NBA ROUNDUP : Down 20, Bulls Win as Jordan Heats Up

A good shooter never stops putting it up, even when he’s missing.

Michael Jordan made only six of 17 shots through three quarters Monday night at Salt Lake City, but started hitting in the final quarter as the Chicago Bulls rallied from a 20-point deficit to beat the Utah Jazz, 96-92.

“I wasn’t shooting well in the first three quarters, but somehow I was able to turn it on in the fourth,” said Jordan, who had 20 of his 37 points in the quarter.

“I just took my shots and they started falling. I loved it. We kept fighting.”

The victory prevented Chicago from losing three consecutive games for the first time since the 1990-91 season.

Jordan made seven of 11 shots in the fourth quarter, including five in a row during a 12-2 surge as the Bulls came back from a 75-55 deficit late in the final minute of the third quarter.

“I could see the momentum was starting to change,” Utah Coach Jerry Sloan said. “I told our guys, ‘We can’t fall asleep now because they will be coming at us.’ ”

Karl Malone had 17 of his 40 points in the third quarter, when the Jazz used a 19-7 run to built up their 20-point lead.

Scottie Pippen’s three-point play and Jordan’s basket got Chicago to within 75-60 after three quarters, starting a 35-12 run that got the Bulls even, 87-87, with 2:16 left.

Jordan’s basket tied the score and B.J. Armstrong, who scored 20 points, gave Chicago the lead for good, 93-90, on a three-pointer with 53 seconds left.

Jordan made three free throws in the closing seconds.

The Bulls trailed by 10 points in the first half, but Jordan got them to within 45-40 at halftime by sinking a 47-footer at the buzzer.

Charlotte 112, Seattle 100--Larry Johnson had 19 points and 11 rebounds as the Hornets defeated the SuperSonics at Charlotte.

Rookie Alonzo Mourning had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Hornets, and Kendall Gill also scored 19.

Ricky Pierce scored 23 points and Shawn Kemp added 17 points and 14 rebounds for Seattle.

Milwaukee 116, Golden State 102--Todd Day scored 23 points and the Bucks sent the Warriors to their sixth consecutive road defeat at Milwaukee.

Lee Mayberry added 17 for Milwaukee, including two three-pointers that broke open the game in the fourth quarter.

Tim Hardaway scored 20 points for the Warriors and Chris Mullin added 18, though he made only seven of 20 shots.

New Jersey 115, Dallas 96--Derrick Coleman scored 27 points, including nine in the pivotal third quarter, as the Nets downed the Mavericks at Dallas.

Drazen Petrovic scored 21 points and Kenny Anderson added 20 as the Nets handed the Mavericks their seventh consecutive defeat.

Rookie Sean Rooks scored 21 points for Dallas, which committed 26 turnovers and lost for the 22nd time in 23 games.

Orlando 119, Sacramento 115--Nick Anderson scored 31 points and the Magic rallied in the final quarter to defeat the Kings at Sacramento.

Shaquille O’Neal and Anthony Bowie added 18 points each for Orlando, while Mitch Richmond scored 28 and Wayman Tisdale had 25 for Sacramento.