Bulls Struggle in Loss to Defending Champion Celtics
Saturday, November 1st, 2008 | NBA, Sports
The Boston Celtics defeated the Chicago Bulls 96-80 in the 2nd game of the NBA season for each club. The Bulls fell to 1-1, while the Celtics kept their perfect season intact. The Celtics outscored the Bulls 24-13 in the 1st quarter en route to a 49-31 halftime lead. The Celtics stifled the Bulls’ offense with a tenacious defense, never allowing the Bulls to mount any serious run in the 2nd half. Although the Bulls played even with the Celtics in the 2nd half (49-47), the Celtics cruised to the 96-80 victory.
In his 2nd game in the NBA, 1st overall pick Derrick Rose scored a team high 18 points, but only had 1 assist and 4 rebounds. Tyrus Thomas had another good showing – 11 points and 6 rebounds – while Luol Deng chipped in 8 points and 8 boards. Ben Gordon had 11 points off the bench and Joakim Noah had 13 rebounds in limited time off the bench.
The Celtics played a typical well-balanced game. The Celtics had 5 players with double-digit scoring, including 14 points each from Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce. Kevin Garnett led the Celtics with 18 points and 10 rebounds, while Center Kendrick Perkins chipped in 8 points and 10 rebounds. Leonard Powe had another productive night off the bench with 13 points and 6 boards.
This game typified the task that the Bulls face during the 2008-9 campaign. As was evident last night, the Bulls will be over-matched against the upper echelon NBA teams. They might win a few of those games here and there, but Vinny Del Negro must ensure that his players stay focused during the games that they should win (like in the home opener against the Bucks and like in tonight’s game against the Grizzlies). In these games, the Bulls will need to use their athletic talent to their advantage in order to take the game to the other team. The Bulls should win these games, but because of their youth and the fact that they are being led by a first-year coach, there is a risk that some of these games could fall from their grasp. If they can consistently win these games early in the season, this should build confidence and potentially spur the team on during games against the more talented NBA teams. Tonight’s game against the Grizzlies is a big game (if there is such a thing in the 3rd game of an NBA season). A Bulls win shows that Del Negro and the Bulls will be able to shake off demoralizing losses, while a Bulls loss could mean that Del Negro and the players should expect more losses than wins in 2008-9.
