Bulls win a REALLY ugly, LeBron-less game.

By Sean Mackey

The Chicago Bulls scrapped out a win last night, edging the Cleveland Cavaliers 109-108. An hour before tipoff, it was announced that LeBron James was listed as inactive. While having LeBron out definitely helped out the Bulls, the Cavs came to play.

Mo Williams had 35 points, 10 assists and 3 rebounds and generally outplayed Derrick Rose most of the night. Not to say Rose wasn't any good, because he had 24 points and 10 assists himself. However, the hero of the game was Bulls center Joakim Noah who tallied 17 points and 15 rebounds along with the game changing jumper late in the 4th quarter. The Bulls however missed 4 free throws in the last minute of play that would have given them a 5 point lead.

I turned the game off at halftime. Although it was relatively high scoring, the defense was sloppy on both sides. It's sad that I feel that way but the Bulls have been playing so uninspired over the last few games. Let's face it, the Bulls got lucky last night with LeBron sitting out and Jamison twisting his ankle midgame. Regardless, the Bulls needed a win and well, they got a big one that they were expected to lose. With the win last night, the Bulls are now tied with Toronto for the 8th and final playoff spot.

Chicago plays the New Jersey Nets tonight at 8:00 p.m. on CSN and NBA League Pass. The Bulls were able to pull out a 20+ point win against this team two weeks ago. Toronto plays the Atlanta Hawks tonight without star Chris Bosh.