Thunder rout Bulls 121-96
(OKLAHOMA CITY) – Paul George's performance late in the first half was all the Oklahoma City Thunder needed against the Chicago Bulls. George scored 16 of his game-high 24 points in the final five minutes of the first half and the Thunder rolled to a 121-96 victory over the Bulls on Monday night in a chippy game in which both teams were assessed technical fouls following a second-quarter fracas. George's scoring outburst came in the final 4:47 of the second quarter as Oklahoma City outscored the Bulls 23-7 and built a 64-44 lead by the break. Outside of that nearly five-minute stretch, he shot 2 of 13 from the floor and scored just one point in the second half. The Bulls changed their defensive strategy against George after halftime, leading to fewer opportunities. Russell Westbrook had 13 points, 16 rebounds and 11 steals for his 111th career triple-double. Steven Adams added 19 points and Dennis Schroder scored 18 for the Thunder. Lauri Markkanen and Bobby Portis had 16 points apiece to lead Chicago. Markkanen adding 15 rebounds. The game was halted for several minutes with 4:27 left in the second quarter after a melee broke out near the Thunder bench when Chicago's Cameron Payne fouled Terrance Ferguson and, nearly simultaneously, Westbrook and Kris Dunn exchanged pushes. The confrontation ended when Bulls coach Jim Boylen pulled Thunder forward Jerami Grant out of the scuffle by his neck. When it was all said and done Westbrook, Grant, Dunn and Chicago's Robin Lopez were assessed technical fouls. Lopez was ejected less than three minutes later after he picked up another technical foul.

OTHER NBA SCORES
Phoenix 128 – NY Knicks 110
Houston 102 – Utah 97
Minnesota 132 – Sacramento 105
San Antonio 123 – Philadelphia 96
Golden State 110 – Memphis 93
Portland 131 – LA Clippers 127

MONDAY NHL SCORES
Anaheim 4 – Pittsburgh 2
Columbus 1 – Las Vegas 0
Boston 4 – Montreal 0
Ottawa 4 – Nashville 3 (OT)
NY Islanders 4 – Colorado 1