Bulls 113, Lakers 93
Pau Gasol had 23 points and 13 rebounds in his first game against his former team and Chicago pulled away in the fourth quarter as Kobe Bryant sat for a second straight game for the visiting Lakers.
Gasol shot 9-of-14 against the team he helped to two NBA titles and Jimmy Butler had 21 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Bulls, who have won five straight and eight of nine. Derrick Rose had 20 points and six assists as Chicago held Los Angeles to 39.1 percent shooting and outrebounded the Lakers 57-39.
Wesley Johnson had 19 points and nine rebounds for the Lakers, who upset Golden State 115-105 while Bryant stayed home and rested his weary body Tuesday. Ed Davis had 13 points and 14 rebounds as Los Angeles lost for the fourth time in five games.
Chicago couldn't shake outmanned Los Angeles, but a 3-pointer by Mike Dunleavy increased the edge to seven with 5:47 left in the third, and Chicago opened the fourth on a 8-2 spurt with two hoops by Aaron Brooks to forge a 91-79 edge. The Bulls iced it with an 11-0 run with Rose scoring on a drive and draining a shot from the arc that pushed the lead to 113-91 with 50.2 seconds to play.
Midway through the second quarter, rookie Nikola Mirotic nailed a pair of shots from the arc and Gasol added five points to spark a 19-6 run as Chicago built a 16-point lead - its biggest of the half. The Lakers responded with a 20-6 spurt bridging the second and third stanzas, getting eight points from Jordan Hill, to pull within 60-58 with 9:53 left in the third.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Lakers F Carlos Boozer, who played his last four seasons in Chicago, had 14 points in 17 minutes. … Gasol, Rose and Butler each scored 11 points in the first half and combined to shoot 13-of-20. ... The Lakers committed just four turnovers.