CHICAGO — Derrick Rose scored 13 points and had seven assists to lead the balanced Chicago Bulls to an impressive 92-85 season-opening victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night.
Rose, who missed most of the preseason with an injured ankle, waved and blew a kiss toward the crowd before the opening tip. He then showed some of the explosiveness that carried him to the Rookie of the Year award last season. He had no trouble penetrating and delivered some dizzying spin moves that drew roars from the crowd, showing no signs of the right ankle pain that had bothered him the past few weeks.
He had plenty of help, and Chicago pulled away in the second half despite Tim Duncan's 28 points and 16 rebounds for the Spurs.
Luol Deng had 17 points and nine rebounds, a good start after missing the final 22 games last season. Kirk Hinrich added 14 points, while Tyrus Thomas scored all of his 13 in the second half. Joakim Noah chipped in with 10 points and 10 rebounds and the Bulls held advantages on the glass (52-44) and in second-chance points (22-13).
Besides Duncan, the Spurs were simply flat after opening with an easy win over New Orleans the previous night.
Manu Ginobili scored 12 but was just 3 for 11. Tony Parker had eight points and three assists after leaving Wednesday's game following a hard fall in the third quarter, and Richard Jefferson was off target again after a rough debut. He shot 3 for 9 and scored nine after going 1 for 7 against the Hornets.
The Bulls led by one at halftime after Hinrich hit a 3-pointer with just under a second left and then broke it open in the third, outscoring the Spurs 27-18 to go up 74-64.
Thomas started a 14-4 run midway through the third with a jumper and delivered and later dunked over Richard Jefferson on an alley-oop from Brad Miller, howling and burying a free throw to complete the three-point play. Hinrich then capped the run with a 7-footer that made it 72-58 with 2:19 left in the quarter.
Bulls players came down through the crowd during pregame introductions, high fiving fans as they made their way to the court, and the good vibe didn't end there. Chicago has higher expectations after pushing Boston to seven games in a thrilling first-round playoff series last season, and it's off to a good start.
NOTES: Asked if Jefferson was a little too amped up while going 1 for 7 in the opener, coach Gregg Popovich responded: "No. He was 1 for 7." Popovich was quick to point out that Jefferson had five assists and just one turnover against the Hornets and added, "He did a lot of things." ... Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro has a fan in Popovich. "What Vinny does is he takes it seriously and works his (butt) off," Popovich said. "In the summertime, he didn't just go on vacation. He talked to a lot of us. He wanted to discuss basketball. He wanted to know how we do things here and there. And why we do this and why we do that."
