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Bulls-Knicks Preview

Dec 19, 2015 - 6:54 AM The New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls will close out their respective back-to-back sets Saturday night, but one looks drastically different than the other.

While the Knicks rested up late in an easy win on Friday, the Bulls played their longest game in more than three decades ahead of their trip to Madison Square Garden.

What was most taxing might have been the final result. After playing for 3 hours, 24 minutes, the Bulls' four-game winning streak came to a close with a 147-144 quadruple-overtime loss to Detroit, the lone defeat on a five-game homestand.

Chicago (15-9) will meet the Knicks for a seventh game in 11 days one night after each of its starters logged season highs in minutes - led by Jimmy Butler (55:33) and Derrick Rose (54:13).

''You fight hard, you put everything you have on the court and to lose like this in four overtimes at home, it's a heartbreaker,'' Pau Gasol said. ''It happens.''

Not often. Chicago's only other four-overtime game was a 156-155 win at Portland on March 16, 1984. Friday was the 13th game in NBA history to last at least four overtimes and the first since Atlanta beat Utah on March 25, 2012.

Butler's 3-pointer at the buzzer stuck between the rim and backboard for a moment before rolling harmlessly away, capping Chicago's 5-for-22 performance from downtown. The 22.7 percent clip was a season worst, and the five makes were one off a season low.

Butler still finished with a career-high 43 points, and Gasol added a season-high 30 points with 15 rebounds, five assists and five blocks. Rose poured in 34 points, but it took him 34 shots to get there, both season highs.

''We're expected to win,'' Butler said. ''Four overtimes, no overtimes. We didn't do that. Didn't protect our home floor.''

After dropping to 11-4 at the United Center, the Bulls will try to snap a two-game skid on the road. They have won three straight games in this series and are 13-3 against the Knicks since April 12, 2011.

While Chicago won the second end of its only two previous back-to-backs, New York is 1-4 in the same situation.

The Knicks (13-14) won their third consecutive game on Friday, 107-97 at Philadelphia. New York led by as many as 30 points before using the fourth quarter to rest its starters, none of whom logged more than 28 minutes.

The Knicks didn't post 14 wins last season until March 17.

Rookie Kristaps Porzingis is a big reason for the turnaround, though he has struggled offensively of late. After scoring 28 points on Dec. 7, Porzingis has scored just 36 in the last five games on 27.1 percent shooting.

He has blocked 10 shots in his last two games, however, while playing against other top picks Karl-Anthony Towns of Minnesota and Jahlil Okafor of the 76ers.

''The great thing about (Porzingis) is even if he's not getting the most amount of opportunities offensively, he's blocking shots, he's changing shots, he's still impacting the game,'' coach Derek Fisher said. ''We're a better team when he's out there on the floor and I think he's going to continue to learn every night when he's out there on the floor.''

New York has won three of its last four games at MSG after opening the season 3-6 there.