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CHICAGO -- Joakim Noah fell one assist short of his fourth career triple-double Thursday night, and the 6-foot-11 centre sounded almost embarrassed by his pursuit of that feat late in a rare comfortable home win by the Chicago Bulls. "Its not really good to play basketball that way," Noah said. "Focusing on your stats is not that cool, but I tried to get it." Following the Bulls 94-82 victory over the Boston Celtics, no one else in either locker room was about to criticize the focus on statistics at the end because Noahs playmaking ability was the main reason Chicago had a sizeable lead down the stretch in snapping a two-game home losing streak. He finished with 17 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists to lead six Bulls scorers in double figures. "Noah is an all-around winning guy," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. "I coached against Noah as an assistant in college in the Sweet Sixteen. Hes a guy who makes his teammates better in all the different ways. He even made the plays that will never get on the stat sheet -- pulling over and helping, being long and forcing us to make another pass or forcing us to miss a shot. "All those things add up at the end of the game." They just didnt add up to 10 assists. Carlos Boozer had 16 points, Luol Deng 14, Taj Gibson 12, Mike Dunleavy 11 and Jimmy Butler 10 as the balanced Bulls bounced back from a loss to Toronto on Tuesday in the opener of their four-game homestand. Jordan Crawford led the Celtics, who have lost two straight, with 22 points. Noah had nine assists early in the fourth quarter, but couldnt get another. Butler missed a jumper with 8 seconds left in a last-second gasp. "We really wanted him to get the triple-double," Gibson said. "I told him if I was in the game, I would have gotten it for him." The Bulls (13-18) could afford to laugh for a change. Their early-season troubles can be tied directly to their inability to win consistently at the United Center. The Bulls had dropped six of seven home games to fall to 7-7 at the United Center this season. Worse, five of the six losses came against teams with losing records at the time of the game. That stretch began two days after Chicago scored a 20-point home win against defending champion Miami. The Bulls also have a 16-point home win against Indiana, the club with the best record in the Eastern Conference. Even without star guard Derrick Rose, this team expects to win consistently at home. "We have to turn it around," Noah said. "To do that, everybody has to go in and give everything they have. We cant take any nights off. You cant play at 70 per cent, you cant play at 80 per cent. Youve got to give everything youve got every night." To help avoid the prolonged offensive droughts that have plagued his team in the past, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau decided to use Noah as more of a playmaker. "We have always run a lot of the offence through him, and thats what makes us a little different," Thibodeau said. Chicago moved ahead of the Celtics for eighth place in the Eastern Conference despite being five games under .500. "Theyve had their struggles, but thats not a 13-18 team," Stevens said. "As they get fully healthy, theyll continue to have success because they execute on both ends of the floor as well as anybody in the league. That being said, their offence is going to find itself, the shooting will find itself. It did a little bit tonight." NOTES: Celtics G Rajon Rondo, sidelined nearly a year since tearing his ACL, said before the game he is likely to play a stint in the D-League before returning. "I think thats what its for," he said. "Id probably be the first guy to do that, but it doesnt make a difference. I want to make sure Im healthy and handle it the right way. I havent had a preseason. I havent had a training camp." There is no timetable for Rondos return. ... The Bulls had a full complement of players -- other than Rose, who is out for the season -- for a second straight game after playing short-handed for virtually all of December. "The challenge is how quickly we can adapt to the moving parts," Thibodeau said. ... The Celtics, who have a home game Friday against New Orleans, had to stay in Chicago on Thursday night because of the weather. Off White X Air Max 90 Ice White . Right-hander Todd Redmond took the loss. Jose Bautista hit his second home run of the spring. Here are a handful of tidbits from around camp: Hutchison impressive The Blue Jays are being cautious when talking about their young arms but internally, excitement is building over the way Drew Hutchison is looking and performing this spring. Buy Air Max 90 Essential . The midfielder had an operation on Saturday, and is set to miss seven Premier League games, the third round of the FA Cup and the semifinals of the League Cup. http://www.outletairmax90cheap.com/. Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. Air Max 90 Womens Outlet . The D-Backs came into being in 1998 and appear destined to finish second in the AL West after the Tsunami that is the Los Angeles Dodgers swept over them. I thought it might be interesting to see what the D-backs have done over their 16 years compared to what the Blue Jays have done over their past 16 campaigns. Air Max 90 Gray Black . -- Matt Rupert scored once in regulation and again in the shootout as the London Knights extended their win streak to nine games by defeating the Owen Sound Attack 4-3 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action.MEDINA, Minn. - Minnesota Timberwolves forward Dante Cunningham was arrested Sunday for the second time in less than a week, booked for suspicion of making terrorist threats just days after being charged with felony domestic assault for an incident involving his girlfriend. Medina police Officer Chris McGill confirmed Cunninghams latest arrest but declined to go into detail about the allegations, saying police would release more information Monday. Cunningham, 26, was arrested early Thursday and charged with felony domestic assault. According to a criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County District Court, the power forwards girlfriend told police he attacked her during an argument early that morning in his suburban Minneapolis home. The woman, who isnt named in the complaint, told police he kicked down a locked bedroom door, grabbed her around the neck and slammed her against the wall, choking her for 15 to 20 seconds during which she could not breathe. Police said the woman, who had been in a relationship with Cunningham forr the past eight months, did not require medical treatment.dddddddddddd Cunningham was charged with one felony count of domestic assault by strangulation. He was released Friday and missed that nights win over the Miami Heat, but he rejoined the Wolves in Orlando, Fla., in time to play in Saturday nights loss to the Magic. He started, scoring 12 points in 34 minutes. The Timberwolves issued a statement Sunday saying the team is continuing to monitor Cunninghams "very fluid" situation. It didnt shed light on the allegations surrounding his latest arrest, though. "We reiterate that the Minnesota Timberwolves do not condone the behaviour described in the accusations. We continue to wait for the legal process to run its course and will have further comment when appropriate." In his fifth year in the league, Cunningham is averaging 6.0 points and 4.0 rebounds this season. He is set to become a free agent on July 1 after completing the final year of his contract that pays him $2.1 million this season. ' ' '