Winning,

Sometimes when coach Tom Thibodeau sounds warning bells about defensive lapses, they fall on deaf ears. Not this time.

After blowing a 22-point third-quarter lead and nearly getting Sun-burned Tuesday, the long faces in the Bulls' locker room said it all.

They survived Phoenix' comeback 97-94 before 21,873 worried fans at the United Center. But they weren't thrilled about the way they won — or the playoff fever that's getting in the way of their one-step-at-a-time approach.

''We didn't play well,'' Thibodeau said. ''We didn't play tough with the lead. Our shot selection hurt us; our defensive transition hurt us. We were fortunate in the end to get the win.

''But, boy, we have to do a lot better, and we have to clean up a lot of things.''

With the Bulls nursing a 91-89 lead, Grant Hill set up to take a charge as Derrick Rose drove the lane. Rose got the call for a three-point play and a 94-89 lead with 1:52 left.

''I thought I was there,'' Hill said. ''Derrick's the MVP at home. It's not the first time there's been an MVP in this building down the stretch. It was one of those calls that could go either way. He made the call, and you live with it.''

Rose, who finished with 19 points on a frustrating 6-for-15 night, added a key 19-foot pull-up jumper with 33 seconds left. But he still had a bad taste in his mouth afterward.

''I don't feel like I won tonight,'' Rose said glumly. ''We're taking a step back.''

Center Joakim Noah wouldn't go so far as to say it felt like a loss.

''I don't think we should look at it like that,'' said Noah, who had 12 points on 6-for-7 shooting in his first game back after missing three with a sprained ankle.

''It's hard to win in this league. It's important to remember that. There's no question we have things to do to get better. We didn't play our best basketball. But a win is always a positive.''

With the win, their eighth in nine games, the Bulls took another step closer to the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Their magic number is three. They lead the Heat, which was idle, and the Celtics, who beat the 76ers, by three games.

They also remained one game in the loss column behind San Antonio, which beat Atlanta, in their quest for the NBA's best overall record.

The Bulls are 34-5 at home, tied with the Spurs for the best home record.

They can take a big step when the Celtics come to town Thursday. But they can't do it unless they get back to the basics that have brought them this far.

What the Bulls need to do, forward Luol Deng said, is tune out all the playoff chatter.

''There's a lot of distractions going on right now, [fans and media] skipping the games and talking about the playoffs,'' Deng said. ''We can't get caught up in that. Boston is next. We have to lock in. We don't like what happened tonight. We still got the win. Be positive about it, but really try not to skip games with everyone talking about the playoffs.''

Vince Carter, who scored 19 of his 23 points in the second half, led Phoenix, which trailed 76-54 with 3:44 left in the third quarter.

''We started playing their game,'' said Deng, who had 18 points. ''Once we took the [big] lead, we started thinking offensively instead of playing our game.''

''You're going to miss shots,'' Rose said. ''But, defensively, we're trying to do something special. We can't come out and play like we did.''

Bulls guard Keith Bogans strips the ball from Suns forward Grant Hill in the first half Tuesday night. | Jim prisching~apJim Prisching

Fact Box: 3. celtics 52-233 GBFriday: Lost to Hawks 88-83