DENVER – Danilo Gallinari scored 33 points Friday night, and the Denver Nuggets rallied for a 115-110 victory against Chicago after the Bulls lost All-Star Jimmy Butler to a sprained left knee.
Emmanuel Mudiay scored 22 points and Will Barton had 18 for the Nuggets, who outscored the Bulls 42-21 in the fourth quarter. It was their ninth consecutive victory over Chicago in Denver.
Butler was fouled near the basket by Joffrey Lauvergne and fell awkwardly to the floor with 1:06 remaining in the second quarter. He was tended to by medical personnel before getting to his feet and gingerly making his way to the free-throw line, where he made one of the two foul shots.
Butler was then helped to a rolling chair and wheeled into the locker room for further examination.
Derrick Rose led the Bulls with 30 points. Butler finished with 19 points, and Taj Gibson had 18.
Butler rested for the first time this season when he missed Wednesday’s 107-102 win at Sacramento with left knee tendinitis. He suffered the injury on Monday at Utah when he banged his knee in an on-court collision.
Chicago led by two at halftime, and then outscored the Nuggets 32-18 in the third.
Denver closed to 98-95 with 5:58 left when Nikola Jokic connected on a pair of 3-pointers around a 3-pointer by Chicago’s Doug McDermott.
Gallinari’s baseline jumper with 51.2 seconds remaining gave Denver a 109-108 lead.
Rose badly missed a contested jumper over Kenneth Faried and Mudiay then made the first of two free throws before Faried rebounded his missed shot from the line to give the Nuggets a four-point edge with 20 seconds left, and that was enough to hold off the Bulls.
TIP-INS
Bulls: F Nikola Mirotic (appendicitis) and C Joakim Noah (left shoulder) did not travel with the team. ... C Pau Gasol sat out with a left hand sprain.
Nuggets: G Jameer Nelson missed a third consecutive game because of a lingering left wrist injury. ... Jokic fouled out with 1:41 left to play.
UP NEXT
Bulls: Visit Minnesota on Saturday night.
Nuggets: Visit the New York Knicks on Sunday.
