Rose inspires Bulls

Derrick Rose poured in 26 points and dished out 13 assists as the Chicago Bulls improved their NBA-best record to 20-6 with a 113-90 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.

Rose was one of five Bulls scoring in double figures as Luol Deng, playing with an injured left wrist, added 21 points and nine rebounds, while Kyle Korver brought 18 points off the bench.

Drew Gooden led Milwaukee with 24 points, while rookie Tobias Harris broke out with 19 points off the bench.

Chicago lead the Central Division by 2.5 games from Indiana, who lost 85-81 to Orlando.

Tony Parker exploded for 42 points and became San Antonio’s all-time assists leader – dishing out nine on the night to move to 4,477 – as the Southwest-leading Spurs beat the Northwest-leading Oklahoma City Thunder 107-96.

The Thunder retain their 3.5 game advantage over the Denver Nuggets, who went down 117-97 to Portland.

In the Pacific division, the Los Angeles Clippers have stretched their advantage over the Lakers to 1.5 games, beating the Washington Wizards 107-81 while the Lakers lost 96-87 to the Utah Jazz.

Blake Griffin led the Clippers with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Al Jefferson’s 18 points led Utah.

The Philadelphia 76ers topped the Atlanta Hawks 98-87 behind 15 points from Nikola Vucevic to get back to winning ways, moving three games ahead of Boston atop the Atlantic Division.

Jeremy Lin had a career-high 25 points for the New York Knicks in a 99-92 victory over the New Jersey Nets.

Kyrie Irving came up with 20 points and Antawn Jamison had 19 as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks, who got 24 points from Dirk Nowitzki.

The Detroit Pistons edged out their fellow strugglers New Orleans 89-87 while Minnesota enjoyed a 100-91 win over the Houston Rockets.

The Phoenix Suns topped the Charlotte Bobcats 95-89, while Sacramento recorded only their eighth win of the season, beating Golden State 114-106.

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Rose inspires Bulls

February 5, 2012

In the Pacific division, the Los Angeles Clippers have stretched their advantage over the Lakers to 1.5 games, beating the Washington Wizards 107-81 while the Lakers lost 96-87 to the Utah Jazz.

Blake Griffin led the Clippers with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Al Jefferson’s 18 points led Utah.

The Philadelphia 76ers topped the Atlanta Hawks 98-87 behind 15 points from Nikola Vucevic to get back to winning ways, moving three games ahead of Boston atop the Atlantic Division.

Jeremy Lin had a career-high 25 points for the New York Knicks in a 99-92 victory over the New Jersey Nets.

Kyrie Irving came up with 20 points and Antawn Jamison had 19 as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks, who got 24 points from Dirk Nowitzki.

The Detroit Pistons edged out their fellow strugglers New Orleans 89-87 while Minnesota enjoyed a 100-91 win over the Houston Rockets.

The Phoenix Suns topped the Charlotte Bobcats 95-89, while Sacramento recorded only their eighth win of the season, beating Golden State 114-106.

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Heat see off Sixers

February 4, 2012

Dwyane Wade scored 26 points as the Miami Heat claimed a 99-79 victory over the in-form Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night.

LeBron James also grabbed 19 points and had 12 rebounds as Miami timed a sublime fourth-quarter rally to perfection, leaving the home side comfortably beaten.

Elsewhere, the Boston Celtics edged a close one against the New York Knicks 91-89 after Paul Pierce’s 30 points – compared to Carmelo Anthony’s 26 for the Knicks – proved to be the difference.

Luke Ridnour came up with the goods late on as the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the New Jersey Nets 108-105 in Newark.

Ridnour scored the decisive three-pointer to put his side ahead with one minute 23 seconds remaining.

The Los Angeles Lakers were 93-89 winners away to the Denver Nuggets as Andrew Bynum scored 22 points and Pau Gasol had 17 rebounds.

Dwight Howard scored 19 points as the Orlando Magic beat the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers 102-94. The centre had 16 rebounds and eight blocks in a solid’s night work.

Brandon Knight’s 26 point haul was the highlight of the Detroit Pistons‘ 88-80 home win against theMilwaukee Bucks as the Pistons ended a seven-game losing run.

The Toronto Raptors beat the Washington Wizards 106-89 as Leandro Barbosa (19 points) and Amir Johnson (18) shared the load effectively.

Kevin Durant scored 36 as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Memphis Grizzlies 101-94 while a team effort for the Houston Rockets helped them beat the Phoenix Suns 99-81. The Indiana Pacers won 98-87 away to the Dallas Mavericks.

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Derrick Rose scored 32 points as the Chicago Bulls claimed a 105-102 win at the New York Knicks in the NBA on Thursday.

Rose’s efforts outshine rival Carmelo Anthony with the spotlight on both All-Star men. He timed it to perfection, too, coming on strong with 15 in the last session while Anthony’s 26 points were not enough for the Knicks. Amare Stoudemire topped for New York with 34.

The San Antonio Spurs were comfortable 93-81 winners at home to the New Orleans Hornets.

Veteran Tim Duncan scored 19 as the Spurs made it three wins from three.

The Memphis Grizzlies produced a team effort to overcome the Atlanta Hawks 105-102 in Georgia.

The Sacramento Kings ended a run of five defeats with a 95-92 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, with Marcus Thornton (20) and John Salmons (19) key to victory.

Meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors breezed to a 119-101 win against the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets won 112-91 away to the Los Angeles Clippers.