Morning Box Score: Avalanche Blank Blackhawks, Bulls Dazzle Magic
By Tim Bearden in News on Jan 7, 2012 3:15PM
The puck wasn't bouncing the Blackhawks' Friday night at the United Center as the Avalanche won their fourth straight and the Blackhawks lost their third straight fourth in their last five games. Semyon Varlamov shut down the Hawks in net stopping 27 shots to earn his second shutout. Viktor Stalberg bounced a puck off the post with 5:47 left to go in the third, epitomizing the struggles the Blackhawks had on offense all night. Coach Joel Quenneville was quoted by CBSSports as saying, "We got what we deserved."
The Bulls continue to show why they're a championship caliber team, beating the Orlando Magic on the road Friday night. The Bulls were down early in the first quarter as the Magic kept pushing the ball inside the paint, but after a timeout by Coach Tom Thibodeau, the Bulls turned things around. From that timeout it was all Chicago as they led by 10 at halftime and never looked back. Magic center Dwight Howard, dubbed "the double double machine," achieved another one with 28-points and 15 rebounds, but Superman isn't enough to beat a team like the Bulls. Chicago's defense let Howard do what he wanted most of the night, but they managed to keep the rest of the Magic quiet. Derrick Rose got his own double-double Saturday night with 21-points and 10 assists. It's that one extra pass that keeps Chicago ahead of the rest of the teams. Luol Deng added 21 points and Carlos Boozer had a double double with 20 points and 13 boards. The 7-1 Bulls are off to their best start since the '96-'97 season..
Air Force 68, Chicago State 54
Air Force handed Chicago State its 15th straight loss of the season Friday night in Colorado. The Cougars had an early five point lead, but shooting only 22 percent from the field in the first half allowed Air Force to rally and lead by four at halftime. In the second half, the Falcons made 65 percent of their shots and went on a 13-3 run to control the game.