Bulls 103, Warriors 87
CHICAGO -- Kirk Hinrich scored a season-high 25 points and the Chicago Bulls led wire-to-wire in a 103-87 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Friday at the United Center.
The Bulls jumped to early leads of 12-2 and 25-9. Their lead was in double digits from the 5-minute mark of the first quarter through the rest of the game.
Hinrich knocked down 6 of 7 shots from 3-point range. This was his second 20-point performance in the last three games after not reaching that total previously this season.
Backup point guard Nate Robinson added 22 points and all three of Chicago's starters on the front line collected double-doubles. Joakim Noah finished with 14 points and 16 rebounds, Carlos Boozer had 15 points and 13 boards, while Jimmy Butler added 16 points and a career-high 12 rebounds.
Golden State was coming off back-to-back home victories over Oklahoma City and the Los Angeles Clippers, but never got it going in this one.
Warriors forward David Lee, named as an all-star reserve Thursday, scored 17 of his 23 points in the second quarter. Guard Stephen Curry, who didn't get the all-star call, added 21 points.
Hinrich's second 3-pointer of the night gave Chicago a 30-11 lead in the final minute of the first quarter. The Bulls then scored on their first 11 possessions of the second quarter, while Golden State couldn't grab a single rebound. Chicago hit 11 of 17 shots during that stretch and secured all six offensive boards. The Bulls' rebounding advantage at halftime was 29-12.
The Warriors made a 12-0 run late in the second quarter, capped by a Curry 3-pointer. Golden State got as close as 65-55 with 9:07 left in the third quarter after a driving layup by Klay Thompson. Chicago came back with an 8-2 run and went up 73-57 on a Richard Hamilton jumper.
Notes: Curry said Friday he quickly got over the disappointment of not making the all-star team. He offered appreciation to TNT analyst Charles Barkley for expressing so much anger at Curry's snub. ... Noah, a first-time all-star selection, thanked just about everyone from his past in a series of Twitter messages. "This organization, they believed in me," Noah said Friday. "I came in as a young, loud, probably a little immature and with a big mouth, and they always believed in me." ... The Bulls' second all-star, forward Luol Deng, missed his fourth straight game with a right hamstring strain. He felt there's a chance he could play Saturday at Washington. ... Heading into Friday's action, Robinson had scored exactly 11 points in four straight games.
