Bulls Beat Nets in Triple Overtime to Go up 3-1

Chicago's Nate Robinson dragged his team back from a 14-point deficit late in regulation time and the Bulls went on to beat the Brooklyn Nets 142-134 in triple overtime on Saturday, taking a 3-1 lead in their NBA first-round playoff series.

The Bulls were trailing 109-95 with less than 4 minutes to go in the fourth quarter when Robinson took over, carrying the hosts to a thrilling victory.

In other games, Oklahoma City also moved within one win of a series victory by holding off hard-finishing Houston, Memphis squared its series against the Los Angeles Clippers at 2-2, and Atlanta sharply turned around its fortunes with a comfortable win over Indiana, cutting the series deficit to 2-1.

Robinson finished with 34 points, scoring all but five of them after the third quarter, including the first 12 in a 14-0 run that wiped out the deficit.

"I always think I'm on fire, kind of like the old school game NBA Jam," he said. "You make a couple in a row, the rim's on fire. You shoot the ball, the ball's on fire.

"Whenever I'm in the game, I just play with a lot of confidence. You kind of have to lie to yourself and feel like you can't miss."

Robinson scored with two seconds left in the first overtime and that looked enough to secure the win, but Joe Johnson replied for Brooklyn to send it into a second overtime, tied 121-121.

The Bulls had a chance to win in the closing seconds of the next extra session, but Joakim Noah was blocked, and the game went to a third overtime.

The Nets were still within three points with three minutes left before Luol Deng's basket made it a five-point lead and Nazr Mohammed came up with two baskets in the final 32 seconds to help preserve the win.

Brooklyn's Deron Williams said the Nets had themselves to blame for not securing a win that would have squared the series.

"We made a lot of mistakes up 14," Williams said. "We had the missed dunk. Missed free throws. I fouled Nate on the 3. We made a lot of mistakes in the fourth quarter."

The Bulls will try to wrap up the best-of-seven series at Brooklyn on Monday.

Oklahoma City pulled out a victory in its first game since losing All-Star Russell Westbrook to a season-ending injury, beating the Houston Rockets 104-101 to go up 3-0 in the series.

Kevin Durant scored 41 points, including 27 in the first half, and the Thunder led by 26 points before a big third-quarter rally by the Rockets put them within striking distance.

Houston regained the lead with about 4 minutes left, and was up with less than a minute remaining. But Durant hit a 3-pointer a few seconds later to put Oklahoma City on top 100-99.

A turnover by James Harden gave the Thunder the ball back and Derek Fisher made two free throws to push the lead to 3. Harden made a layup, but Reggie Jackson hit two more free throws after that.

Houston had a last chance, but Carlos Delfino's 3-pointer attempt fell short.

Harden scored 30 points to lead the Rockets in the first playoff game in Houston since 2009.

Game 4 is Monday in Houston.

Memphis' Marc Gasol had 24 points and 13 rebounds as the Grizzlies cruised to a 104-83 win over the L.A. Clippers to square their series.

Zach Randolph finished with 24 points and nine rebounds as the Grizzlies won their second straight to ensure the series will return to Memphis for Game 6. Mike Conley had 15 points and 13 assists, and Tayshaun Prince scored 15 in his best game of the series.

Chris Paul and Blake Griffin had 19 points apiece for the Clippers, and Griffin also grabbed 10 rebounds. Los Angeles' reserves outscored its counterparts again, 43-16, but DeAndre Jordan was the only other starter besides Paul and Griffin to even score, and he only contributed two points. Chauncey Billups and Caron Butler went a combined 0 for 10 from the floor in being shut out.

Game 5 is Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Atlanta's Al Horford had 26 points and 16 rebounds as the Hawks had a comfortable 90-69 win over Indiana, changing the momentum of the series after the Pacers had easily won the first two.

Playing with much more urgency than they did in two double-digit losses at Indianapolis, the Hawks raced to a 54-30 halftime lead and narrowed the best-of-seven series to 2-1. Game 4 on Monday is also in Atlanta, where the Hawks have now won 12 straight over the Pacers dating to 2006.

The Hawks changed up their lineup, inserting 7-footer Johan Petro at center and bringing 3-point specialist Kyle Korver off the bench. With more favorable matchups and a lot more energy, Atlanta suddenly made a series of it.

Indiana, which looked so dominant on its home court, was a totally different team after heading south. David West led the Pacers with 18 points. Paul George, who averaged 25 points in the first two games, was held to 16 on 4-of-11 shooting. The Pacers connected on a dismal 27 percent (22 of 81) from the field.