.K. (Short) was obviously the best value in that second-round pic

CHICAGO -- The way everything was crumbling, the Chicago Bulls sure needed a reprieve. Manny Ramirez Jersey . Knocking off the defending champions was a nice one. Carlos Boozer scored 27 points, and the Bulls pounded LeBron James and the Miami Heat 107-87 on Thursday night. Luol Deng had 20 points, Taj Gibson chipped in with 19, and Joakim Noah added 17 points and 15 rebounds as the Bulls had no trouble taking out the Southeast Division leaders. Chicago took control early on and hung on down the stretch after watching a 25-point lead in the third quarter dwindle to 12 late in the game. It was an impressive showing by a team that had dropped six of seven and is once again trying to get by without the injured Derrick Rose. "Our team needed it," Noah said. "We went through a lot the past couple of weeks. Its really hard to play without Derrick. I want to win with Derrick Rose." The Bulls shot 50 per cent and were 10 for 19 on 3-pointers -- four by Deng and three by Kirk Hinrich, who scored 13. They also outrebounded Miami 49-27. James scored 21 points for Miami, but the Heat shot a season low for the second straight game, converting 41.6 per cent from the field after hitting 43.9 per cent in Tuesdays loss to Detroit. "We cant just brush this loss aside," coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We have to really own it, to understand what happened. They just got whatever they wanted, right in the paint, at the rim and if they missed those, then theyre just beating us up at the glass." It didnt help that Dwyane Wade stayed back at the hotel with an illness after sitting out the previous game because of knee soreness. Chris Andersen missed this one for personal reasons, but the Heat will get no sympathy from Chicago. After all, the Bulls lost Rose to a torn meniscus in his right knee in a game at Portland on Nov. 22, and although the former MVP left the door slightly open for a playoff return earlier in the day, the team has ruled him out for the rest of the season. "We really got snake-bitten," Gibson said. "When that happened to Derrick, that was really like, Wow. Were a family in here. When that stuff kind of happens, it was just ... tough. We were on the road, odds were against us." And as if that six-game trip wasnt difficult enough, there was a triple-overtime loss to New Orleans on Monday in their first game back at the United Center. The Bulls did just fine on Thursday, although things got a little tight down the stretch. Miami cut it to 93-81 on Norris Coles runner with 5:38 remaining. But Gibson answered with a jumper and blocked a layup by Udonis Haslem. Deng made a 3 with just under four minutes left to make it 98-81, and Chicago hung on from there. Before that, the only tension came early in the third quarter when Hinrich took a shot to the neck from Cole away from the ball. The result was an angry exchange, a flagrant foul one for Cole and a technical for Hinrich. The Bulls guard hit both free throws after James missed a foul shot, making it 67-45. Boozer led a scorching start by Chicago, scoring 19 points as the Bulls built a 58-44 halftime lead. But in the end, it was the Bulls rebounding and defence that had the Heat shaking their heads. "Weve never been a great rebounding team but weve been able to overcome that," James said. "Teams have done a much better job of rebounding against us. It could be an effort thing, it could be a lot of things but we just got to go out and just go get them. "Im going to do a better job of that, get more rebounds. But its a group thing for a team. We dont have a Kevin Love or Joakim Noah or Dwight Howard, those types of guys who can get you 15-plus, we have to do it as a collective group." NOTES: There was a moment of silence before the game to honour Nelson Mandela, who died Thursday at the age of 95. ... This was the Bulls most lopsided win over the Heat since a 126-96 blowout at Miami on Jan. 16, 2008. ... Andersen expected to rejoin Miami on Friday in Minnesota. The Heat play the Timberwolves on Saturday. Mike Hargrove Indians Jersey . -- The Kelowna Rockets earned their 16th straight win with a 7-2 rout of the Portland Winterhawks in Western Hockey League action Thursday. Andre Thornton Jersey . General Manager Sam Presti said the three-time All-Star had knee swelling that would not subside, and the procedure was intended to solve the problem. He said doctors determined that a loose stitch was to blame for the swelling, that Westbrooks lateral meniscus has healed properly and the procedure was