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NBA | THUNDER 107, BULLS 95
Bulls swoon continues Loss to Thunder makes is 13th in last 17 games BY K.C. JOHNSON #HICAGO 4RIBUNE
OKLAHOMA CITY – Tom Thibodeau and this current Bulls’ core have experienced plenty of high points over the last three-plus seasons. They reached the 2011 Eastern Conference finals, posted the league’s best regularseason record twice,l and won a 2013 first-round playoff series with a gritty Game 7 road victory while missing three rotation players. Now, the Bulls are a Mike Dunleavy gamewinning banked 3-pointer away from an eightgame losing streak. If the wheels aren’t off after Thursday night’s
Up next s #AVALIERS AT "ULLS P M 3ATURDAY 7'. !- 107-95 loss to the Thunder at Chesapeake Energy Arena, the lug nuts certainly need to be tightened. This is what happens when you suffer enough injuries to make the training staff file for overtime. Inconsistency reigns. Already without Kirk Hinrich and, of course, Derrick Rose, the Bulls lost Luol Deng to a sore Achilles before the game and Jimmy Butler to a sprained right ankle during the second quar-
ter. Butler, who stepped on Nick Collison’s foot, left the locker room on crutches before reporters were granted access. Thibodeau said he didn’t know how severe Butler’s sprain is. In easily the worst stretch of this core’s tenure, the Bulls have lost 13 of 16. They are 3-12 since losing Rose for the season to a torn meniscus. Without missing a beat, Joakim Noah answered “yeah, no question� when asked if the Bulls are still a playoff team. Noah’s track record on predictions is solid: He’s the one who guaranteed that Game 7 road victory in Brooklyn.
&RIDAY $ECEMBER
THURSDAY’S SCOREBOARD NFL AMERICAN CONFERENCE
East L T South W L T Y )NDIANAPOLIS 4ENNESSEE *ACKSONVILLE (OUSTON North W L T #INCINNATI "ALTIMORE 0ITTSBURGH #LEVELAND West W L T X $ENVER X +ANSAS #ITY 3AN $IEGO /AKLAND W .EW %NGLAND -IAMI . 9 *ETS "UFFALO
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NATIONAL CONFERENCE
East L T Pct PF PA 0HILADELPHIA $ALLAS . 9 'IANTS 7ASHINGTON South W L T Pct PF PA .EW /RLEANS #AROLINA 4AMPA "AY !TLANTA North W L T Pct PF PA #HICAGO 'REEN "AY $ETROIT -INNESOTA West W L T Pct PF PA X 3EATTLE 3AN &RANCISCO !RIZONA 3T ,OUIS x-clinched playoff spot; y-clinched division Sunday’s games 4AMPA "AY AT 3T ,OUIS NOON )NDIANAPOLIS AT +ANSAS #ITY NOON $ENVER AT (OUSTON NOON -IAMI AT "UFFALO NOON .EW /RLEANS AT #AROLINA NOON $ALLAS AT 7ASHINGTON NOON #LEVELAND AT . 9 *ETS NOON -INNESOTA AT #INCINNATI NOON 4ENNESSEE AT *ACKSONVILLE NOON !RIZONA AT 3EATTLE P M . 9 'IANTS AT $ETROIT P M /AKLAND AT 3AN $IEGO P M 0ITTSBURGH AT 'REEN "AY P M .EW %NGLAND AT "ALTIMORE P M #HICAGO AT 0HILADELPHIA P M Monday’s game !TLANTA AT 3AN &RANCISCO P M W
College football Bowl glance Saturday, Dec. 21 New Mexico Bowl At Albuquerque 7ASHINGTON 3TATE VS #OLORADO 3TATE P M %30. Las Vegas Bowl &RESNO 3TATE VS 3OUTHERN #AL P M !"# Famous Idaho Potato Bowl At Boise, Idaho "UFFALO VS 3AN $IEGO 3TATE P M %30. New Orleans Bowl 4ULANE VS ,OUISIANA ,AFAYETTE P M %30. Monday, Dec. 23 Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl At St. Petersburg, Fla. /HIO VS %AST #AROLINA P M %30. Tuesday, Dec. 24 Hawaii Bowl At Honolulu /REGON 3TATE VS "OISE 3TATE P M %30.
Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com
Newman’s A.J. Sharp drives to the basket Thursday during the Comets’ semifinal game at the Forreston tournament against Aquin. Newman won 74-58.
