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Sunday smorgasbord: The Chicago Bulls handed the Indiana Pacers their first loss of the season in a 110-94 decision Saturday at the United Center. Derrick Rose was 6-of-11 from three-point range, as the Bulls shot 57.9 percent from three-point land. Making an uneducated guess (the only type that we know how to make around here) that the Bulls rarely — if ever — will lose when Rose makes more three-pointers than the opposing team (the Pacers had four three-pointers).
The Chicago Bears host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. Sadly, there will be no cheerleaders on the Soldier Field sidelines.
* Speaking of Rose and stats, impressive was his not committing a turnover. Less impressive was his 1-of-5 shooting on non-three-pointers. Then again, the Pacers’ Paul George was 3-of-14, and Indiana’s starters were 1-of-9 in three-point attempts. Even so, the Pacers still theoretically could challenge the Bulls’ all-time best NBA mark of 72-10. They would have to go 64-8 to do so, but anything is possible — until it statistically isn’t.
* Speaking of impressive Bulls numbers, amazingly no starter played more than 32 minutes. Reserve guard Kirk Hinrich led the team with 33 minutes. Could it be that coach Tom Thibodeau is monitoring minutes more than anyone might have imagined?
* Speaking of handling time, has anyone ever seen a field-goal unit come onto the field and get a kick off quicker than the Wolverines did in the final seconds of regulation to force overtime at Northwestern? With a 27-19 triple-overtime loss, coach Pat Fitzgerald’s team has lost six games in a row. Could it be that Fitzgerald — who not so long ago was a hot commodity nationally — might not be a fixture on the Evanston campus for decades? And not because he’s opting for a more attractive opportunity. Another season or two like this one, and somebody might have to make a tough call regarding what had been a feel-good story.
* Speaking of tough calls, for those who might have missed the BTN program “Tiebreaker,” check it out sometime. It’s the story of the 1973 Michigan-Ohio State football game that ended 10-10 and left the choice of sending one of those teams to the Rose Bowl (back in the day when the Big Ten champ was the only conference team that went to a bowl game). As interesting as the story is, it’s at least equally as interesting to see how the participants have aged (some better than others).
* Speaking of college football documentaries (yes, some of spent most of Saturday on the couch and watching sports — gee, who could have guessed?), CBS Sports has an excellent one in “Marching On: 1963 Army-Navy Remembered.” It deals with the football game in the aftermath of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Very moving — especially for those of us who can recall that trying time in American history.
* Speaking of college football, when there is rain at a game, is there nothing they can do to wipe camera lenses to take care of the raindrops? Little windshield wipers maybe? Or possibly a towel? No one is asking for 21st century technology to solve the problem; 20th or 19th century remedies will suffice.
* Well, here is a game-winning touchdown that redefines “improbable” and possibly could serve as some consolation for Northwestern fans (OK, maybe not):
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