Bulls 96, Hornets 87: Luol Deng scored 20 points and Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah notched double-doubles as visiting Chicago held on for its fifth straight road win over New Orleans.
Boozer had 17 points and 10 rebounds and Noah contributed 15 points and 17 boards for the Bulls, who have won nine of the past 10 meetings.
Eric Gordon scored 20 points and rookie Anthony Davis had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Hornets, who lost for just the second time in six games. Greivis Vasquez added 11 points and 10 assists for New Orleans.
Chicago couldn't seem to shake the pesky Hornets, as its lead never grew larger than 12. New Orleans trimmed the margin to 74-68 entering the fourth quarter and pulled within one in the final period before the Bulls eased away.
Gordon nailed a 3-pointer to pull the Hornets within 92-87 with 50 seconds left, but Deng answered with a jumper at the other end to ice it.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Bulls improved to 15-3 since the start of the 2010-11 season when Noah and Boozer both record double-doubles. … Chicago last won five straight road games against the Hornets from 1995-97. … The Bulls held a 47-39 edge on the boards and a 44-40 margin in points in the paint. Hornets C Robin Lopez scored one point on 0-for-1 shooting.
Chicago | New Orleans | |
Luol Deng 20 | Scoring | Eric Gordon 20 |
Kirk Hinrich 10 | Assists | Greivis Vasquez 10 |
Joakim Noah 17 | Rebounds | Anthony Davis 10 |
Luol Deng 4 | Free Throws Made | Ryan Anderson 6 |
Carlos Boozer 4 | Steals | Anthony Davis 4 |
Joakim Noah 3 | Blocks | Al-Farouq Aminu 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Chicago | 96 | 46.4 | 5-13 | 13-17 | 30 | 47 | 6 | 10 | 16 |
New Orleans | 87 | 41.7 | 4-17 | 13-20 | 23 | 39 | 7 | 8 | 15 |