive
games for just the second time this season. The three-time All-Star
is averaging 22.3 points on 50.9 percent shooting over a three-game
span after missing one contest with knee issues. Rose (18 points)
was one of six Chicago players in double figures in a 101-92 win
over the Celtics earlier this month.
ABOUT THE CELTICS (22-21): Boston had a six-point lead at halftime
in Toronto and it lost a fourth-quarter advantage in an overtime
loss at Dallas earlier in the week, more indications that a normally
solid defense is not performing when it needs to. "We never adjusted
to what they were doing and all of those guys got real comfortable,"
forward Jae Crowder told the media after the loss to the Raptors.
Reserve center Kelly Olynyk is doing his best to keep up on the
offensive end by nailing 16-of-26 3-pointers in a six-game stretch
and averaging 16.8 points 26.3 minutes over his last four contests.
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BUZZER BEATERS
1. Crowder, whose career scoring average is 7.1 points, has reached
double figures in 27 of the last 28 games.
2. Bulls C Pau Gasol had one point on 0-of-8 shooting against the
Warriors after scoring a season-high 31 points his previous time out
against Detroit.
3. Both teams shoot 43.4 percent from the floor, tied for 23rd in
the league.
PREDICTION: Celtics 102, Bulls 99
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