Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl
Derrick Rose did just about everything, and it wasn’t good enough.
The Chicago point guard tied a career high with 42 points. He scored 19 in the fourth quarter, made three free throws with 1.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the score, then blocked a shot to force overtime.
The Indiana Pacers bounced back in the extra period to beat the Bulls 115-108 on Friday night and snap Chicago’s eight-game winning streak.
Rose helped the Bulls overcome a 20-point, second-half deficit to force the extra period.
“I’ve seen a lot of teams that would have sort of come out in that overtime in a fog after that type of comeback by Chicago,” Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. “Our guys didn’t do that. They kept their composure, their poise and handled their business in overtime.”
The crowd was about evenly split between Pacers and Bulls fans, and many of them serenaded Rose with “MVP!” chants throughout the night. Indiana forwardDanny Granger agreed with the crowd.
“He carried them all season, he has my MVP vote,” he said. “I think he’s probably the most dominant player we’ve played against this year.”
Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau was unhappy with his team’s effort.
“We’ve got to do a lot better,” he said. “This is a step backwards. We’ve got to come out ready to play.”
Tyler Hansbrough had 29 points and 12 rebounds, Granger scored 19 points andDarren Collison added 17 for Indiana.
It was Hansbrough’s third game of the week with at least 29 points. He had back-to-back games of 29 and 30 points in wins over the New York Knicks on Sunday and Tuesday.
The Pacers struck quickly in overtime. Hansbrough scored in close, then stole the ball from Rose, leading to a layup by Collison that put Indiana ahead 106-102.
Granger made a 3-pointer to push Indiana’s lead to 109-102. Rose’s layup with 43 seconds left cut it to 111-108, but he fouled out trying to stop Josh McRoberts’ dunk attempt with 24 seconds to go. McRoberts made both free throws to give Indiana a 113-108 lead.
Rose made just 11 of 27 shots, but went 18-for-21 from the free throw line. Luol Deng scored 21 points and Joakim Noah added 17 for the Bulls.
Chicago forward Carlos Boozer missed his fifth straight game with an injured left ankle. Indiana took advantage by scoring 23 second-chance points and outrebounding the Bulls 50-46.
Rose made the first of two free throws with 58 seconds remaining in regulation to cut Indiana’s lead to 102-99.
Chicago had a chance to tie, but Rose missed a 3-pointer with 31 seconds left. The Pacers had a chance to extend their lead, but Taj Gibson’s steal gave the Bulls another chance.
Rose dribbled against Collison, and Collison fouled him on a 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds left. Rose made all three free throws to tie the score, then blocked Granger’s 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Vogel said he wasn’t worried heading into the extra period.
“We outplayed them for most of this game,” he said. “We’ll outplay them for five more minutes.”
Chicago held Indiana to 13 points in the fourth quarter, but the Bulls allowed more than 100 points for just the second time in 13 games. It was a subpar effort for a team that leads the league in scoring defense.
“The only quarter we played defense was the fourth,” Thibodeau said. “So you usually get what you deserve.”
It was the last regular-season meeting between the teams, but Rose wouldn’t mind getting revenge.
“That’s a team we could possibly see in the playoffs,” he said. “I can’t wait to play them again.”
by STATS LLC and The Associated Press
