Derrick Rose matched a career high with 39 points as the Chicago Bulls staged a big rally to beat the visiting Detroit Pistons 101-91 yesterday.

Chicago trailed by 21 early in the third quarter and was still down 86-73 about three minutes into the fourth when it went on a 19-2 run to pull out a dramatic win in the home opener.

Joakim Noah had 15 points and 17 rebounds. Taj Gibson scored 11. James Johnson wound up with eight points and nine rebounds, and the Bulls delivered in the end after coming up short down the stretch in the opener against Oklahoma City.

Chicago overcame a spectacular first half by former Bulls star Ben Gordon, who scored all of his 21 points before intermission.

Hornets 99, Spurs 90

At San Antonio, Chris Paul scored 25 points as New Orleans beat San Antonio to emerge as the only unbeaten team in the Southwest Division.

David West added 18 points and the Hornets got first-year coach Monty Williams off to a 3-0 start after a win over his former coach and mentor, Gregg Popovich.

Tony Parker scored 13 points only hours after signing a four-year extension worth US$50 million, but the Spurs shot miserably in the third quarter and never recovered. Manu Ginobili led San Antonio with 23 points.

It was the first 20-point game of the season for Paul, who was 8 of 15 from the floor. He also had five assists.

Bucks 98, Bobcats 88

At Milwaukee, Brandon Jennings had his first career triple-double with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in the Bucks' victory in their home opener.

Andrew Bogut added 14 points, eight rebounds and four blocks for Milwaukee.

With Bogut back manning the middle, the 21-year-old Jennings was free to roam and make plays for Milwaukee's first win in the matchup of 0-2 Eastern Conference playoff teams from last season.

D.J. Augustin scored 26 points and Stephen Jackson had 23 for the Bobcats.

Hawks 99, Wizards 95

At Atlanta, Joe Johnson scored 14 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter as Atlanta remained unbeaten, winning its home opener.

After opening with wins at Memphis and Philadelphia, Atlanta gave the home fans their first look at a team that features largely the same roster as last year's playoff team but a new motion offense under rookie coach Larry Drew.

Rookie John Wall led the Wizards with 28 points, and Thornton added 24. But the Wizards still lost their 10th in a row to the Hawks.

Al Horford had 21 points and 10 rebounds for Atlanta.

Nuggets 107, Rockets 94

At Houston, Al Harrington scored 28 points and Carmelo Anthony had 24 to help Denver ruin Houston's first home game.

Chauncey Billups scored 13 points, Nene had 12 points and 12 rebounds and the Nuggets won in Houston for only the fifth time in the last 18 games there.

Luis Scola scored 28 and Kevin Martin added 21 for the Rockets, who are 0-3 for the first time since the 1999-00 season.

Yao Ming scored 14 points, pulled down six rebounds and blocked two shots in 23 minutes. Houston continues to limit his playing time as he comes back from foot surgery that sidelined him all last season.

Trail Blazers 100, Knicks 95

At New York, Brandon Roy scored 29 points and LaMarcus Aldridge added 20 as unbeaten Portland rallied to spoil New York's home opener.

Andre Miller had 19 points and 10 assists for the Trail Blazers, who improved to 3-0 by erasing a nine-point deficit in the final 5 1/2 minutes.

Wilson Chandler finished with 22 points and 16 rebounds for the Knicks, who made only one field goal after taking a 92-83 lead with 5:31 remaining. Amare Stoudemire scored 18 points but turned it over six times in his home debut.

Raymond Felton, also making his Madison Square Garden debut with the Knicks, scored 16 points.

Grizzlies 109, Timberwolves 89

At Memphis, Tennessee, O.J. Mayo scored 29 points as Memphis finished with a franchise-record 22 steals in the victory.