Knicks try to cool down red-hot Bulls

Chicago, which is 1 1/2 games behind Detroit in the Central Division standings, has won five straight and 12 of its last 13 games. On Tuesday the Bulls posted a 94-89 win over the Los Angeles Lakers at the United Center.

Luol Deng scored 23 points and Ben Gordon added 22 off the bench for the Bulls, who are 11-2 at home but 4-8 as the visitor this season. Chris Duhon scored 11 points with six rebounds and six assists in the win.

Ben Wallace finished with nine rebounds, seven assists and three blocks to go along with four points for Chicago.

Meanwhile, the Knicks will close out their four-game homestand on Friday and are 6-10 at Madison Square Garden this season. New York improved to 2-1 on the stand with a 111-109 double-overtime victory against Charlotte.

Knicks forward David Lee tipped in the in-bounds pass with no time on the clock in the second OT to lift his team to victory. New York has now won two in a row since Saturday’s 123-100 ugly loss at home against Denver, which resulted in seven player suspensions.

The Knicks, who also played without injured starting guards Steve Francis and Quentin Richardson, were led by 30 points from Channing Frye. Eddy Curry added 29 points and nine rebounds, while Lee totaled 10 points and 19 boards.

Jamal Crawford had 25 points and nine assists as the Knicks won back-to-back games for just the second time all season.

Chicago is 2-0 against New York this season and has won four straight, eight of nine and 11 of the last 14 meetings with the Knicks. The Bulls have also won two straight and four of their last five visits to Madison Square Garden.