Bulls Win In London

The Chicago Bulls played in front of a sold-out crowd of 18,689 at the 02 Arena in London. The hometown favorite, Luol Deng, scored 18 points as the Bulls defeated the Utah Jazz 102-101. Rookie James Johnson had an excellent game, displaying his short jumper with less than a second on the clock., to delight a crowd that was rooting for the Bulls. Deng, who sat out the fourth quarter, said ”It was unbelievable, seeing some of the people in the stands who helped me get to where I am in basketball, and seeing so many Bulls jerseys. When I was growing up I couldn’t say that. It says a lot about the development of basketball in this country.” Jannero Pargo, Taj Gibson, and Kirk Hinrich got the start for the Bulls since Derrick Rose (ankle and Achilles) and Tyrus Thomas (hip) sat out as a precaution. Although Chicago was limited to 10 players, that didn’t stop Pargo, Gibson, and Hinrich from shooting a health 61.1 percent in the first half, including 5-of-7 from 3-point land. The Bulls ran more and defended harder than they did in Friday’s 104-95 win over the Pacers. The Bulls were up 55-48 at the break, but the Jazz made it a game when they traded leads in the fourth quarter until Johnson’s heroics won the game.

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