McCarty leads Comets past Aquin BITE CONTINUED FROM B1 The Comets (8-0) led 20-6 after the first quarter and 43-26 at halftime, with players taking turns in the spotlight. A.J. Sharp and Noah McCarty each scored eight points in the first quarter, then Nolan McGinn and John Payan took over in the second period. McGinn and Payan were a combined 8-for-8 from the field in the second quarter, with Trevor Bolin also dropping in a pair of layups without a miss. McCarty took over in
the third quarter. He hit 5 of 6 shots from close range to fend off whatever comeback opportunities the Bulldogs (8-1) may have been working on. The closest Aquin got was 12 points at 60-48 after a basket from Aiden Chang, but Newman was never in any serious danger. McCarty was a handful all night with 20 points and 15 rebounds. He picked up his fourth foul with 1:38 left in the third quarter, but by then the Comets were ahead 59-38. McGinn finished with 14 points, while Payan and Sharp added 12
each. Chang, Andrew Martin and Rian Borgmann each had 11 points for Aquin, who will take on Polo for third place tonight. Newman, meanwhile, gets a shot at Winnebago. It is a rematch of a sectional final played last season, won 74-52 by the Indians. “It’s a revenge game,� McCarty said. “Hopefully we can come out and give them a fight.� “They’re really, really good,� coach Sharp said. “They’re deep, they all shoot it well, so we’ve got to play an exceptional game, and hopefully we can do that.�
Thursday, Dec. 26 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl At Detroit "OWLING 'REEN VS 0ITTSBURGH P M %30. Poinsettia Bowl At San Diego .ORTHERN )LLINOIS VS 5TAH 3TATE P M %30. Friday, Dec. 27 Military Bowl At Annapolis, Md. -ARSHALL VS -ARYLAND P M %30. Texas Bowl At Houston -INNESOTA VS 3YRACUSE P M %30. Fight Hunger Bowl At San Francisco "95 VS 7ASHINGTON P M %30. Saturday, Dec. 28 Pinstripe Bowl At New York .OTRE $AME VS 2UTGERS A M %30. Belk Bowl At Charlotte, N.C. #INCINNATI VS .ORTH #AROLINA P M %30. Russell Athletic Bowl At Orlando, Fla. -IAMI VS ,OUISVILLE P M %30. Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl At Tempe, Ariz. +ANSAS 3TATE VS -ICHIGAN P M %30. Monday, Dec. 30 Armed Forces Bowl At Fort Worth, Texas -IDDLE 4ENNESSEE VS .AVY A M %30.
Music City Bowl At Nashville, Tenn. -ISSISSIPPI VS 'EORGIA 4ECH P M %30. Alamo Bowl At San Antonio /REGON VS 4EXAS P M %30. Holiday Bowl At San Diego !RIZONA 3TATE VS 4EXAS 4ECH P M %30. Tuesday, Dec. 31 AdvoCare V100 Bowl At Shreveport, La. !RIZONA VS "OSTON #OLLEGE A M %30. Sun Bowl At El Paso, Texas 6IRGINIA 4ECH VS 5#,! P M #"3 Liberty Bowl At Memphis, Tenn. 2ICE VS -ISSISSIPPI 3TATE P M %30. Chick-fil-A Bowl At Atlanta 4EXAS ! - VS $UKE P M %30. Wednesday, Jan. 1 Heart of Dallas Bowl At Dallas 5.,6 VS .ORTH 4EXAS A M %30.5 Gator Bowl At Jacksonville, Fla. .EBRASKA VS 'EORGIA A M %30. Capital One Bowl At Orlando, Fla. 7ISCONSIN VS 3OUTH #AROLINA NOON !"# Outback Bowl At Tampa, Fla. )OWA VS ,35 NOON %30. Rose Bowl At Pasadena, Calif. 3TANFORD VS -ICHIGAN 3TATE P M %30. Fiesta Bowl At Glendale, Ariz. "AYLOR VS 5#& P M %30. Thursday, Jan. 2 Sugar Bowl At New Orleans !LABAMA VS /KLAHOMA P M %30. Friday, Jan. 3 Cotton Bowl At Arlington, Texas -ISSOURI VS /KLAHOMA 3TATE P M &/8 Orange Bowl At Miami /HIO 3TATE VS #LEMSON P M %30. Saturday, Jan. 4 BBVA Compass Bowl At Birmingham, Ala. 6ANDERBILT VS (OUSTON NOON %30. Sunday, Jan. 5 GoDaddy.com Bowl At Mobile, Ala. !RKANSAS 3TATE VS "ALL 3TATE P M %30. Monday, Jan. 6 BCS National Championship At Pasadena, Calif. &LORIDA 3TATE VS !UBURN P M %30. Saturday, Jan. 18 East-West Shrine Classic At St. Petersburg, Fla. %AST VS 7EST P M .&,. Saturday, Jan. 25 Senior Bowl At Mobile, Ala. 3OUTH VS .ORTH P M .&,.
