subject: Utah Jazz Tickets - Boozer Leads Jazz Past Bulls 105-86 [print this page] Carlos Boozer scored 28 points, Deron Williams added 21 points and the Utah Jazz defeated the Chicago Bulls 105-86. Get Utah Jazz tickets and see Boozer hit a jumper in the first quarter. Boozer also had eight rebounds, five assists and three blocks.
Williams, who made 10 of Utah's first 11 shots in the fourth quarter, told the press that Boozer was "back to where he was a couple of years ago when he was an All-Star." Boozer made his first seven shots and didn't miss a basket until the second half. The forward was scoring from all over the floor, hitting from outside as well as driving for layups and dunks. Utah dominated from inside, outscoring Chicago 62-42 and finished 45 for 74 from the floor.
Chicago's Luol Deng recorded 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds, while Derrick Rose scored 19 points. James Johnson was the only Chicago player other than Rose and Deng to score in double figures. The forward finished the game with 10 points. Kirk Hinrich missed the game due to a sprained left thumb. The Bulls lost their fourth consecutive game and fell to 1-4 on a six-game road trip, which ends on Nov. 30 in Milwaukee. Chicago coach Vinny Del Negro admitted that his team didn't shoot the ball well, especially in the second half. The coach continued to say that the Bulls struggled to "put up a fight to get back" into the game and put pressure on the Jazz.
Utah took control of the game and led 81-65 at the end of the third quarter. They opened the fourth quarter on 10-3 run and took a commanding 87-68 lead, which was capped off by an alley-oop play from Williams to Ronnie Brewer with 9:43 remaining. The Bulls called time out, but failed to score and Utah's Andre Kirilenko dunked the ball on the ensuing play, which extended their lead 91-68. After that, the Jazz continued to play pesky defense for the rest of the game.
Chicago made a few runs in the third quarter, but couldn't catch up with Utah. After the Bulls cut the deficit to 62-50 on John Salmons' three-point play with 8:37 left in the third quarter, the Jazz answered with six straight. Boozer made a layup, Brewer knocked down a free throw and Mehmet Okur swished a 3-pointer that put Utah up 68-50 with 6:59 left in the third. The Bulls called a time out, as they desperately needed to regroup before the game got out of hand.
Although Chicago scored 14 points after their timeout, Boozer was just too much to handle. One of his highlights included a pick and roll, followed by a one-handed dunk. The forward was able to draw a foul on that play and he sunk in both of his free throws to put the Jazz up 71-54 in the third. After that, Utah's Paul Millsap blocked Rose at the other end and Wesley Matthews finished the play with a dunk. After the game, Rose stated, "We were right there in the beginning and fell away. We're not communicating and we are letting people do whatever."
