Bulls 115, 76ers 96
CHICAGO -- The Chicago Bulls overcame a five-point halftime deficit to roll to a 115-96 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers at the United Center on Monday.
The 76ers (1-25) led 56-51 at halftime before the Bulls (14-8) took control by outscoring the 76ers 34-12 in the third quarter. Bulls forward Tony Snell outscored the 76ers 13-12 in the period and recorded 15 of his 16 points in the second half. He also had 11 rebounds.
The Bulls outscored the 76ers 64-40 in the second half.
Bulls guard Jimmy Butler scored 19 of his game-high 23 points in the first half. He shot 8 of 9 from the field prior to the break.
76ers rookie center Jahlil Okafor scored a team-high 22 points on 9 of 17 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds in his homecoming. Okafor and 76ers forwards Robert Covington and Richaun Holmes all attended high school in the Chicago area. Covington had 15 points, six rebounds and two blocks.
Bulls center Joakim Noah contributed five points, 15 rebounds, eight assists and two blocks off the bench. Bulls center Paul Gasol had 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists and forward Nikola Mirotic connected on five 3-pointers and scored 17 points.
The Bulls and 76ers exchanged the lead nine times and were tied nine times during the first half. The 76ers finished the second quarter on a 7-2 run to take a 56-51 lead at halftime. Okafor had 16 points in the first half.
The Bulls took a 30-21 advantage early in the second quarter after back-to-back 3-pointers by forward Doug McDermott and Mirotic. The 76ers responded with an 11-0 run, which included nine points by guard Tony Wroten, to gain a 32-30 advantage. Wroten finished with 12 points.
The Bulls closed the first quarter on a 9-4 run to take a 24-19 lead. Butler was 6 of 7 from the field and scored 12 points in the quarter, and Gasol contributed seven points, four rebounds and four assists.
The 76ers have yet to win away from him this season, falling to 0-15 on the road.
NOTES: 76ers C Nerlens Noel missed Monday's game and is not expected to play against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday after suffering a left eye corneal abrasion against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday. "It's not as significant as we guessed," 76ers coach Brett Brown said prior to the game. ... The 76ers recalled F Christian Wood from the Delaware 87ers of the NBA Development League on Monday. He averaged 19.3 points and 11 rebounds in three games with the 87ers. ... Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg cancelled his team's shootaround Monday morning to allow his players additional rest during a busy stretch of games. ... C Pau Gasol played in his 100th regular-season game for the Bulls.