CHICAGO (AP) — Center Joakim Noah is out of the Chicago Bulls’ lineup for the second straight game because of a sprained left ankle.
Noah was in street clothes at the start of Tuesday night’s Game 5 against the Philadelphia 76ers. The Bulls, who trailed 3-1 in the first-round series, were trying to avoid becoming just the fifth top seed to lose to an eighth seed.
Noah was injured midway through the third quarter of Game 3 when he stepped on Andre Iguodala’s foot while driving the lane and crashed to the court. He sat out Game 4.
Noah shot free throws at the end of the morning shootaround on Tuesday but had a noticeable limp.
The Bulls lost star guard Derrick Rose to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee late in the series-opening victory.
