Story Getting Old for Lakers : Game 4: Bulls pull away in second half, 97-82, to take a 3-1 lead. Jordan scores 28, and Worthy can’t finish.

Michael Jordan’s bruised big toe is nothing compared to the hurt the Chicago Bulls are putting on the Lakers.

Jordan, playing with a slit cut out of the front of his sneakers, shook off the effects of the injured toe on his right foot by leading the Bulls to a 97-82 victory at the Forum Sunday and a 3-1 lead in the NBA finals.

Jordan led Chicago with 28 points, the 16th consecutive time he has led his team in scoring. He also had 13 assists.

The Bulls are now one victory away from the first NBA championship in their 25-year history. If they can win their third consecutive game at the Forum on Wednesday, it will match the Detroit Pistons’ feat last year of winning the title by capturing three in a row on the opponent’s home floor.

Vlade Divac scored 27 points, his career high as a pro, and Magic Johnson had 22 points and 11 assists for the Lakers. James Worthy had 12 points, but did not play the final 14 minutes after aggravating the ankle injury that occurred in the Western Conference finals.

The Lakers hit only 29.3% of their shots in the middle two quarters as they continued to be frustrated by Chicago’s defense, which has given up more than 100 points only once in 16 playoff games.

Byron Scott, scoreless in Game 3, snapped an 0-for-10 slump and Sam Perkins an 0-for-7 drought early in the second half for the Lakers, but it didn’t prevent Chicago from extending an eight-point halftime lead to 64-50 with 7:47 left in the third period.

The margin alternated between 12 and 14 points until Jordan scored the final four of the quarter, giving the Bulls a 74-58 advantage.

The Lakers started the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run, with Johnson’s three-point play closing the margin to 74-65. After baskets by Craig Hodges and Jordan, the Lakers made it 78-71 with six consecutive free throws, but a 10-6 spurt rebuilt the lead to 88-77 with 3:52 remaining, and the Lakers didn’t threaten again.