Biete - Deuterium » by quarters end. The margin stayed in th

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- The Chicago Bulls felt they played only two quarters of defence Wednesday night. That was all they needed to beat the Detroit Pistons 99-79 and end a four-game losing streak. The Pistons led 53-51 at the half, but Chicago only allowed 26 second-half points, including 11 in the fourth quarter, as they pulled away for the easy win. "They made some shots in the first half, but I liked the way we were playing offensively," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "In the second half, we got our defensive intensity going." Chicagos defence was at its best in the fourth quarter, where the Pistons went scoreless on 10 straight possessions. Jonas Jerebkos jumper had pulled Detroit to 80-75 with 8:39 left, but the Bulls didnt allow another basket until Gigi Datomes jumper made it 99-77 with 1:31 to go. "This has been a tough road trip for us," said Kirk Hinrich. "We played to our strengths tonight, we really competed defensively in the second half and we got one in the win column. Detroit shot 27.8 per cent in the second half, missed all six 3-point attempts, went 6 of 13 from the line and turned the ball over nine times. "They were obviously a lot better in the second half than they had been in the first half," Pistons coach Maurice Cheeks said. "We couldnt score the ball, and a lot of that was because of their defence." Luol Deng led the Bulls with 27 points, while reserve Taj Gibson had a career-high 23. Tony Snell, making the first start of his career, added 13 points in 37 minutes. "When I heard I was in the starting lineup, I just told myself to play my game and not rush anything," he said. "All the hours Ive put in, working hard in the gym, were so that Id be ready for this." Rodney Stuckey finished with 25 off the bench for Detroit but no one else had more than 13. Josh Smith had 13 points and 11 rebounds and Andre Drummond had 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Pistons. Point guards Brandon Jennings and Will Bynum combined for two points on 1-for-8 shooting in the second half. "We certainly needed some scoring from Brandon and Bynum," Cheeks said. "If you dont get anything from either of them, you are going to have a hard time." Neither team played much defence in the first half, with the Pistons shooting 58.5 per cent to Chicagos 52.4 per cent. Stuckey and Gibson both had 15 points off the bench, and each team also had two starters in double figures by halftime. Six quick points from Joakim Noah helped Chicago put together a 18-8 run that gave them 69-61 late in the third. The Bulls had three straight possessions with a chance to move the margin into double figures, but two misses on open jumpers and a fast-break turnover let the Pistons stay close. Stuckey finally ended Detroits drought with a pair of baskets, and the Pistons pulled to 69-65. The fight-back was short-lived, though, and the Bulls had the advantage back to 76-68 by quarters end. The margin stayed in the high single figures for the early part of the fourth, but Detroit started to struggle when Cheeks took Stuckey out of the game. It was 86-75 when Stuckey returned with five minutes left, but he couldnt help. Hinrich immediately made a three-point play to make it a 14-point game, and Chicago led by as many as 24 down the stretch. "They are tough, but we adjusted to the physical play of the game," Thibodeau said. "When the ball was in the air, we got bodies on people and fought for the ball." NOTES: Michigan native Floyd Mayweather Jr. was seated at courtside, a few seats away from Pistons owner Tom Gores. Mayweather, accompanied by a large entourage, engaged in some friendly banter with Bulls players, including an imitation of Joakim Noahs unusual free-throw style. He also got a large ovation when he was shown on the scoreboard during the fourth quarter. ... Stuckey leads the Eastern Conference with points off the bench, coming into the game at 15.9 points. ... Datome finished with four points on his 26th birthday. Cody Ford Bills Jersey . -- Matt Rupert scored once in regulation and again in the shootout as the London Knights extended their win streak to nine games by defeating the Owen Sound Attack 4-3 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Jim Kelly Bills Jersey . -- David Price didnt think he would be in Port Charlotte this spring. http://www.authenticbillsfanaticfootball...o-bills-jersey/. As for regular Olympic spectators, theyre being warned that most travel insurance policies wont cover acts of terrorism or war. The Games in southern Russia, which run from Feb. 7-23, are being staged amid unprecedented security and under global warnings of danger. Doug Flutie Youth Jersey . "I had a pretty good year," the soft-spoken Granberg told TSN.ca with a grin from the teams annual rookie tournament in London. A fourth-round selection in 2010, Granberg is worth keeping an eye on with NHL training camps rolling around in less than a week. The six-foot-two, 200-pound defender may not possess the wow-inspiring theatrics of fellow prospect Morgan Rielly, but nonetheless has a chance to contribute with the Leafs when all is said and done this season. Andre Roberts Youth Jersey .com) - Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh called Joe Flacco the NFLs best quarterback last week.Raleigh, NC (SportsNetwork.com) - Cam Ward made 23 saves to give the Carolina Hurricanes a 2-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday. Brad Malone and Eric Staal each scored a goal for the Hurricanes, who snapped a three-game slide. I think we did a good job controlling the gaps and containing their big players, said Ward. We were really good on the penalty kill tonight and that was a big part of winning the game. The Flyers lost their fourth straight game on this eight-game road trip, and have appeared to survive a scare after captain Claude Giroux went down with a left leg injury. Early in the third period, Giroux was chasing a puck down in the right corner of the Carolina end and got tangled up with Justin Faulk. As Faulk was putting hit left leg down, his skate caught the back of Girouxs left ankle, and it appeared that Giroux was bleeding through his equipment. Giroux was tended to on the ice by a trainer and eventually taken into the locker room. After the game, though, the team announced that the cut wasnt bad, and Giroux is probable for Saturdays game in New Jersey. Im not a doctor or anything but I got pretty luccky there, said Giroux.dddddddddddd I know I got lucky because that was pretty scary. Chris VandeVelde scored the lone goal for Philadelphia, with Steven Mason turning away 24 shots. Malone scored on a snap shot at 13:41 of the first for his first goal of the season. The Hurricanes moved their advantage to 2-0 just 41 seconds into the second period, as a turnover saw Jordan Staal eventually send a wrister on net from the slot, with Eric Staal putting home the rebound from the left side. Philly cut its deficit to one at the 8:45 mark of the third as Vincent Lecavalier skated in down the middle and left the puck at the top of the left circle for VandeVelde, who slid over to the slot and snapped it home for his second of the year. The Flyers pulled Mason from the net with just under two minutes to play, but Ward made a couple of stops late in the game to preserve the win. Game Notes The Hurricanes host Boston on Sunday ... Carolina was 0-for-2 on the power play, while Philadelphia went 0-for-3 ... Carolina forward Jeff Skinner missed the game with flu-like symptoms. ' ' '