Morning Box Score: Bulls Quell Thunder

By Chuck Sudo in News on Dec 7, 2010 3:40PM

Bulls 99, Thunder 90: Looks like Carlos Boozer is rounding himself into game shape quite nicely. The Bulls premier free agent signing had his best game in red, scoring 29 points and grabbing 12 rebounds to pace the Bulls over Oklahoma city that was not nearly as close as the score made it out to be.

If Boozer keeps playing at this rate, he'll easily be the best low post scorer the Bulls have had since Elton Brand. Boozer's ability to score in the paint and draw defenders out on the wings will open up scoring opportunities for his front court partners Joakim Noah and Luol Deng, and take much of the scoring load from Derrick Rose, currently the league's third-leading scorer. Last night's box score bears this out. Deng scored 19 and added 9 rebounds, while Noah did yeoman's work in the middle with 9 points, 12 rebounds and solid defense on Thunder center and league scoring leader Kevin Durant (29 points, none of them easy). Rose, meanwhile, scored 11 points and dished out 9 assists.