AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Pau Gasol had a season-high 31 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 111-101 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Monday afternoon at The Palace.
Bulls point guard Derrick Rose fired in 20 points and shooting guard Jimmy Butler contributed 16 points and nine assists. Small forward Doug McDermott and power forward Nikola Mirotic combined for 21 points off the bench for Chicago (24-16).
The Bulls were playing their first game since center Joakim Noah suffered a dislocated left shoulder on Friday.
Pistons power forward Ersan Ilyasova led Detroit (22-19) with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Center Andre Drummond collected his league-high 35th double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds, point guard Reggie Jackson had 19 points and small forward Marcus Morris added 18 for the Pistons.
Detroit shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was ejected in the closing seconds of the third after picking up his second technical of the quarter. Caldwell-Pope exited with 14 points.
The Pistons won the first two meetings this season in overtime, including an epic 147-144, four-overtime marathon on Dec. 18 in Chicago. Gasol had his only other 30-point game of the season during the four-OT loss.
Rose made a fast-break layup early in the third to give Chicago a 62-53 lead. Jackson’s three-point play with 3:38 left in the quarter put the Pistons on top 73-72. Butler answered with a three-point play of his own and the Bulls carried an 83-79 advantage into the final quarter.
The Pistons scored the first two baskets of the fourth but the Bulls responded with a 15-5 run to make it 98-88. Mirotic, McDermott and Gasol all made 3-pointers during that span.
Drummond fouled Gasol on a 3-point attempt with four minutes left and the Bulls center made all three free throws for a 101-91 lead. The Pistons couldn’t muster a run from that point.
Chicago’s bench outscored the Detroit reserves 21-8 in the first half, helping the Bulls grab a 56-53 halftime lead.
NOTES: Bulls rookie PF Bobby Portis will play regularly now that C Joakim Noah (dislocated shoulder) may miss the rest of the season. “He knows now he’s going to play extended minutes pretty much every night,” coach Fred Hoiberg said. … Detroit coach Stan Van Gundy is somewhat surprised his team was at or above .500 for all but one game during the first half of the season. “We’ve come along probably a little bit quicker than I would have expected,” Van Gundy said. … Bulls reserve PG Kirk Hinrich (left quad contusion) did not travel with the team. … Detroit embarks on a four-game road trip, beginning at Houston on Wednesday. Chicago has a home game against defending champion Golden State the same night. … Detroit C Andre Drummond’s 21-rebound game against the Warriors on Saturday was his eighth 20-rebound performance this season, two more than the rest of the league combined.