Gordon Leads Bulls Over Denver

[February 23, 2008]  CHICAGO (AP) -- Ben Gordon scored 37 points, and the revamped Chicago Bulls delivered one of their best offensive efforts in years, overcoming a surge by Denver to beat the Nuggets 135-121 Friday night.

The Bulls scored at least 30 points in all four quarters for the first time since Feb. 18, 1997, against Denver, and the 135 points were a season high

They did all that one day after sending Ben Wallace and Joe Smith to Cleveland for Drew Gooden and Larry Hughes just before Thursday's trade deadline in a deal that also involved Seattle.

Despite the onslaught on offense, they had to hold on.

Chicago led by 23 midway through the third quarter, but instead of a blowout, there was tension.

Back-to-back 3-pointers by J.R. Smith, who scored a career-high 43, cut Chicago's lead to 108-102 four minutes into the fourth quarter. Another 3 by Smith made it 111-107 before Gordon scored 10 points during a 14-3 run to bury the Nuggets.

He scored the first four points of the decisive run, hit back-to-back 3-pointers to make it 123-110, and fed Joakim Noah for a dunk that made it a 15-point game and capped the spurt.

Andres Nocioni scored 21 points, and the Bulls got solid performances from Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah, who figure to get long looks now that Wallace and Smith are gone.

Thomas had 18 points and 11 rebounds, while Noah delivered 14 points and 10 boards. Kirk Hinrich added 16 points and 14 assists.

Allen Iverson scored 29 and Carmelo Anthony added 22 for Denver, which was coming off a 124-118 win over Eastern Conference leader Boston on Tuesday.

Notes:@ The Bulls held a moment of silence and wore T-shirts honoring the victims of the recent shootings at Northern Illinois University. The school's basketball teams also attended the game. The also wore the T-shirts during Wednesday's game at New Jersey. ... Hughes isn't going to miss Cleveland. He said he was relieved to join a new team. "I'm ready for a fresh start," he said. "It was fun - we won a lot of games, we made it to the finals. I just wasn't able to be myself. I think here they understand what I do - that's moving without the ball, slashing, penetrating, making plays." ... Denver's Marcus Camby hit a 3-pointer for the second straight game, giving him four on the season.

[Associated Press; By ANDREW SELIGMAN]

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