off the bench for the sloppy Bulls, who turned it over 2

NEW YORK -- Jason Collins started walking from the bench to the scorers table, fans rising out of their seats all around Barclays Center. He committed a foul five seconds after entering. His only shot barely hit the rim. Collins performance may not have been pretty, but everything else was great. Collins played the final minutes of a winning home debut with the Brooklyn Nets, who cooled off the Chicago Bulls with a 96-80 victory Monday night. "It was cool. It was a lot of fun to go into the game," Collins said. "The most important thing was that we got the win. Chicagos been playing really well as of late and for us to come out and really be -- I think we played more physical than they did tonight." Finally playing at home more than a week after returning to the NBA as the leagues first openly gay player, Collins checked in to a standing ovation from a sellout crowd of 17,732 that included former NBA Commissioner David Stern with 2:41 remaining. He grabbed a rebound and had one of the Nets NBA season high-tying 19 steals in their third straight victory. Deron Williams scored 20 points and Joe Johnson had 19 for the Nets (29-29), who got back to .500 for the first time since they were 2-2 after beating Utah on Nov. 5. D.J. Augustin scored 16 points off the bench for the sloppy Bulls, who turned it over 28 times, leading to 30 Nets points, and had their four-game winning streak snapped. The Bulls had a franchise-low three turnovers in their 109-90 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday and had won nine of 10. But the Nets were too good in this one, building a series of comfortable leads and making the only intrigue down the stretch whether Collins would get in during his first home appearance for the Nets since Jan. 29, 2008, against Milwaukee in East Rutherford, N.J. A chant of "Jason Collins! Jason Collins!" broke out while Williams was shooting a free throw with the Nets leading 90-73 with 3:27 remaining. Fans finally got their wish less than a minute later -- though not because coach Jason Kidd was listening to them. "No, the game was out of hand, so I wanted to get those guys some rest," he said. "D-Will was shooting free throws. Couldnt put Twin in at that time, so I told him after the free throws that he would come in." Collins original 10-day contract will expire Tuesday and the Nets plan to sign him to a second deal on Wednesday. A Nets player from 2001-08, he has appeared in all five games since he signed on Feb. 23. Paul Pierce and Shaun Livingston each scored 14 points for the Nets, who were without starting centre Kevin Garnett for a second straight game because of back spasms. "Mentally, the Bulls have really had our numbers," Pierce said. "To be honest, if I was them Id feel like when they come play the Nets, they feel like they could beat us every time. I think the guys really had pride tonight to say, You know were tired of getting pushed around by the Bulls." Joakim Noah managed just 10 points, six rebounds and one assist for the Bulls, a day after finishing with 13 points, 14 assists and 12 rebounds in his fifth career triple-double. The All-Star centre rolled his right ankle early in the second half of that game and said it hurt after the game, but he was determined to play Monday in his hometown. The Bulls had dominated the first two meetings and beaten the Nets four straight times, but Brooklyn controlled this one most of the way in improving to 12-2 at home since Chicagos rout here on Christmas Day. "We smashed them in the mouth twice, its never going to be easy to come in to tough-minded team and do it again," Bulls forward Taj Gibson said. The Nets scored the first eight points, the last one on Williams free throw after Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau screamed his way to a technical foul after calling time. Their lead grew to 15, but the Bulls trimmed it to 27-18 by the end of the first quarter. Brooklyn led 50-42 at halftime, and Chicago started the second half just as bad as the first. The Nets scored the first seven to take a 57-42 lead when Williams set up Mason Plumlee for a dunk. "I think we had all intentions to play hard, but like I say, it didnt show," Augustin said. "Being down early, you cant come start the game down, you cant start the second half down, so that was our big mistakes, and then the turnovers killed us." NOTES: The Nets 19 steals were their most since finishing with 20 against Indiana on March 21, 1989. ... Brooklyn hadnt scored more than 23 points in a period against Chicago this season and surpassed that in both the first (27) and third (26). Marshall Faulk Jersey . Canada Day is here and with it comes Free Agent Frenzy as the NHLs 30 teams storm out of the gate for signing season. Robert Woods Youth Jersey . "I wouldnt read anything into what happened Saturday at Torrey Pines," Woods said Tuesday after an 18-hole exhibition for past winners of the Dubai Desert Classic. http://www.ramsrookiestore.com/Rams-Gerald-Everett-Jersey/. -- Steven Stamkos scored his first goal since returning from a major injury, Ryan Callahan had his first goal with Tampa Bay, and the Lightning beat the Florida Panthers 5-4 on Thursday night. Deacon Jones Rams Jersey . Anything less than gold for either nation is considered a disappointment. Yet for Switzerland, advancing to the semifinal might be a victory in itself. Greg Gaines Womens Jersey . The right-hander said he threw about 30 pitches in a routine bullpen session Sunday at Yankee Stadium, his final hurdle before starting Tuesday night at Tampa Bay.MUMBAI, India - A crowd of more than 40,000 watched the inaugural Indian Super League final come to a thrilling end, as Mohammad Rafique headed in off a corner in injury time for Atletico de Kolkata to beat Kerala Blasters 1-0 on Saturday.Rafiques goal was the 27th by an Indian in the 10-week league, which was organized with the aim of bringing Indian players in focus and raising the profile of football in the country.That need was made clear by promotion for the final, which was billed as a contest between former India cricket stars Sourav Ganguly, who co-owns Kolkata, and Sachin Tendulkar, who co-owns Kerala.The celebrity teeam owners, also including India cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, vice-captain Virat Kohli, and some Indian movie actors, helped to push the new leagues profile initially, but organizers have since then hailed the eight-team competition as a success, claiming it to be the most watched domestic league in Asia.ddddddddddddhe crowds came out to watch the likes of Nicolas Anelka, Alessandro Del Piero, David Trezeguet, and Robert Pires, and while Kolkata didnt feature injured captain and marquee player Luis Garcia in the final, it was helped largely by Armenian goalkeeper Apoula Edel, who made some fine saves. 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