The Golden State Warriors blew into the Windy City and ran the Chicago Bulls out of the United Centre.
Stephen Curry collected 25 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds, and the defending NBA champions blasted the Bulls 125-94 on Wednesday for their second straight emphatic win.
“It was a fun game for us,” league top scorer Curry said. “Everybody was involved, making them react, and it set the tone for the rest of the game.”
The Warriors rebounded from Saturday’s sluggish 18-point loss to Detroit for their second blowout win following Monday’s 132-98 crushing of the Cleveland Cavaliers in a rematch of the NBA Finals.
“We got back to who we are as a team and put together two solid bounce-back performances against two good teams,” Curry added. “It says a lot about our resiliency and confidence.”
Klay Thompson netted 20 points, Harrison Barnes added 19 while reserves Shaun Livingston and Leandro Barbosa followed with 12 apiece for the Warriors (39-4), who are chasing the NBA all-time record mark of 72-10 set by the 1996-97 Bulls.
“Our goal is to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy again but if it’s there in the end for us we’re going to try to get it,” Thompson said. “No one ever thought that record would be touchable and we have a long way to get there but that’s pretty elite company to be in conversation with.”
Derrick Rose scored 29 points and Jimmy Butler added 23 for the Bulls (24-17), who hit a frosty 37 per cent from the field and went 1-of-20 from behind the arc in their most lopsided loss of the season.
“It had a lot to do with us,” Rose said. “If you don’t have communication on the defensive end against a team like that it can get pretty ugly and it showed. They’re a very good team, and they whipped us pretty bad.”
Knotted at 14-apiece, the Warriors went on a 27-6 run behind eight points from Barbosa bridging the first and second quarters to go ahead 41-20 lead en route to a 63-44 halftime cushion.
They maintained control and never allowed the lead to dip below 11 the rest of the way.
“You have to be on your toes for a full 48 minutes and we weren’t,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. “It’s a team when you’re not playing them they’re fun to watch. They play basketball the right way.”

ELSEWHERE
Cleveland Cavaliers 91, Brooklyn Nets 78: Kevin Love had 17 points with 18 rebounds, LeBron James also netted 17 and the visiting Cavaliers (29-11) bounced back to beat the Nets (11-32) after Monday’s embarrassing 132-98 loss to Golden State.

Oklahoma City Thunder 109, Charlotte Hornets 95: Kevin Durant scored 26, Russell Westbrook added 16 with 15 assists and eight rebounds, as the Thunder (32-12) rolled the visiting Hornets (19-23) for a sixth straight win. Kemba Walker netted 21 points in Charlotte’s (19-23) 10th loss in 12 games.

New York Knicks 118, Utah Jazz 111 (OT): Carmelo Anthony scored 30 points, Derrick Williams added seven of his 19 in over-time, including the go-ahead triple with 2:35 remaining, and the Knicks (22-22) beat the visiting Jazz. Rodney Hood led Utah (18-24) with 29 points, and Gordon Hayward finished with 27, including three free throws with 2.4 seconds left to force the extra session.

Philadelphia 76ers 96, Orlando Magic 87: Jahlil Okafor scored 20 points, Ish Smith had 13 points with 11 assists, and the league-worst Sixers (6-38) sent the hosting Magic (20-21) to its eighth loss in the last nine games.

Detroit Pistons 123, Houston Rockets 114: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Marcus Morris scored 22 points apiece and the visiting Pistons (23-14) beat the Rockets (22-22) on a night when Detroit centre Andre Drummond missed an NBA-record 22 of 36 free throws attempted. James Harden led Houston (22-22) with 33 points, a career-high 17 rebounds and 14-assists for his first triple-double of the season.

Dallas Mavericks 106, Minnesota Timberwolves 94 (OT): Chandler Parsons scored seven of his season-high 30 points in over-time and the Mavericks (25-19) - without German star Dirk Nowitzki due to right knee swelling - handed the T-Wolves their eighth straight road loss and 11 in the last 12 overall. Karl-Anthony Towns topped Minnesota (13-31) with 27 points along with career-highs of 17 rebounds and six blocks.

Toronto Raptors 115, Boston Celtics 109: DeMar DeRozan dropped in 34 points and the surging Raptors (27-15) increased their unbeaten streak to a season-high six after trimming the visiting Celtics. Isaiah Thomas topped Boston (27-15) with 21 points and 10 assists.

Sacramento Kings 112, LA Lakers 93: DeMarcus Cousins had 36 points with 16 rebounds, and the visiting Kings (18-23) rolled the West-worst Lakers (9-35) for their season-high third straight road win.

Washington Wizards 106, Miami Heat 87: John Wall and Bradley Beal scored 18 points apiece, and the Wizards (20-21) handed the Heat (23-20) - minus all-star guard Dwyane Wade (shoulder pain) - its sixth loss in seven games.