Men’s basketball Big Ten Conference Overall W-L Pct. W-L Pct. 7ISCONSIN /HIO 3T -ICHIGAN 3T )OWA )LLINOIS -INNESOTA 0URDUE )NDIANA .EBRASKA 0ENN 3T -ICHIGAN .ORTHWESTERN Today’s games .ICHOLLS 3T AT )NDIANA P M .EBRASKA /MAHA AT -INNESOTA P M Saturday’s games -ICHIGAN 3T AT 4EXAS P M )LLINOIS VS -ISSOURI AT 3T ,OUIS P M /HIO 3T VS .OTRE $AME AT .EW 9ORK P M -ICHIGAN VS 3TANFORD AT "ROOKLYN . 9 P M 4HE #ITADEL AT .EBRASKA P M Sunday’s games +ENNESAW 3T AT )NDIANA A M 0URDUE AT 7 6IRGINIA NOON !RKANSAS 0INE "LUFF AT )OWA P M "ROWN AT .ORTHWESTERN P M -OUNT 3AINT -ARY S AT 0ENN 3T P M
State schedule Thursday’s results 7RIGHT 3T %ASTERN )LLINOIS )LLINOIS 3T 4ENNESEE 3T 5TAH 3T 7ESTERN )LLINOIS Today’s games 7 )LLINOIS VS 4ROY AT ,OGAN 5TAH P M "RADLEY VS 0ORTLAND AT ,AS 6EGAS P M )LL #HICAGO AT 5# 2IVERSIDE P M Saturday’s games % )LLINOIS AT )0&7 P M "ALL 3T AT 3 )LLINOIS P M 7 )LLINOIS VS 5# 3ANTA "ARBARA AT ,OGAN 5TAH P M "RADLEY VS 0ACIFIC AT ,AS 6EGAS P M Sunday’s games . )LLINOIS AT 5# 2IVERSIDE P M $E0AUL AT )LLINOIS 3T P M
NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division W L Pct "OSTON 4ORONTO "ROOKLYN .EW 9ORK 0HILADELPHIA Southeast Division W L Pct -IAMI !TLANTA #HARLOTTE 7ASHINGTON /RLANDO Central Division W L Pct )NDIANA $ETROIT #LEVELAND #HICAGO -ILWAUKEE
GB ˆ ž GB ˆ ž ž ž ž GB ˆ ž
WESTERN CONFERENCE Southwest Division W L Pct 3AN !NTONIO (OUSTON $ALLAS .EW /RLEANS -EMPHIS Northwest Division W L Pct /KLAHOMA #ITY 0ORTLAND $ENVER -INNESOTA 5TAH Pacific Division W L Pct , ! #LIPPERS 0HOENIX 'OLDEN 3TATE , ! ,AKERS 3ACRAMENTO
GB ˆ ž ž GB ˆ ˆ ž ž ž GB ˆ ž ž ž
Thursday’s Results /KLAHOMA #ITY #HICAGO 3AN !NTONIO AT 'OLDEN 3TATE LATE Today’s games "ROOKLYN AT 0HILADELPHIA P M -ILWAUKEE AT #LEVELAND P M 3ACRAMENTO AT -IAMI P M 5TAH AT !TLANTA P M #HARLOTTE AT $ETROIT P M (OUSTON AT )NDIANA P M 4ORONTO AT $ALLAS P M 0HOENIX AT $ENVER P M -INNESOTA AT , ! ,AKERS P M Thursday’s box score
THUNDER 107, BULLS 95 CHICAGO (95) $UNLEAVY "OOZER .OAH !UGUSTIN "UTLER 3NELL 'IBSON 4EAGUE -OHAM MED -URPHY Totals 29-77 29-39 95. OKLAHOMA CITY (107) $URANT )BAKA 0ER KINS 7ESTBROOK 3EFOLOSHA #OLLISON !DAMS ,AMB *ACK SON &ISHER *ONES 2OBERSON Totals 43-84 12-14 107. #HICAGO ˆ /KLAHOMA #ITY ˆ 3-Point Goals – #HICAGO !UGUSTIN $UNLEAVY 3NELL 4EAGUE 'IBSON "UTLER /KLAHOMA #ITY $URANT *ACKSON )BAKA ,AMB 3EFOLOSHA &ISHER Rebounds – #HICAGO .OAH /KLAHOMA #ITY $URANT Assists – #HICAGO $UNLEAVY /KLAHOMA #ITY 7ESTBROOK Total Fouls – #HICAGO /KLAHOMA #ITY Technicals – $URANT
NHL EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division W L OT Pts GF "OSTON 4AMPA "AY -ONTREAL $ETROIT 4ORONTO /TTAWA &LORIDA "UFFALO Metropolitan Division W L OT Pts GF 0ITTSBURGH 7ASHINGTON 0HILADELPHIA #AROLINA . 9 2ANGERS .EW *ERSEY #OLUMBUS . 9 )SLANDERS
GA GA
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division W L OT Pts GF GA Pacific Division W L OT Pts GF GA !NAHEIM ,OS !NGELES 3AN *OSE 6ANCOUVER 0HOENIX #ALGARY %DMONTON Note: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. Thursday’s results 4ORONTO 0HOENIX 3/ "UFFALO "OSTON 0HILADELPHIA #OLUMBUS 0ITTSBURGH -INNESOTA &LORIDA /TTAWA $ETROIT #ALGARY /4 4AMPA "AY .ASHVILLE 3T ,OUIS -ONTREAL $ALLAS 6ANCOUVER %DMONTON AT #OLORADO LATE 3AN *OSE AT ,OS !NGELES LATE Today’s games !NAHEIM AT .EW *ERSEY P M . 9 )SLANDERS AT . 9 2ANGERS P M 7ASHINGTON AT #AROLINA P M 6ANCOUVER AT #HICAGO P M &LORIDA AT 7INNIPEG P M #HICAGO 3T ,OUIS #OLORADO -INNESOTA $ALLAS .ASHVILLE 7INNIPEG
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