SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Without their leading scorer and two other key players, the Chicago Bulls were a long shot to end their struggles Monday until they started taking one long shot after another.
The Bulls canned 11 of 21 shots from beyond the 3-point arc, and guard E’Twaun Moore scored a career-high 24 points as the Bulls beat the Sacramento Kings 107-102 at Sleep Train Arena without guard Jimmy Butler.
Moore, who entered the contest averaging only 5.1 points per game this season, made four of his five shots from beyond the arc to surpass his previous career best of 19 set in March 2015. Six Bulls made at least one 3-pointer
The shooting spree came after Chicago announced an hour before the game that Butler would be sidelined with tendinitis in his left knee. Butler, the team’s leader in points (22.4 per game) and minutes (38.3) sat out for the first time this season.
Center Pau Gasol finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds and made two free throws with 4.3 seconds left to put away the game. Guard Derrick Rose scored 21 points and added nine assists for the Bulls, who also were without forward Nikola Mirotic (appendicitis) and forward Joakim Noah (dislocated left shoulder).
Kings center DeMarcus Cousins returned from a one-game absence caused by a sprained left ankle to put up 30 points and 11 rebounds despite limping noticeably at times. But the Kings never led by more than two points and lost at home to the Bulls for the first time since Dec. 29, 2011.
Cousins missed twice from inside the key with the Kings trailing 105-102 and under 20 seconds left, then missed two free throws with 8.4 seconds left after Moore missed two himself for Chicago.
Guard Darren Collison added 19 points off the bench for the Kings, who have lost five of six since a season-best five-game winning streak. NBA assists leader Rajon Rondo finished with nine assists and six points, his third straight single-digit assist game after a franchise-best 14 straight with at least 10.
Despite the loss, Sacramento reached the All-Star break with a .500 record at home for the first time in since the 2012-13 season. They haven’t finished above .500 at home over a full season since the 2007-08 campaign.
The Bulls improved to 2-2 on a season-high seven-game road trip.
NOTES: Chicago F Nikola Mirotic remained in the hospital Wednesday, the team said, following an emergency appendectomy on Jan. 27 and subsequent surgery to remove a hematoma over the weekend. Mirotic is expected to be released from the hospital in the next few days, according to the team, but there is no timetable for his return. … Sacramento G Rajon Rondo played despite being listed on the injury report with turf toe. Rondo was coming off two consecutive single-digit assist games, his first streak of such games since a three-game run from Nov. 28-Dec. 3. … The Kings allowed only 96.4 points per game during a season-high, five-game winning streak, then followed that by surrendering an average of 116 per game over their next five. Sacramento ranks last in the NBA, surrendering 108.1 points per contest.