A lot of Pistons fans had April 4 circled on their calendar, as it marked Ben Wallace's second and final regular-season return to the Palace. Unfortunately, those fans were sadly disappointed. From Sam Smith in the Chicago Tribune:Ben Wallace remained at the Bulls' team hotel during Wednesday night's game against his former Detroit Pistons teammates with what was diagnosed as sinusitis after going to the hospital.A sinus infection doesn't sound like a very serious ailment (and the timing caused some Bulls fans to raise an eyebrow), but his symptoms sounded rather severe. Let's put it this way: I've faked an illness to get out of going to school or work before, but I've never gone so far as to subject myself to a spinal tap.
The team also canceled its morning shootaround with Tyrus Thomas also ill.
The Bulls apparently first suspected Wallace might have meningitis based on his symptoms, but coach Scott Skiles said it appeared to be a sinus infection. Skiles said he expects Wallace will play Friday night against New Jersey.
"He had a high temperature, and we sent him to the emergency room," Skiles said. "That was the quickest way to see a doctor. ... This is a guy who generally has zero [health] complaints. You take notice when someone like him says he's not feeling well."
As it turned out, even without him the Bulls dominated the glass, 48 to 32. Their offense ran smoothly for much of the game, but they kicked things up over the final 5:50 of the third quarter to turn a tie game into a 15-point lead heading into the fourth before routing the Pistons by 18.