successful. https://www.cheapindiansonline.com/618u-satchel-paige-jersey-indians.html . Carreno Busta broke his opponent five times in the match, but also lost his serve three times in the second set before prevailing in the tiebreaker. Both players struggled with their first serve, as Carreno Busta landed just 51 per cent of his to 47 per cent for Kukushkin.CHARLOTTE, N.C. - The Panthers say theyd like to find a replacement for longtime No. 1 wide receiver Steve Smith in this years NFL draft. The big question is when theyll do it. The Panthers have the 28th overall pick, but the NFC South champions have a variety of needs after getting hit hard in free agency, and could go in a number of directions with their first-round choice. General manager Dave Gettleman said recently that wide receiver, offensive tackle and cornerback are among the teams top needs, but qualified that statement by adding he wont got out of his way to land one. "When you reach for a position of need youre in trouble," he said. Gettleman said he has some reservations about drafting a receiver in the first round because it often takes them longer to adjust to the NFL game than those who play other positions. "History tells you that its a very difficult position to assimilate into (the NFL), especially with the current game being played at the college level," Gettleman said. Gettleman called it a "wide receiver heavy" draft that includes several players whove put up big numbers. He said the trick is finding guys who can easily make the transition to the next level. "Ill look at a guy and hes caught 90 balls ... but of those 45 were flash screens," Gettleman said. "The other 45 he caught, he ran to three spots. So, do they understand coverage? Theyre going to have to learn the whole route tree. How long is it going to take them to assimilate? Its an issue. Its a problem." Smith was released in a salary cap move earlier this off-season. Replacing his toughness and production wont be easy. He caught 836 passes for 12,197 yards and 67 touchdowns for the Panthers in 13 seasons. However, after averaging 76 receptions for 1,284 yards receiving and 5.5 touchdowns in his first two seasons playing with quarterback Cam Newton, Smiths numbers fell off in 2013. He caught 64 passes for 745 yards and four TDs. The Panthers signed free agents Jerricho Cotchery, Jason Avant and Tiquan Underwood, but none is expected to become the next No. 1 receiver in Carolina. Five things to watch from the Panthhers in the draft: ON THE FRONT BURNER: Jordan Gross retired this off-season, leaving a huge hole at left tackle — one the Panthers potentially could address in Round 1. Rocky Colavito Indians Jersey. . Gettleman said there are some tackles in the draft dont have "left tackle feet," but said that doesnt necessarily matter. "There are only so many elite tackles," he said. "There are plenty of guys playing left tackle in this league that dont have classic left tackle feet." Finding a left tackle might take on added importance given Newton is coming off ankle surgery this off-season. FIRST ROUND SUCCESS: The Panthers have had tremendous success with their first-round picks the last three seasons. They grabbed defensive tackle Star Lotulelei from Utah at No. 14 in 2013, and he looks like hes going to be around the league for quite a while. They drafted linebacker Luke Kuechly at No. 11 in 2012 and quarterback Cam Newton first overall the year before that. Kuechly was the 2013 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, while Newton was the Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2011. BLUE GOOSE: Last year, Gettleman said the Panthers needed to add some "hog mollies," or big linemen. This year, the Boston native switched gears, saying if there is a "blue goose" pass rusher available at No. 28 he wouldnt pass on him. Tough to know what a blue-winged bird native to Ethiopia has to do with building a football team, though. CORNERBACK ON RADAR: The Panthers lost starting cornerback Captain Munnerlyn to Minnesota in free agency. While they signed free agent Antoine Cason, dont rule out cornerback as an option with one of the teams top three picks. The Panthers have one pick in each of the seven rounds. DONT BE REACHING: The Panthers are determined not to reach for picks at positions of need. They followed that plan last year and took defensive tackle Kawaan Short from Purdue in the second round — even after selecting Lotulelei in the first. "Last year, K.K. (Short) was obviously the best value in that second-round pick," Gettleman said. ___ AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '