National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Chicago 103, New York 97
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 18, 2014
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
Officials: #6 Tony Brown, #13 Monty McCutchen, #74 Curtis Blair
Attendance: 21875

Bulls 103, Knicks 97: Jimmy Butler scored a career-best 35 points and also had seven assists and four steals as host Chicago defeated New York.

Pau Gasol had 20 points and five blocked shots and Aaron Brooks added 18 points as the Bulls won without Derrick Rose (virus). Nikola Mirotic tallied 13 points and Joakim Noah collected 13 rebounds as Chicago won for the fourth time in five games.

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 23 points and made five 3-point baskets for the Knicks, who were without Carmelo Anthony (knee). Amar’e Stoudemire added 16 points and four blocked shots and Cole Aldrich had season highs of 13 points and 10 rebounds for New York, which lost for the 13th time in 14 games.

The Knicks led by two in the fourth quarter before Chicago scored 12 straight – beginning with Brooks’ 3-pointer and ending with a long-range 3 by Mirotic – to take an 87-77 lead with 7:30 to play. The Knicks recovered and were within one after Stoudemire’s free-throw line jumper with 1:06 remaining before Gasol scored on a layup to start a game-ending 5-0 run.

Butler scored 12 first-quarter points as Chicago took a 10-point lead before settling for a 52-45 advantage at the break. Hardaway Jr. scored 11 points in the third quarter – including three 3-pointers – as the Knicks took a 74-73 lead into the final stanza.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Butler made four 3-pointers as Chicago was 12-of-23 from behind the arc. … G J.R. Smith (foot) and G Iman Shumpert (shoulder) also sat out for the Knicks. … Noah (ankle) was back after a four-game injury absence while F Taj Gibson (ankle) missed the contest.
Top Game Performances
 
New York   Chicago
Tim Hardaway Jr. 23 Scoring Jimmy Butler 35
Tim Hardaway Jr. 5 Assists Jimmy Butler 7
Cole Aldrich 10 Rebounds Joakim Noah 13
Cole Aldrich 3 Free Throws Made Jimmy Butler 9
Amar'e Stoudemire 2 Steals Jimmy Butler 4
Amar'e Stoudemire 4 Blocks Pau Gasol 5
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
New York 97 46.3 6-9 15-19 19 41 6 7 16
Chicago 103 45.3 12-23 23-30 23 32 8 9 13
Upcoming Games
  • Chicago will play their next game on the road against Memphis. The Bulls have a W/L % of .467 after a win and .900 after a loss.
  • New York will play their next game at home against Phoenix. The Knicks have a W/L % of .200 after a win and .174 after a loss.