The Magic's Rashard Lewis uncorks a long two-pointer over the Bulls' Joe Smith in Orlando's 102-88 victory over Chicago on Tuesday night. Lewis scored 26 points in the contest.
Photo by Fernando Medina, NBAE/Getty Images
I don't have much to say about this game, honestly. We played well up until the fourth quarter, when both coaches emptied their benches and the Bulls' scrubs waxed our scrubs to make the final score respectable. Make no mistake, though: we owned this game, and this win should boost our confidence. Rashard Lewis had his 5th good game in a row, Brian Cook (14 points) and Keith Bogans (15 points) had great games off the bench, and we won big. So what if it was over a mediocre Bulls team that doesn't look like it's going anywhere? Wee need all the momentum we can get heading into next week's two games against Detroit.
The highlight of the game, at least for me, had nothing to do with the action on the floor. Radio color-commentator Richie Adubato had some fun with play-by-play man Dennis Neumann, who routinely praised -- with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek -- the play of the Bulls' Viktor Khryapa (career averages: 4.5 points, 3.5 rebounds). Adubato asked Neumann a question along the lines of, "Why do you like him so much?" to which Neumann replied, "Well, he's no Jake Voskuhl, but he's good enough." Ouch, Dennis. Ouch.
We play at Charlotte tomorrow night, against which we are 3-0 this season. A win there would go a long way toward boosting our confidence and putting more distance between us and Washington, which is right on our heels in the Southeast.
For an idea of what Bulls fans are thinking, check out the comments of BlogABull's open thread.
Note: Those of you who saw this thread before this update noticed I left a few placeholders in the Rashard Lewis picture caption. Sorry about that; I'm really embarrassed.