Hornets 102, Bulls 96
CHICAGO -- Guard Nicolas Batum scored 24 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, and the Charlotte Hornets held on for a 102-96 win over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.
Forward Cody Zeller added a season-high 17 points and eight rebounds for the Hornets. Guard Kemba Walker scored 17 points to help Charlotte (11-8) earn its sixth win in the past eight games.
Guard Jimmy Butler scored 25 points and pulled down eight rebounds for the Bulls. Guard Derrick Rose scored 19 points on 8-for-17 shooting. Chicago (11-6) lost at home for only the second time in nine games this season.
The score was even at 94 before Charlotte pulled ahead in the final minute. Zeller made a pair of free throws to make it 96-94 with 1:01 remaining, and Walker hit a step back jump shot over Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic to increase the lead to 98-94 with 28.9 seconds left.
Both teams shot 41.6 percent (37-for-89) from the field.
The Bulls led 84-83 with less than seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter when Batum helped to swing momentum to Charlotte. The 6-foot-8 forward hit a trio of 3-pointers within a span of 2:03 to lift the Hornets to a 94-91 lead with 4:28 to go.
Bulls forward Doug McDermott evened the score at 94 with a 3-pointer with 2:09 remaining.
Chicago entered the fourth quarter with a 75-72 advantage. Charlotte led by five points early in the third quarter, but the Bulls responded with a 14-4 run to go ahead 71-66. Rose prompted the run with back-to-back drives to the rim and finished the third quarter with nine points in nine minutes.
The Hornets led 52-50 at halftime behind a balanced attack that included single-digit scoring from nine players. Chicago trailed by as many as nine points before gaining a 32-29 lead during a 10-0 run early in the second quarter. McDermott and guard E'Twaun Moore came off the bench to spark the rally by scoring eight consecutive points, including a pair of 3-pointers.
Charlotte opened the game on a 12-3 run and held on for a 26-22 lead at the end of the first quarter. Walker led the Hornets with nine points on 4-for-5 shooting in the first 12 minutes.
NOTES: Bulls F Nikola Mirotic returned to the starting lineup Saturday after passing the league's concussion protocol before the game. Mirotic sustained a concussion and facial laceration Wednesday against the Denver Nuggets. ... Hornets C Al Jefferson missed his second consecutive game because of a strained left calf. ... Bulls F Pau Gasol appeared in his 1,000th career NBA game. Gasol became the 116th player in league history and the 14th active player to reach the milestone. ... Hornets F Michael Kidd-Gilchrist missed his 19th consecutive game as he continues to recover from right shoulder surgery. ... Bulls G Kirk Hinrich was cleared to play after missing the previous two games because of a left hip pointer injury.