Cleveland, OH (Sports Network) - Luol Deng scored 15 points and helped to deny LeBron James on a last-second drive to the hoop as the Chicago Bulls edged Cleveland 86-85.
LeBron & Cavs Denied By Deng In 86-85 Bulls’ Win
Derrick Rose added 14 points and 11 assists, while John Salmons also scored 14 for the Bulls, who posted their second straight victory. Taj Gibson ended with 11 points and seven boards. Joakim Noah, who also converged on James in the final crucial Cavs offensive play, pulled down 11 rebounds to go with seven points.
James had 25 points, seven rebounds and six assists, but was miffed that no foul was called after he drove to the hoop, but lost the ball out of bounds with 0.2 seconds left. Shaquille O'Neal chipped in 14 points, 10 boards and five blocks for the Cavaliers, who have already lost twice at home this season, to match the total from all of 2008-09.
Anderson Varejao notched 12 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland, which had a three-game winning streak broken. Anthony Parker and Mo Williams both scored 11, but Williams missed a couple of crucial shots down the stretch.
Brad Miller’s layup expanded Chicago’s lead to 84-78 with 2:35 remaining, but the Cavs were able to trim the deficit as Williams and James each hit two foul shots.
Rose’s floating jumper with 1:44 left moved the Bulls back to a four-point lead, but James sank a three-ball with 1:33 to go.
Both teams then failed on opportunities. Salmons’ layup was blocked by James, but Williams then missed on a three-point try. Salmons couldn’t hit a shot from beyond the arc inside of a minute left, but again the Cavs couldn’t capitalize as Williams rushed a running shot from the left side and it clanked off the backboard.
The Bulls then worked the shot clock down, but when Deng missed off the backboard, the Cavs were given the ball back with 4.3 seconds left thanks to a 24-second shot-clock violation.
James drove to the left of the lane, but Deng was all over him and Noah came to help before the ball went out of bounds. Officials used video to review the play, but Chicago was given possession and a successful inbounds pass resulted in the game ending.
The Cavs held a 27-25 edge after one quarter and the fans in Cleveland held their breath late in the second when James went diving into the crowd to try and save the ball from going out of bounds. The reigning MVP got up and winced in pain, but remained on the court, only to see the Bulls grab a 46-43 lead at the half thanks to eight straight points to end the quarter.
It was tight throughout the third with the Cavs grabbing a 65-63 edge at the end of the period after a three-pointer from Daniel Gibson.
Cleveland was 3-1 versus Chicago last season and 13-3 against the Central Division, their most wins against the division since its 2004 realignment...Miller had 10 points.
See More:
