Chicago wins sixth straight

CHICAGO (AP) -- The last time the Chicago Bulls put together a

streak like this, Michael Jordan was wearing No. 23.

Eddy Curry's layup with 2.4 seconds left capped a fourth-quarter

rally and gave Chicago its sixth straight victory, 86-84 over the

New York Knicks on Saturday.

The winning streak is Chicago's best since Jordan led the team

to 13 consecutive wins late in the 1997-98 championship season. The

Bulls, who lost their first nine games this season, have won 12 of

15 overall.

For fourth-year center Eddy Curry, life in the NBA has never

been this good.

"This is amazing," Curry said. "I don't think it can get any

better. This is my first time ever experiencing winning at this

level. It's great. It's a great feeling."

Curry's big shot was the result of hard work by everyone on the

floor for the Bulls.

Andres Nocioni set up the winning score by blocking Trevor

Ariza's jumper from the corner. Tyson Chandler saved the ball from

going out of bounds and threw it behind him to Kirk Hinrich, who

fed Nocioni as he raced up the floor. Nocioni then passed to Curry,

who drove to the basket and put the Bulls ahead.

"I wanted to just pick it up and make sure I had it," Curry

said. "I knew once I had it in my hands I could get to the

basket."

New York called a timeout, and Chandler blocked Nazr Mohammed's

shot with time running out to seal it.

The 7-foot-1 Chandler, who leads the Bulls with 54 blocks, was

surprised that Mohammed was coming at him.

"I thought they were going to go to (Stephon) Marbury,"

Chandler said. "When I saw he was coming at me, in my mind I knew

he only had 3 seconds so he had to put it up. With 5 seconds, he'd

probably pump fake me and I'd be in the air, but 3 seconds, he

can't."

Knicks coach Lenny Wilkens believed getting the ball to Mohammed

was a good play.

"We wanted to get it in to Nazr. We wanted to go to the basket

and get fouled if we could," Wilkens said. "We set up what I

thought was a good play at the end."

Curry led the Bulls with 17 points. Hinrich had 15 points and 11

assists, and Ben Gordon scored 16 points -- 14 in the fourth

quarter.

Marbury led the Knicks with 25 points and 10 assists. Ariza, a

rookie, came off the bench to score 18 points and grab nine

rebounds in 37 minutes, all career highs.

"We lost. Career highs? That does not matter if we did not

win," Ariza said. "That's the kind of player I am. If it didn't

help us win, than it doesn't really count."

Chicago came out firing in the second half, with Hinrich setting

up Luol Deng for two straight 3-pointers and Chris Duhon for one.

Ariza dunked with 35.9 seconds left in the third quarter and

followed with an 18-foot jumper at the buzzer to give the Knicks a

65-56 advantage at the end of the third, their largest lead of the

game.

The Bulls fought back to even the score midway through the

fourth. Hinrich's 3-pointer cut the lead to 76-75 at 6:08. After a

free throw by Moochie Norris, Gordon tied it at 77 with 5:37 left.

"We were able to get me and Ben a bunch of pick-and-rolls,"

Hinrich said. "When Ben was penetrating, they weren't coming off

of me. When I was penetrating they weren't coming off of Ben. So it

made it a little easier to get deeper on the defense, get our shots

off and make good plays."

Curry's hook at 3:02 gave the Bulls the lead, but Kurt Thomas

responded with a 16-foot shot for New York.

Thomas fouled Gordon on the Bulls' next possession, and the

rookie hit both free throws to put Chicago up 83-81. Ariza then

tied it with a jump shot.

Gordon followed by drawing another foul from Thomas, but only

hit one free throw.

After being fouled by Gordon, Ariza made just one free throw to

tie it again.

Adrian Griffin then missed two free throws for the Bulls,

leading to Ariza's blocked shot.

Chicago led 22-20 after the first quarter. Marbury tied the game

at 22 early in the second. Othella Harrington responded with a

20-foot jump shot for the Bulls, but Vin Baker tied it again with

an 18-footer. Antonio Davis hit two free throws to cut the lead to

42-37 at halftime.Game notes
Jamal Crawford returned to Chicago for the first time since

being traded by the Bulls in the offseason but didn't play. An

injured right toe has kept him on the injured list since Dec. 26,

but he expects to be healthy enough to play after a few more

practices. "It feels different being back here, especially in this

locker room. It's a different feeling for sure, but it's good to be

back," Crawford said. ... Tim Thomas missed his third straight

game due to a bruised left knee. ... Chicago guard Jannero Pargo

returned after missing 22 games because of a left hamstring strain.

... Chicago kept its opponent under 100 points for the 21st

straight game, the longest current streak in the NBA.