Even down players and energy, Bulls up win streak to 7

In the end, it didn't matter who celebrated and who didn't. All the talk about rivalry or not fell aside.

What mattered is the Bulls, down players and energy, again pushed through all to post their seventh straight victory, a 92-72 decision over a physical Pacers team.

"Whoever we're facing, that's who our rival is that night," coach Tom Thibodeau said.

That mindset is a big reason why the Bulls own theNBA's best record at 32-8. It's a big reason why, whenC.J. Watson sits with a sprained left ankle and an ineffective Derrick Rose leaves with two first-quarter fouls, unheralded John Lucas III scores nine first-half points.

The approach is why Ronnie Brewer can finish with 12 points and seven rebounds on a night Richard Hamilton exits just 83 seconds after tipoff with a right shoulder injury. The Bulls' focus and mental toughness is why they can snap the Pacers' six-game win streak even though Indiana rested here on Sunday night while the Bulls battled in Philadelphia.

It's even why Rose and Luol Deng can rebound from poor first halfs — Rose shot 1-for-9; Deng 1-for-7 — for a third-quarter 3-point barrage that turned the game in a 20-4 run.

"In the third quarter, we had great energy and will," Thibodeau said.

Deng scored a team-high 20 points. Rose added 13 points and nine assists despite resting in the fourth quarter.

"People talking ... that doesn't matter," Thibodeau said. "It's what happens out there. Some guys talk more than others. Some guys don't talk at all. It's all meaningless stuff. Just be ready when the ball goes up. That's all."

All this extracurricular banter started Jan. 25, when the Pacers handed the Bulls their first home loss. Rose and Co. took exception to the Pacers' postgame posturing. Two physical teams who engaged in last season's memorable first-round playoff series pointed to this rematch.

"I do look at this game differently, not because of any talk but because they're the best in the league," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "And we want to be the best. Anytime you play against the best, you have to raise your level and show you belong."

The Pacers did that early, smothering the Bulls into 39 percent first-half shooting to grab a 43-42 halftime lead.

But Rose sank three 3-pointers and Deng added two more to overwhelm the Pacers, who did eventually trim their 22-point deficit to 13. That forced Thibodeau to bring back Deng and Joakim Noah when he tried to ride reserves all the way home.

Three of the five Bulls in double figures were reserves, including Taj Gibson, who had 10 points and nine rebounds for an ineffective Carlos Boozer. Noah finished with 17 rebounds and helped hold Roy Hibbert to two points.

"We wanted this game really badly," Brewer said.

And, yes, Noah did celebrate at the final buzzer, waving his hands in excitement.