CHICAGO (AP) -Luol Deng scored 33 points, Ben Gordon and Andres Nocioni each hit two free throws in the final 19 seconds, and the Chicago Bulls held off the Miami Heat 96-91 Saturday in Game 1 of their opening-round rematch.
Game 2 is Tuesday night in Chicago.
The Heat beat the Bulls in six emotional games last year on the way to the championship, but injuries limited them to 44 wins during the regular season. Still, this looked like a difficult matchup for a Bulls team that dropped from the second seed to No. 5 when it lost the finale to New Jersey.
Wade scored nine of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, and Shaquille O’Neal finished with 19 points before fouling out.
Deng, who enjoyed a breakout season but had struggled against the Heat, made it look easy this time, hitting 14 of 22 shots. Gordon chipped in with 24 points and a career-high 11 assists, and Nocioni scored 17 points.
Nets 96, Raptors 91
TORONTO (AP) – Richard Jefferson scored 28 points, Jason Kidd had 15 assists and 10 rebounds, and New Jersey held off a fourth-quarter rally to beat Toronto in Game 1 of their first-round series.
Vince Carter, the former Raptors star who was jeered throughout the afternoon, scored 16 points but shot just 5-of-19. But Jefferson stepped up to make 11 of 21 shots, including eight of his first 10. He scored 11 points in the first quarter.
Chris Bosh led the Raptors with 22 points while T.J. Ford scored 21. Anthony Parker scored 16 points and added nine assists for the Raptors.
Game 2 is Tuesday night in Toronto.
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