Luol Deng Registers Season High 33 as Bulls Beat Knicks - Hoopsfix.com

Luol Deng Registers Season High 33 as Bulls Beat Knicks

Luol Deng vs New York Knicks

Luol Deng vs New York KnicksLuol Deng scored a season-high 33 points on 13-for-18 shooting for the Bulls last night, helping Chicago to a 108-101 victory over New York.

Deng killed the Knicks for the second straight game; his previous season-high was 29 in the Dec. 21 win at the Garden. He has now scored 62 points in his last two games against New York, as Chicago moved to 3-0 against the Knicks this season.

The Great Britain star had 21 points at halftime, making 3-for-4 from deep, and added 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and a blocked shot by the time the final buzzer sounded.

“It’s another game and I shot well last time [at the Garden],” he said after the game, with his trademark humble attitude. “I’ve always loved playing here. It’s just the way games go.”

Deng also led the defensive effort that contained Carmelo Anthony in the decisive first half of his return from a one-game suspension, harassing him into missing 10 of his 14 shots in the opening two periods. ESPN Research reports that Lu scored 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting when guarded by his counterpart Carmelo Anthony, whilst Carmelo struggled against Deng’s length, shooting 6-of-16 when guarded by him, including 2-of-7 from 15 feet or further.

“We’ve showed it this year, when we really focus and lock in, whoever we play we’ve been able to play with them, all the top teams, play them close whether we win or lose,” Deng said. “We know that when we show up, and you know, stick to the game plan, we can really play with anyone in this league.”

It’s the first time Luol, who leads the league in minutes for yet another season at 40.2 per game, has scored 30 or more since November 1st 2010, when he registered his career high 40 points against Portland.

Chicago (20-14) has now won four of its last five and sits fifth in the Eastern Conference standings.

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