CHICAGO — Scottie Pippen scored 11 of his 17 points in the first half as the Chicago Bulls raced to a 15-point lead en route to a 99-79 victory Saturday over the suddenly slumping Atlanta Hawks.
Luc Longley had 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists, while holding All-Star center Dikembe Mutombo to four points on 1-of-6 shooting. Pippen added seven rebounds and seven assists.
Michael Jordan was held to 10 points in 29 minutes for the Bulls, who avoided losing three times during any five-game stretch over the last two seasons. Randy Brown scored 11 points and Dennis Rodman grabbed 14 rebounds for Chicago, which reduced its magic number for clinching home-court advantage throughout the playoffs to 10.
Christian Laettner scored 22 points and Steve Smith added 20 for Atlanta, which suffered its third straight loss following a five-game winning streak. The Hawks have lost 11 of the last 12 meetings with the Bulls.
Elsewhere in the NBA, LaPhonso Ellis scored a career-high 39 points and Antonio McDyess added 33 as the Denver Nuggets raced to a 20-point halftime lead and cruised to a 121-105 victory over the San Antonio Spurs.
At California, Mark Price scored 21 points and Donyell Marshall and Joe Smith each added 20 as the Golden State Warriors nearly blew a 22-point fourth-quarter lead before holding on for a 106-102 victory over the Toronto Raptors.
At Philadelphia, Tony Delk scored eight of his 12 points in a 25-5 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters and led the Charlotte Hornets to a 107-99 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.
At Phoenix, Kevin Johnson scored 23 points and Rex Chapman added 19 as the Phoenix Suns continued their recent domination of the Dallas Mavericks with a 101-76 rout.
At Washington, Karl Malone scored 32 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as the Utah Jazz improved to 4-1 on their seven-game road trip with a 100-93 victory over the Washington Bullets.