Bulls change starting lineup then earn 1st win of season

Faced with the prospect of double-figure losses and no victories, the Chicago Bulls changed their starting lineup to come into the Delta Center against the slump-busting Utah Jazz.

Perhaps the tactic worked.

The Bulls got 21 points from Eddy Curry in an unusual role coming off the bench, Tyson Chandler had seven rebounds and seven points and new starter Luol Deng put in 11 points as the Bulls nudged Utah 101-99 for their first win of the 2004-05 season - the second straight winless team to walk out of the Delta Center with that first victory.

"Give Eddy and Tyson credit for coming off the bench, playing well and handling it the right way," said point guard Kirk Hinrich, one of two starters who remained in the opening lineup. Hinrich had 17 points and eight assists in helping frustrate the now-7-5 Jazz.

"We got great play out of the bench," said Chandler, who added that the Bulls didn't do a lot jumping around in the locker room after the victory. "It feels great, but no, we got to act like we've been winning," he said.

"It's exciting, especially for the rookies," said Gordon, from Connecticut. He hit four consecutive free throws in the final 20 seconds as the Jazz had to foul to get he ball back, taking the score from 95-94 for Chicago to 99-94 with :15.6 left.

"I shot it like I was shooting in the gym by myself," Gordon said. "Made sure I followed through well, and they dropped, so I was happy."

After Carlos Arroyo hit a 3-pointer for Utah, Hinrich scored two more free throws to ice the victory.

"We're kinda just going to celebrate a little bit," said Gordon, who played this summer in the Jazz's Rocky Mountain Revue.

"Everyone's happy just to get the monkey off our back.

"We're not the only team in the league without a win now, so we can just look back at this and be motivated by it," said Gordon.

"I didn't want to go back to Chicago without a win," said Curry, who shot 8-for-13 from the field and made five of six free throws.

Chicago made 35 of 40 free throws, getting 10 more points at the line than Utah to overcome Utah's 44-30 advantage on the boards and 24-17 margin in assists.

Coach Scott Skiles said the Bulls have been scoring more from the field than opponents but losing at the line, so this was opposite their usual play.