NBA roundup: Bulls put win in Windy City again

CHICAGO — Derrick Rose scored 30 points and the Chicago Bulls beat the Orlando Magic 101-93 on Saturday night for their season-high fourth straight win.

For all the speculation about coach Vinny Del Negro's job status, the Bulls are playing their best ball of the year. And so is Rose, who finished two points shy of a career high he set against Atlanta last month.

Slowed by an ankle injury early on, he started the new year on the right foot after averaging just over 20 points in December.

Rose scored the final six points of a 20-2 run spanning the second and third quarters that gave Chicago a 13-point lead, and he hit two free throws with 24.5 seconds left in the game to make it 98-93 after J.J. Redick hit a 3-pointer to pull Orlando within three.

The Magic called time, but Matt Barnes missed a lean-in 3-point attempt, and Jameer Nelson clanged another from beyond the arc. Ryan Anderson then had another shot from long range rim out with seven seconds left off an inbound pass, and the Bulls hung on from there.

Barnes did his best to keep Orlando in it, scoring 15 of his season-high 23 points in the third quarter. Anderson added 12, including a 3 that pulled the Magic to 90-85 with just over three minutes left, but Orlando's stars were all but invisible.

Dwight Howard managed just nine points and 12 rebounds against Joakim Noah after being held in check the previous night in a win at Minnesota. Rashard Lewis scored seven points, Vince Carter made only 3 of 15 shots in an eight-point effort, and Jameer Nelson scored all of his 10 in the second half.

Nelson's slow start came after a 16-point performance against the Timberwolves that eased some concerns after his surgically repaired left knee swelled up following a Christmas Day loss to Boston.

SPURS 97, WIZARDS 86: At Washington, Tim Duncan scored 23 points and reserve Roger Mason Jr. added a season-high 20 to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 97-86 victory Saturday night over the Washington Wizards, who remained enveloped in a gun controversy surrounding Gilbert Arenas. Tony Parker had 12 points for the Spurs, whose five-game winning streak matches a season high. San Antonio has won four straight on the road and nine in a row against the Wizards. Duncan's jump-hook gave the Spurs an 81-80 lead with 6:21 left in the game, and he followed that with two free throws as part of a decisive 12-2 run.