Chicago Bulls open regular season successfully with victory against Sacramento Kings – NBA News
The Chicago Bulls opened a difficult season at the United Center by hosting the Sacramento Kings, who are looking to be taken seriously in the league this time around. Both teams had a great deal to prove in the game as well as
in the whole season, particularly the Bulls who are playing without All Star point guard Derrick Rose and who will be looking to put up a valiant effort and remain in playoff contention till the time he returns. And Joakim Noah ensured that the Bulls got off
to a winning start when he scored 23 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals and 3 blocks and guided his team to a 93-87 victory over the Kings. Noah had an exceptional night, going 6 of 12 from the field and a near perfect 11 of 12 from the foul line. Tyreke
Evans scored a team high 21 points and 8 rebounds for the Kings, going 8 of 13 from the field and 4 of 4 from the foul line.
Both teams offered stiff competition in the first period, which witnessed a few lead changes and a battle for the edge. Two free throws by Tyreke Evans followed by a hook by DeMarcus Cousins gave the Kings a 17-16 lead, but Noah
quickly answered with a dunk to put the Bulls up 18-17. Sacramento scored the next 5 points to take a 22-18 lead, but Chicago replied with 7 straight points including a three point shot by Marco Belinelli to take a 25-23 lead into the second period.
A layup by Nazr Mohammed put the Bulls up 33-27 in the early minutes of the second period, and Jimmy Butler later scored four straight points to extend their lead to 37-32. A fade away jumper by Richard Hamilton had the Bulls leading
44-38 with 16 seconds left in the first half but Evans scored a layup in the final seconds to have the Kings trailing 40-44 at halftime.
Chicago opened the third period with a 12-2 run that involved offence from Noah and Hamilton predominantly. Sacramento were 1 of 11 from the field to open the third period, managing only 2 points in the first four minutes. The
Bulls kept the lead for the rest of the period but the Kings were able to cut into it near the end, scoring the final four points of the third quarter to trail 63-69 heading into the final 12 minutes of the game.
Two free throws by Marcus Thornton had the Kings trailing 72-75 only, and Evans later scored on two free throw attempts as well to have the Kings trailing 76-79. However, Boozer made a three point play to put the Bulls up 86-78.
Aaron Brooks kept the Kings in the game with a three pointer to have them trailing 81-86, and Evans later scored a jump shot to cut the Bulls lead down to three with 41 seconds left in the game. However, the Bulls nailed all their free throws in the final
minute to hang on to their lead and won 93-87 in the end.
Hamilton finished with 19 points while Boozer had 18 points and 8 rebounds for the night. Kirk Hinrich had 3 points and 7 assists. Thornton had 15 points for the Kings where as Cousins finished with 14 points and 7 rebounds. The
bulls shot well from the field but were only 2 of 9 from three point range. They led 46-40 in rebounds, 10-5 in blocks, 21-14 in assists and had 33 free throws attempts compared to only 16 for the Kings.
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