NBA: Bulls, Rose rebound with win at Washington

After taking the blame for his team's loss at Miami the previous day, reigning MVP Derrick Rose went back to work with a spectacular offensive display, as the Chicago Bulls dispatched the Washington Wizards 98-88, Monday (Tuesday, PHL time) on the Wizards' home court. 

 

Rose had 13 first quarter points, on route to finishing with a game-best 35. He shot 50 percent from the floor (10 of 20), missed just one of his 15 free throws, and dished out eight times. 

 

The Bulls came close to dispatching the Miami Heat last Sunday (Monday, PHL time), but Rose missed two pressure-packed free throws in the game's dying moments. He also missed a jumper with 3.7 seconds left that would have knotted the score, potentially sending the game into overtime. 

 

But this time, Rose and the rest of his team could do no wrong.  

 

The Wizards never got a taste of the lead, as Rose made the first bucket of the game, and the Bulls continued to inflate their margin of victory, increasing it to as much as 20 in the third quarter.

 

Washington got an opportunity to close late, courtesy of a 10-3 run that made it 86-78 with 6:50 left to play, but three straight field goals by Carlos Boozer quashed their comeback aspirations. 

 

Chicago started Ronnie Brewer and Kyle Korver in place of the injured Richard Hamilton and Luol Deng, respectively, and the duo combined for 23 points. 

 

John Wall led his squad with 20 points and six dimes, and four other players scored in double-digits for the Wizards, but it wasn't enough to prevent his team from slipping to 4-17, tied with the New Orleans Hornets for the second-worst record in the league. — Adrian Dy/RSJ, GMA News