The Chicago Bulls entered the fourth quarter of Friday's game against the New York Knicks, the best team in the Eastern Conference, with a 22-point lead. The Knicks played like the league's best team in the fourth quarter, out-scoring Chicago 45-27 to make the final scorer a much closer 110-106, but the Bulls managed to hold on for their second straight win.
Chicago built a 54-39 lead at halftime and the Knicks struggled much of the game. Luol Deng had 29 points and 13 rebounds, Joakim Noah had 15 points and 12 rebounds and Marco Belinelli scored 22 points to lead Chicago. The Bulls shot 45 percent from the field and 44 percent from three-point range.
J.R. Smith led the Knicks with 26 points and 10 rebounds. Carmelo Anthony scored 29 points and Raymond Felton scored 21, but both struggled shooting. Anthony shot 10 for 25 and Felton made 9 for 21 shots and missed all four of his three-point attempts.