The Chicago Bulls (34 - 33) defeated the visiting Brooklyn Nets (19 - 49) 118 - 102, Thursday evening at United Center. Chicago got out to a great start, with a 55 - 37 first half but Brooklyn came out and scored as many points as they did in the entire first half, in the third quarter alone, bringing it to a five - point game heading into the fourth. However, Doug McDermott and the Bulls had the answer in the fourth as they out - scored the Nets 39 - 28. McDermott scored 10 of his 25 points in the final quarter, as he notched his third straight game with more than 20 points. This was a big win for the Bulls as they are bunched up with the Pistons and the Wizards in the battle for eighth in the East. Chicago has now won seven of their last nine home games, while the Nets have lost four - straight on the road. In the absence of Pau Gasol (knee), Chicago's bench accounted for an impressive 60 points. Doug McDermott led the way with 25 points (8 - 16 FG, 5 - 8 3Pt, 4 - 4 FT), along with three rebounds and one assist, in 28 minutes off the bench. Jimmy Butler had a strong outing, with 22 points (7 - 12 FG, 0 - 1 3Pt, 8 - 8 FT), seven assists, three rebounds and one steal, in 32 minutes, while Bobby Portis logged a double - double with 12 points and 14 rebounds, in 28 minutes off the bench. The Bulls shot 49 percent form the field, 46 percent from long range and an impressive 15 - 15 from the free throw line. Bojan Bogdanovic followed up his career - high 44 - point performance with another strong game, this time finishing with a team - high 26 points (10 - 17 FG, 2 - 5 3Pt, 4 - 4 FT), along with five assists, three rebounds and one steal, in 29 minutes. Thaddeus Young tallied a double - double with 16 points and 14 rebounds, along with two steals, two blocked shots and one assist, in 31 minutes. The Nets struggled shooting from deep, going 6 - 21, but shot a decent 47 percent from the field overall. Next, the Nets will head to Detroit to face off against the Pistons on Saturday. The Bulls will look to keep their playoff hopes alive as they host the Jazz on Saturday, in what will be the second of a four - game home stand.
["TeamStat(G,'Bulls') has 46 Percentage of 3 points ,has 49 Percentage of field goals ,has 33 Losses ,has 118 Total points ,has 39 Points in 4th quarter ,has 9 Turnovers ,has 34 Wins ."
 "TeamStat(G,'Nets') has 47 Percentage of 3 points ,has 49 Percentage of field goals ,has 102 Losses ,has 28 Total points ,has 9 Points in 4th quarter ,has 19 Turnovers ."]