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Those following NBA scores may have watched a brutal Game 5 between Chicago and Philadelphia on Tuesday night, but the Bulls managed to hold on for a big win and avoid elimination for another day. The Bulls will have the same mission when they head to the City of Brotherly Love on Thursday night.

Bulls vs. 76ers Odds – Thursday, 7:00 PM ET

A 5dimes.com review would tell you that most players are playing hurt at this point in the season, especially with the shortened schedule, and Luol Deng fought through a bad wrist to drop 24 points in a 77-69 win in Game 5, while Carlos Boozer added 19 points, 13 boards and six assists for the Bulls, who shot 41.5% from the field, but held the 76ers to 32.1%. Without Derrick Rose, the Bulls are struggling for offense, but their profile has remained high among those that use sportsbook software because of their defense, which has been among the league’s best for the last two seasons. They’ll need another effort like the one they produced in Game 5 with their backs against the wall, on the road in a hostile environment. 

Jrue Holiday had 16 points, while Lou Williams came off the bench with 13 points for the 76ers, who scored just 26 points in the first half. Andre Igoudala had a rough night, hitting just four of his 19 field-goal attempts, but the 76ers did get a solid night out of Spencer Hawes, who had 11 points and 14 rebounds. Philadelphia now returns home, but they should feel like they threw a game away as the Bulls are without Rose and Joakim Noah. This series shouldn’t be in doubt, but a lot of the 76ers haven’t been in this position before and it showed, although credit to Chicago, who is one of the best defensive teams in the NBA free odds.

The 76ers are favored by three points at the best online betting sites, and they won both of their games at home so far in the series. But their performance in Game 5 left a lot to be desired and there is a good chance that the Bulls will have Noah back in the lineup, which will bolster their defense even more. This would be a good game for Holiday to take control, but we’re not sure if he’s ready to do that yet and this Philadelphia team may still have a way to go before they can be considered an elite team. This will be a sloppy game like the last one, but the Bulls are a stubborn team and they’ll pull out a tight win in your sports betting book on Thursday night.