The Bulls have to be pleased to only be down eight at halftime against the Knicks after the first half on Sunday. The Knicks led 27-6 in the first quarter, but Chicago is still right in this game with 24 minutes of basketball left.

Let's get right into the news and notes:

• Carmelo Anthony was just a bully on offense. The Knicks forward got in a rhythm early and once he got rolling, he spun 22 points out of 14 shots and added four rebounds and two assists in 19+ minutes. With Amar'e Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin out, the offense unquestionably belongs to Anthony, and so far today, that's been a good thing.

• The good news for the Bulls is that Derrick Rose is back in the lineup, but he's not quite DERRICK ROSE yet. He recorded his first field goal with 8.7 seconds left in the half, finishing with seven points and five turnovers. It might take him some time to get back to his old self.

• Tyson Chandler suffered an elbow injury, which forced him into the locker room, but he returned to the bench and finished out the second half. The Knicks have been a defensive force with Chandler and they are holding the Bulls to 36 percent shooting. The Bulls have also turned it over 10 times.

• With Chandler out, the Knicks went SUPER small with Anthony at power forward and Steve Novak (!) at center. Is that New York's smallest lineup ... ever?

• Joakim Noah picked up a Flagrant 1 foul for this takedown of Iman Shumpert. Agree with the call?

(video via @Jose3030)

For more on these two teams, check out Bulls blog Blog a Bull, Knicks blog Posting and Toasting, SB Nation Chicago and SB Nation New York.