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Deng hits late shot to lead Bulls past Hawks

Jan 4, 2012 - 5:08 AM Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - Joakim Noah found Luol Deng under the basket with 3.7 seconds left for the game-winner, as the Chicago Bulls rallied from a 19-point deficit to beat the Atlanta Hawks, 76-74.

Derrick Rose drove to the hoop and put home a strong layup with 9.9 seconds remaining to give the Bulls a 74-73 lead.

Deng fouled Al Horford at the other end, but the latter only made 1-of-2 foul shots to tie the game with 7.7 ticks to go.

With all eyes on Rose, Noah controlled the ball around the three-point line. The 6-foot-11 center passed the ball down low to Deng, who put in an easy layup for a 76-74 margin.

Joe Johnson missed a three-pointer as time expired, giving the Bulls their fourth straight victory.

"We don't care how we get the win," Bulls forward Carlos Boozer said. "We just want to win."

Rose ended with 30 points and seven assists for the Bulls (5-1), who are off to their best start since the 1996-97 season. Deng tallied 21 points and eight rebounds.

Horford and Marvin Williams had 16 and 14 points, respectively, for the Hawks, who have lost two of three since starting the season 3-0. Josh Smith donated 15 points and 14 boards.

"I just think it's a good measuring stick early in the season [for our team] to know that were right their with the top teams in the East," Horford said.

These two teams met in last year's Eastern Conference semifinals, with the Bulls winning in six games.

Trailing by 19, 56-37, with 2:41 left in the third quarter, Chicago started to chip away at its deficit. Omer Asik's reverse layup sparked a 25-6 run. Rose tallied 16 points during the burst, which Deng capped with a three-pointer to make it 62-62 with 6:20 remaining in the fourth.

Johnson's three-pointer, Smith's free throw and Horford's alley-oop slam put the Hawks ahead 68-62 with 4:51 left.

Down by five, 69-64, less than a minute later, Deng made four foul shots to get the Bulls within one with 2:57 to go.

A Smith jumper was followed by layups from Deng and Rose, which gave Chicago a 72-71 lead with 57.8 seconds remaining.

Atlanta went back in front on Smith's alley-oop slam with 43.6 ticks left on the clock.

The Hawks had a chance to extend their margin following Rose's missed jumper. However, Jeff Teague missed two free throws with 17.5 seconds to go. Rose gave the Bulls the lead back with his layup.

Atlanta dominated play early on and took a 38-26 lead into the locker room.

Game Notes

The Bulls won two of three matchups with Atlanta in the regular season last year...The Hawks closed out a three-game road trip on Tuesday...Chicago guards Richard Hamilton (groin) and C.J. Watson (elbow) missed the game...The Bulls outscored the Hawks, 34-18, in the fourth quarter.