Bulls at Pacers
Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler can take as much time as they need to recover from their injuries if E’Twaun Moore and Nikola Mirotic continue to pick up the slack. The two reserves will try to lead the Bulls to a third straight win when they visit the Indiana Pacers on Friday. The Pacers are winners of three straight and nine of 11 to pull within a half-game of the No. 8 spot in the Eastern Conference.
Moore buried the go-ahead 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds left and scored a career-high 19 points on 9-of-10 shooting in a 108-105 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday, while Mirotic scored nine of his 26 in the final three-plus minutes. The two are getting expanded minutes alongside Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah and have succeeded at spreading the floor with some sharp outside shooting. Indiana did Chicago a favor in the standings when it began its winning streak with a win over Cleveland and has taken the last two by a combined 43 points.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CSN Chicago, FSN Indiana
ABOUT THE BULLS (39-23): The heroics of Mirotic and Moore helped Chicago overcome a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter, and Moore’s efforts on the defensive end are earning him more playing time. Mirotic scored in double figures twice in a 19-game stretch before the Bulls lost Rose and Butler but has gone for at least 23 points in each of the last three games. The 6-10 forward attempted at least seven 3-pointers in each of those three games but is complementing his long-range shooting by slashing to the hole and has gone 27-of-35 from the free-throw line in those contests.
ABOUT THE PACERS (26-34): Indiana is attempting to sweep a four-game homestand and is thriving on the defensive end, allowing an average of 80.7 points in the last three games. “I think the intensity we’ve been playing with on the defensive end has helped us out a lot,” Pacers guard C.J. Miles told reporters. “It’s created turnovers and created a chance for us to get a guy on the break for open shots.” Indiana forced 16 turnovers in the first half alone Wednesday against the New York Knicks, while George Hill and Miles each knocked down three 3-pointers in the 105-82 triumph.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Pacers G Rodney Stuckey has scored in double figures in eight of the last nine games.
2. Bulls F Taj Gibson (ankle) is expected to miss his fourth straight game Friday.
3. The road team has taken each of the two meetings this season, with Indiana grabbing a 99-90 victory at Chicago on Nov. 15.