Bulls rally to beat Knicks

Gordon ended with 32 points and backcourt mate Kirk Hinrich registered a game- high 33 points, thanks in part to 12-of-13 free throw shooting, as the Bulls won for the second time in three outings.

Luol Deng had 17 points and a season-high 15 rebounds for Chicago, which won for just the third time in nine road contests.

Steve Francis had 18 points and Quentin Richardson tallied 16 for the Knicks, who have lost six in a row. Malik Rose added season-highs of 15 points and 10 rebounds and Stephon Marbury had 15 points for New York, which blew a double- digit second-half lead to lose for the 22nd time in 24 outings.

The Knicks grabbed the lead late in the second quarter, carrying a 56-52 edge into halftime. In the third, the club continued to hold the Bulls at bay, going ahead by as many as 14 points, 79-65, after Richardson hit a driving layup with five minutes left in the stanza.

Chicago, however, wouldn’t go away and began chipping away at the Knicks’ lead. The Bulls scored 13 of the final 19 points of the quarter to go into the fourth down just 85-78.

Darius Songaila then converted a bucket in the early going of the final quarter to cut the deficit to 85-80.

Hinrich then made it a 89-86 game on a pair of free throws with just over seven minutes left, but the Knicks responded and extended to a 97-89 lead a little over a minute later on a Marbury basket.

Chicago again rallied with a 15-4 run to take the lead. The burst was highlight by Gordon’s three-pointer with 31.7 seconds remaining that gave Chicago its first lead since the second quarter, 102-101.

The Knicks had a chance to go ahead on their ensuing possession, but Francis committed a turnover. Then, down 104-101, Francis was called for a charging with 18 seconds left and New York’s chances quickly fizzled after that.

Chicago hit 32-of-36 free throws in the game.

Game Notes

Jalen Rose had 13 points and Eddy Curry had 11 points and seven rebounds for the Knicks...New York fell to 1-6 in its last seven at home and 11-18 overall at MSG...Chicago ends a brief two-game road trip in Cleveland on Sunday...The Bulls improved to 13-16 on the road this season.