NBA Game Summary - Brooklyn at Chicago

Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) - Carlos Boozer returned from a nagging calf injury that cost him three games and totaled 15 points and 10 rebounds to help the Chicago Bulls head into the All-Star break on a high note with a 92-76 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.

Boozer's replacement in the starting lineup when he was sidelined, Taj Gibson, chipped in with a 16-point, five-rebound effort in a reserve role, and Joakim Noah continued to fill the stat sheet with 14 points, 13 boards and seven assists.

Chicago, which has taken four of its last five, owned a 45-27 rebounding advantage and held a Nets team that had won four of five coming in to a season-low point total on 38.8 percent shooting.

Paul Pierce led the Nets with 15 points but was held scoreless in the fourth quarter. Brookyln's lone All-Star, Joe Johnson, provided 11 points on 4-of-14 shooting.

Six of the 15 turnovers created by the Bulls came in the opening quarter, one coming off a steal by Jimmy Butler that saw Kirk Hinrich run the fastbreak and send a lob back to Butler, whose deft touch pass to Noah resulted in an uncontested dunk and an 18-11 Chicago lead early on.

Butler's reverse layup and Nazr Mohammed's jumper opened the second-quarter scoring and stretched the margin to 33-19, and it was a 49-41 game at halftime.

Pierce scored eight points in the first 4:01 of the third, with his two free throws cutting the gap to 56-53. Chicago, though, scored 11 of the next 13 points to regain its double-digit advantage, and a three-point play by Deron Williams in the closing seconds of the third pulled Brooklyn within 69-61.

The Nets were again within three, 75-72, following the first 3-pointer of Andre Kirilenko's season midway through the fourth, and again the Bulls had an answer with nine consecutive points.

D.J. Augustin countered Kirilenko's triple with a deep make of his own, and the run was capped when blocks by Noah and Butler on Andray Blatche on the same possession led to a Gibson jumper at the other end.

It was a double-digit game for the final three minutes.