Lowly Nets sting Bulls
CHICAGO – Remember those Nets that went 0-18 for the worst start in NBA history? Now, they’re on a roll, and the Bulls are facing their own problems.
The Bulls lost, 103-101, to New Jersey on Tuesday night for their eighth loss in nine games. The victory was the Nets’ second in their past three games and marked their first road victory of the season.
“It never feels good to lose to the team with the worst record in the NBA,” the Bulls’ Joakim Noah said. “It hurts.”
The Nets, who cracked the win column by beating Charlotte before losing to the Knicks, now are 2-19 – including 1-12 away from home. Brook Lopez scored 25 points to lead New Jersey.
“The Nets are finally getting healthy,” Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro said. “They will start winning some games.”
Derrick Rose, who had 11 of his 27 points in the final quarter, drove and banked in a high arching shot to give the Bulls a
100-99 lead with 19.5 seconds remaining.
But Devin Harris answered with a driving shot of his own with Rose guarding him, putting the Nets back up, 101-100, with 14.9 seconds to go.
“I saw an opening, and I knew what to do,” Harris said. “It was the same play they ran, we ran on the other end. Pretty much an isolation. It was my shot to take.”
“It just happened that we both ended up hitting runners, going right.”
After a timeout, the Bulls couldn’t get the ball back to Rose, who had been driving to the basket or getting in the lane for good shots.
Instead, Chicago’s John Salmons missed a 3-point attempt before Rafer Alston made two at the free throw line with 6.3 seconds remaining, giving New Jersey a 103-100 lead.
“The play was designed for Derrick to come and get the ball. ... Derrick was unable to get open and we went to John Salmons,” Del Negro said. “We did not attack on that and pulled back for the jumper.”
After Alston’s free throws, Rose was fouled with 2.1 seconds to go. He made the first and missed the second intentionally before Lopez grabbed the rebound — his 10th of the game — as the buzzer sounded.
Chris Douglas-Roberts added 20 points and Harris had 17 for New Jersey.
“We just continue to get better,” said Douglas-Roberts, Rose’s college teammate at Memphis. “The Bulls made a lot of runs at home and we were able to withstand those runs, which is big for an NBA team.”
Douglas-Roberts had three baskets as the Nets began the second half with a 10-0 run to pull out to a 64-54 lead, and they increased it to 12 on a basket by Lopez, who would later pick up his third and fourth fouls in the third quarter.
The Nets led 80-70 after three, and when the Bulls missed four straight free throws to start the final period, the boos began to pour down at the United Center.
Then the Bulls went on a 9-0 run.
Taj Gibson sank a jumper, Rose drove for a basket, Deng dunked and Salmons hit a 3-pointer from the corner to cut the lead to one.
Lopez picked up a loose ball to score for the Nets, but Deng hit another 3-pointer to tie the game at 82.
Rose finally put the Bulls ahead with a basket at 94-93, but Harris responded with a drive, and Douglas-Roberts sank a jumper for a three-point Nets’ lead with 2:10 left.
“When we make a run like that at home, we got to think mentally we have the advantage. We could never pull it together,” said Chicago’s Joakim Noah, who suggested his team’s effort wasn’t good enough over the entire game.
NOTES: Entering the game, the Nets were averaging an NBA-low 87.6 points per game. The Bulls were two from the bottom at 90.4. ... Chicago rookie Gibson scored a career-high 20 on 8-of-12 shooting after he was replaced in the starting lineup by Brad Miller.
