Loading ...But here we are a few months later with the Chicago Bulls sitting at 26-8 and wrapping up the "first half" of their season. The Milwaukee Bucks come to town on Wednesday night (7 p.m. on CSN) before both teams get a much needed break. Derrick Rose, Luol Deng and Tom Thibodeau will not get that break of course, as they will be heading to Orlando for the All-Star festivities. But everybody else can rest up and get prepared for what should be a thrilling second half of a hectic season.
The Bulls and Bucks have played twice already this year, with the Bulls coming out ahead both times. In the first game at the United Center on Jan. 27, Bucks point guard Brandon Jennings erupted early before Rose took over and led the Bulls to a 107-100 victory. Rose finished the night with 34 points while Jennings had 25, although only six of those came after halftime.
The second meeting on Feb. 4 was just a brutal shellacking. Rose and Co. burst out of the gates and blitzed the Bucks in the first quarter en route to a 113-90 stomping. Rose was dominant with 26 and 13, but this was also the first game his back spasms began to really flare up. And for some reason, Thibodeau decided to throw Rose back out there in the fourth quarter of a blowout. But I have given Thibs enough garbage for doing that, so I'm just going to stop it right there.
As for Wednesday's game, I'm expecting a similar result as the previous two. The Bucks have not been playing all that well and have lost five of six. Interestingly enough, three of those losses came against the Orlando Magic, so I would bet those two teams are pretty sick of each other at the moment. In any case, the Bucks have had issues scoring the basketball during this recent stretch (just 91 points per game), and I can't imagine that changes much against the Bulls' stingy D.
The Rose/Jennings matchup is always an interesting one to watch, although Rose has been the clear victor pretty much every time. And since Jennings got off to that red hot start in the first game between the two teams, Rose has wiped the floor with him. We know how personal Rose takes it when other point guards go off, so things have not been pretty.
One guy the Bulls need to keep an eye on is Ersan Ilyasova. Since Drew Gooden went down with an injury, Ilyasova has gotten big minutes in the Bucks' frontcourt and has really produced. In the past four games, Ilyasova has averaged 20.3 points and 14.3 rebounds. This stretch includes a monster 29-point, 25-rebound effort against the New Jersey Nets on Sunday. Ilyasova is a guy that can step out and hit jumpers, so Carlos Boozer or Joakim Noah or whoever is guarding him must stick with him.
Rookie Jon Leuer is also somebody worth watching on the Bucks, as he too has been the beneficiary of Gooden's injury. The former Badger was recently inserted into the starting lineup, and although he does not play many minutes (think Keith Bogans type minutes), he has been somewhat productive (emphasis on somewhat). And remember, Leuer did torch the Bulls at the United Center earlier this year.
Somebody the Bulls may not have to worry about is Stephen Jackson. "Captain Jack" has been pretty terrible this year and has also fallen out of favor with former Bulls coach Scott Skiles. The two have clashed repeatedly, and the results have been a suspension and multiple benchings. He played zero minutes in the Bucks' last game and just eight in the game before that. Safe to say it's been quite a toxic situation.
Regardless of whether or not Jackson plays much, I do not see this game being all that close. Sure funky things happen (like the Nets debacle on Saturday), but I would imagine the Bulls want to head into the break on a really strong note. I expect a focused and top notch performance from the boys tomorrow, so hopefully they won't let me down.
Probable Starting Lineups (Season Scoring Average)
PG: Brandon Jennings (18.3)
SG: Shaun Livingston (7.5)
SF: Carlos Delfino (9.7)
PF: Ersan Ilyasova (10.2)
C: Jon Leuer (5.3)
Chicago Bulls
PG: Derrick Rose (22.0)
SG: Ronnie Brewer (7.4)
SF: Luol Deng (15.9)
PF: Carlos Boozer (15.6)
C: Joakim Noah (9.4)
Tags: Brandon Jennings, Carlos Boozer, Chicago, Chicago Bulls, Derrick Rose, Drew Gooden, Ersan Ilyasova, Joakim Noah, Jon Leuer, Luol Deng, Milwaukee Bucks, NBA, Scott Skiles, Stephen Jackson, Tom Thibodeau
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