Knicks vs. Bulls: Video Highlights, Twitter Reaction, Grades and More

The Chicago Bulls got their revenge against the New York Knicks on Tuesday night. A couple of days after dropping a heartbreaker in overtime on Sunday, the Bulls evened the score by beating the Knickerbockers, 98-86, in Chicago.

The Bulls received contributions from all over, including 20 points from aged veteran Rip Hamilton and 14 points from Kyle Korver. Carmelo Anthony did his best to lead the Knicks to a win, with 29 points, but he didn't get enough support from his teammates.

The Bulls are now 44-14 on the season. The Knicks have fallen to 29-28.

Here's a rundown of what this game was all about. 

Tweets of the Night

Michael Scotto of RealGM.com approved of Carmelo Anthony's hot start:

"

Carmelo Anthony carrying NY & the Empire State Building on his back with 11 pts on 5-6 FG's & 3 steals. #Knicks #NYK

— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) April 11, 2012"

The fake Bill Walton offered his take on the way 'Melo is playing these days:

"

Carmelo continues to impress without Amar'e & Jeremy Lin. Somewhere Kobe watches, proud that his "System" is catching fire across the NBA.

— The Bill Walton Trip (@NotBillWalton) April 11, 2012"

The fake Walt Frazier enjoyed seeing Rip Hamilton doing work on Tuesday night. And for a variety of reasons, his tweet had me rolling and LOL'ing:

"

Between the facemask and the free-throw-side-dribble, Rip Hamilton's gimmick creatin' has the cynic in me hatin'!

— (Not) Walt Frazier (@NotWaltFrazier) April 11, 2012"

ESPN approved of Rip's big night, too, albeit in a slightly less comical way:

"

18 third quarter points from Rip Hamilton. Yeah, he's still got it. #Bulls #Knicks

— ESPN (@espn) April 11, 2012"

Would Jeremy Lin have saved the Knicks in this game? Netw3rk thought so. Anybody besides Toney Douglas, really:

"

Could've really used Lin or a not-garbage Baron Davis. Or any player other than Toney Douglas.

— netw3rk (@netw3rk) April 11, 2012"

In the end, it was another Derrick Rose-less win for the Bulls. Midway through the game, Chris Palmer of ESPN.com pointed out something scary:

"

Derrick Rose misses 22 games (and counting) and the Bulls are in 1st place.

— chris palmer (@ESPNChrisPalmer) April 11, 2012"

Must-See Highlights

Ever wanted to see Omer Asik deny Tyson Chandler and set up Kyle Korver for a transition three?

You're in luck. Check it out:

And here's Rip Hamilton knocking down a tough and-one in the third quarter:

Grades for Knicks Key Players

Carmelo Anthony: B+

'Melo was playing "A+" basketball in the first quarter, as he scored 11 points and helped steer the Knicks to a 25-22 lead.

The Bulls clamped down on 'Melo after that, holding him to a single field goal in the second quarter.

Still, 'Melo finished the game with respectable numbers. He scored 29 points, dished five assists and had four steals. He didn't help out much on the boards, but other than that, he had a solid game.

Baron Davis: C+

Did Baron Davis even play in this game?

He did, but he didn't do a whole heck of a lot. In 25 minutes of action, Davis had eight points on 3-of-6 shooting with six assists. However, he also turned the ball over four times.

In short, he didn't keep anyone from wondering if things would be any different if it was Jeremy Lin out on the floor in his place.

Tyson Chandler: B

I'm giving Tyson Chandler a "B" because he was basically the only Knicks player cleaning up on the boards on Tuesday night. He pulled down 15 of the team's 33 rebounds, and he also scored 10 points and blocked three shots.

Grades for Bulls Key Players

Rip Hamilton: A

Rip Hamilton made the most of his 20 minutes of action on Tuesday night. He scored 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting with four rebounds and five assists.

Not bad for 20 minutes of work. Not bad at all.

Kyle Korver: A-

Kyle Korver did his typical Kyle Korver thing on Tuesday night, and then some. He had 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, with three of his buckets coming from beyond the arc. 

That's not all Korver did. He also pitched in seven rebounds, three dimes and three blocked shots. And here I was thinking he was just a three-point shooter.

Luol Deng: B+

Luol Deng logged more minutes on Tuesday night than any other Bulls player. In his 40 minutes, he had a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. He also had four assists.

Deciding Factor: Rebounding

The Bulls out-rebounded the Knicks 51-to-33. They pulled down 18 offensive rebounds, compared to just five for the Knicks.

That's how you win basketball games, folks. 

Unless we're talking about the Knicks. They demonstrated how to lose basketball games.

Game MVP: Rip Hamilton

The game MVP would have gone to 'Melo in a landslide if the Knicks had won, but the Knicks didn't win.

So it goes to Rip Hamilton instead. He owned the third quarter, and he generally played like he might have played back in his heyday with the Detroit Pistons. I'll be damned if it wasn't fun to watch.

What's Next

The Knicks will travel to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks on Wednesday. The Bulls will get ready to host LeBron James and the Miami Heat on Thursday.