Derrick Rose scored 15 of his 24 points in the second half, outplaying John Wall and leading the Chicago Bulls to a 103-96 victory over the weary Washington Wizards on Saturday night.
Joakim Noah had 21 points and nine rebounds for Chicago, which earned its third consecutive victory in its last home game until Dec. 1. The Bulls open a seven-game road trip Tuesday at Houston, clearing out of the United Center so the circus can come to town.
Before the big show could take over Chicago’s longtime home, Rose and Wall faced off in a matchup of speedy young point guards with similar backgrounds. Both played for John Calipari in college and were selected No. 1 overall by lagging franchises in need of a boost, Rose in 2008 and Wall this year.
Their first regular-season matchup went to Rose, rapidly blossoming into one of the NBA’s top players in his third season. Wall, playing his third game in four nights and hampered by a sprained left foot, finished with 16 points, six assists and two rebounds.
The Bulls took control with a 13-0 run that started in the second quarter and carried over into the second half. Rose hit two jumpers and Keith Bogans capped the surge with a 3-pointer that made it 59-42 with 7:54 left.
Gilbert Arenas made seven 3-pointers and finished with 30 points for Washington, which has lost four of five. Fellow reserve Nick Young finished with 11.
Arenas and Wall each hit late 3s to help Washington cut Chicago’s lead to 97-91, but Rose grabbed an offensive rebound and made two free throws with 13.2 seconds left. After another Arenas 3, Noah made two key foul shots.
Luol Deng had 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists for the Bulls, who forced 23 turnovers, leading to 18 points.
All the talk before the game was about Rose and Wall, but Wizards coach Flip Saunders downplayed the similarities, pointing to Rose’s experience while praising Wall’s maturity and development. And Wall talked about all the top point guards in the NBA.
The first half was pretty much a draw, with Wall setting up the highlight play of the night. The ex-Kentucky star threw a perfect lob on the break to JaVale McGee, who slammed it in over Kyle Korver to cut Chicago’s lead to 38-37 with 4:06 left in the second quarter. McGee’s dunk delighted the Wizards’ bench and drew ’ooohs’ from the crowd, but he missed the resulting free throw and Chicago scored the next six points.
Lost in the all the pregame hoopla was the return of Kirk Hinrich, who made his first regular-season appearance in the United Center since he was traded to Washington in June. Hinrich got a round of applause when he stepped on the floor about 90 minutes before the game, and more cheers when the Wizards’ starting lineup was introduced.
Hinrich, the seventh overall pick in the 2003 draft, spent seven seasons in Chicago, averaging 13.4 points while setting the franchise record with 812 3-pointers. The Bulls traded him away to get more salary-cap space, hoping to lure a couple of the marquee free agents that were on the market this summer.
“I love Chicago,” Hinrich said before the game. “It’s a great city. It’s really my home.”
The Bulls paid tribute to Hinrich during a timeout in the first quarter, showing a montage of his career highlights on the overhead videoboard. But the former Kansas star finished with just eight points.
Notes: Washington F Al Thornton stayed in the starting lineup one night after he left a 93-85 loss to Charlotte with stomach pain. “We’re hoping it’s not a strain, because that can be lingering,” Saunders said before the game. “Hope it’s just something that he ate.” … Wizards F Yi Jianlian left with a bone bruise on his right knee. His status was uncertain.
