INDIANAPOLIS — Jimmy Butler scored 27 points and grabbed nine rebounds and the Chicago Bulls held off a late rally to beat Indiana 92-90 Monday for their seventh consecutive NBA victory. Spanish star Pau Gasol added 20 points, while Derrick Rose contributed 17 despite 5-of-20 shooting for the visiting Bulls, who improved to 22-9, two games behind Toronto for the best record in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls nearly squandered a 21-point lead with a sluggish fourth quarter in which they were outscored 25-11. A 3-point play by Chicago's Mike Dunleavy, who pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds, put the Bulls ahead 75-54 late in the third quarter, but Chicago missed an unprecedented 17 shots in a row until Gasol broke the futility streak with a turnaround jumper with 3:27 remaining in the fourth quarter. While the Bulls went silent, the Pacers scored 20 points in a row at one stretch, with Lavoy Allen's layup midway into the final period putting Indiana in front and Luis Scola's basket putting the Pacers ahead 86-83. Butler sank a 3-pointer with just over a minute remaining to put the Bulls back on top and C.J. Watson missed a baseline 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have won the game for Indiana. Chris Copeland came off the bench to lead Indiana's six double-figure scorers with 17 points, netting 13 of them in the fourth quarter. The Pacers slid to 11-21, 11-1/2 games behind the pace-setting Bulls in the Central division. Wizards 104, Rockets 103: Bradley Beal drilled a transition three-pointer that staved off a spirited comeback and helped the Washington Wizards reclaim stability en route to a win over the Houston Rockets. Washington (22-8) blew an 18-point lead but John Wall made a pair of free throws to put his team four points ahead with five seconds left before James Harden made a triple at the buzzer for the Rockets (21-9). Magic 102, Heat 101: The Orlando Magic spoiled Chris Bosh's return from injury, defeating the Miami Heat by a point. Victor Oladipo hit a tying layup, and on Orlando's next possession, hit one of two free throws with 6.5 seconds left to give the Magic (13-21) the win. Dwyane Wade, who scored 15 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter but missed a fade-away jumper at the buzzer to hand Orlando the win. Bosh added 20 points and seven rebounds in his return to the Heat (14-18) from a calf ailment. Nets 107, Kings 99: Mason Plumlee scored 22 points and had a great night at the free-throw line while leading the Brooklyn Nets to victory over the Sacramento Kings. Plumlee made a career-high 10 free throws and went to the line a career-highest 16 times. DeMarcus Cousins added 24 points and 13 boards for the Kings (13-18), who were undone by 21 turnovers. Bucks 104, Hornets 94 (OT): Brandon Knight scored 18 points and made several key plays late in the game as the Milwaukee Bucks dominated overtime to beat the Charlotte Hornets. The Bucks (16-16) raced to a 21-point first-half lead and held a 49-32 advantage at halftime but ultimately had to come from behind in the final minute of regulation after the Hornets rallied to take an 83-81 lead with 54.5 seconds left. The Hornets (10-22) lost their third game in a row. Clippers 101, Jazz 97: Blake Griffin scored 24 points and handed out seven assists and point guard Chris Paul finished with 20 points and eight assists, guiding the Los Angeles Clippers to a victory over the Utah Jazz. The Clippers (21-11) defeated the Jazz for a franchise-record 12th consecutive time. Gordon Hayward led the Jazz with 22 points, however, two missed foul shots by Derrick Favors with 31.6 seconds remaining cost the Jazz. — Agencies
