|
Luol Deng and Taj Gibson were exhausted and determined to stay on the floor. They kept playing in the final minutes, long after the Chicago Bulls had secured another win.
Deng said the starters in a patchwork lineup were determined to finish what they started.
Deng had 25 points and 14 rebounds, and the short-handed Bulls used their stifling defense to shut down the Atlanta Hawks in a 93-76 victory on Saturday night.
Playing without injured starters Kirk Hinrich, Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer, Chicago dominated near the basket and got a lift from the frenetic play of Nate Robinson. The Bulls used only eight players for the second straight night, but it was more than enough for an impressive road win.
Deng, Gibson and Jimmy Butler each logged more than 45 minutes. Robinson topped 40 minutes as the Bulls had a strong answer for their 89-83 loss at the Nets on Friday night…
Gibson had 19 points and a career-high 19 rebounds…
Butler added another double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Robinson went 4 for 6 from 3-point range and finished with 20 points.
The Hawks had no answer for Deng, who had five assists, four steals and two blocks. He had seven offensive rebounds…
Josh Smith led Atlanta with 19 points and 13 rebounds but his only basket in the second half was a 3-pointer. Jeff Teague scored 16, and Al Horford had 14 points and 12 rebounds.
— Reported by Charles Odum of the Associated Press
