Rose Leads Bulls Past Raptors
Derrick Rose had 36 points and 10 assists, and the Chicago Bulls took another step toward the top seed in the Eastern Conference with their 15th win in 17 games, hanging on to beat the short-handed Toronto Raptors 113-106 on Saturday night.
The Bulls lead Miami by three games and Boston by 3 1/2. They also are within one of San Antonio for the NBA's best record after squeezing by one of the league's weakest teams.
Rose came up big after scoring 27 points the previous night in a win at Detroit, and Tom Thibodeau broke Phil Jackson's club record for wins by a first-year coach as the Bulls improved to 56-20.
Carlos Boozer added 18 points and 10 rebounds despite early foul trouble. Luol Deng scored 17 points, Taj Gibson had 15 points and nine rebounds, and Kyle Korver came up big down the stretch to finish with 10 points.
The Bulls held Joakim Noah out for the third straight game because of a sprained right ankle, and the Raptors were no picture of health, either.
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