CHICAGO | Tyrus Thomas scored 19 points, Brad Miller added 18 and the Chicago Bulls overcame a poor start to beat the Washington Wizards 93-70 on Friday night in the preseason finale for both teams.
The Wizards played without Antawn Jamison and saw their other two stars, Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler, struggle in an ugly loss to a short-handed team. The Bulls were without point guards Derrick Rose (ankle) and Kirk Hinrich (left elbow) yet managed to pull this one out despite missing 16 of their first 18 shots.
Miller provided a big spark, ending the first quarter with a long jumper and 3-pointer shortly after he checked in, and finished with seven assists and six rebounds. Thomas scored 12 points in the second quarter as Chicago grabbed a 41-39 lead, and the Bulls broke it open with a 17-0 run in the third.
Joakim Noah added 13 points and 16 rebounds for Chicago (6-2). John Salmons scored 14 points, and Taj Gibson finished with 13.
The Wizards (4-4) got a solid effort from Andray Blatche (14 points) but little from their two healthy stars. Arenas scored 15 points on 3-for-12 shooting; Butler went 2-for-9 for six points.
With a 48-46 lead, Gibson buried an 18-footer just under five minutes into the third quarter to start the decisive run. Noah followed with a hook shot and layup, and Salmons capped the burst with a fastbreak layup that made it 65-46 with 2:25 left.
The Bulls open Thursday against San Antonio, and Rose expects to be ready. Sidelined since the first preseason game by an inflamed tendon behind his right ankle, Rose practiced Thursday, but coach Vinny Del Negro decided to take a cautious approach with the reigning rookie of the year.
Washington opens Tuesday in Dallas.
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