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Nets stun Bulls at United Center By Julian Ramirez PhilBoxing.com Sun, 19 Feb 2012  CHICAGO -- Kris Humphries may not be an All-Star just yet, but when the visiting New Jersey Nets rolled into town Saturday afternoon, the dude formerly known as Mr. Kim Kardashian played like he was one of the best power forwards the NBA had ever seen. Playing with maniacal zeal for 44 minutes, the 6-foot-9, 235-pound Humphries chalked 24 points, 18 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocked shots and 1 steal. He sank 10 of 16 field goals and converted 4 of 6 free throws as the Nets upset the Bulls, 97-85, in front of a sold-out United Center crowd of 22,300. As effusive as Humphries and the Nets were, the Bulls were painfully lethargic. Without an ailing Derrick Rose, who still nursing a tender back, the Bulls started flat, trailed 19-3 early and 34-19 after the first quarter of play. It turned out to be a fatal start as the Bulls never recovered despite repeated attempts at a comeback, including a spirited run that cut the deficit to 7 late in the third quarter. "People say the NBA is the last five minutes. No, it's not. Study the statistics, and they're going to tell you most teams in the league that lead after the first quarter wins. Readiness to play is huge," an obviously rankled Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters after his team's sub-par outing. "We had a bad day," said Bulls forward Luol Deng, who had 14 points on 5-of-14 shooting. Bad day? Not exactly. Horrible is more like it. The Bulls missed 51 of the 84 field goals they took. They also missed a team total of 11 free throws while only 3 of their 13 3-point attempts found the mark. No Bull struggled as mightily as Joakim Noah did. Usually a bundle of energy, Noah looked tired, if not disinterested. He laid a big fat egg on offense and was ineffective guarding Humphries. Noah snared six rebounds, but he got benched all throughout the fourth quarter. Carlose Boozer finished with 16 points and 9 rebounds for Chicago while Taj Gibson added 14. The Bulls usually control the boards with their passion and enthusiasm, but they only had 50 rebounds on this one, just like the Nets. But unlike the Nets, who had 19 assists and 9 turnovers, the Bulls managed just 17 assists against 12 turnovers. Much to the chagrin of a silenced home crowd, the Bulls defense was uncharacteristically weak, surrendering too many penetrations and open shots for New Jersey. And Nets point guard Derron Williams was quick to take advantage by scoring 29 points and dishing 8 assists. MarShon Brooks added 19, mostly on easy or uncontested baskets, while Shelden Williams powered his way to 8 points. The Nets shot 40 percent as a team (34-of-85 field goals). They made 10 of 22 treys and 19 of 25 free throws. It wasn't all gloom for the Bulls, though. Mike James, who recently inked another 10-day contract as Rose heals, provided some spark with 16 points and 7 assists off the bench. The 6-foot-2 journeyman provided welcome relief for back-up point guard C.J. Watson, who struggled early and often while trying to run the vaunted Bulls offense for 26 minutes. With the loss, the Bulls dropped to 24-7 and lost the best overall record in the NBA to the 25-8 Miami Heat. Western Conference powerhouse Oklahoma City Thunder sits at third with a 23-7 won-lost slate. Click here to view a list of other articles written by Julian Ramirez.  |
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