Denver Nuggets Forward Aaron Gordon (#50) sets up a dribble against Chicago Bulls Forward DeMar DeRozan (#11) during the Nuggets 114-106 victory over the Bulls at the United Center. (Photo by Marcus Robinson)
After building a four-game win streak, the Chicago Bulls would lose back-to-back games to both the Milwaukee Bucks and the Denver Nuggets this week.
In game one versus the Bucks, the Bulls would lose 133-129 in OT on Monday, December 11, on the road.
The team was outscored 37-32 in the first quarter, 27-24 in the third quarter and 15-11 in overtime to close out the game.
“When you have those off shooting nights, the things that I felt like hurt us were the offensive rebounding — the timely ones they got back — and certainly some of the transition, (we were) not matched up and gave some open looks,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said via the Associated Press.
Final Score: Bulls 128, Bucks 133 (OT)
With the loss, the team dropped to 9-15 on the season. Following their loss to the Bucks on Monday night, the Bulls had no answer for the Nuggets and their perimeter scoring losing 114-106 at home on Tuesday night.
The team was outshot from three-point range by the Nuggets, .325 (13-40 3FG) to .467 (14-30 3FG). Chicago entered the contest leading the NBA in most three-point shots contested per game (22).
In addition to making only 32 percent of their shots from the three-point arc, Chicago’s bench was outscored by the Denver Nuggets, 50 to 23.
The Bulls entered last night’s game averaging 28.5 points per game off the bench. In second half, the Nuggets would make an 8-0 run between 6:59 in the third quarter and the 5:48 mark of the third to give Denver its largest lead of the game at 80-64. The Bulls were outscored in the third quarter, 30 to 35, trailing after three frames, 80-92.
Though Chicago outscored Denver in the fourth quarter, 26 to 22, the Bulls came no closer than eight points (96-88) within Denver’s lead for the remainder of the game.
Final Score: Nuggets 114, Bulls 106 With the loss, the Bulls are now 9-16 on the season. Chicago dropped their first season series versus the Nuggets, 0-2, for the first time since the 2020-21 campaign.
The team held Denver to 44 points in the paint. The Bulls entered the night ranking second in the NBA in paint points allowed per game (43) while Denver ranked fourth in the league paint scoring (55.4).
Crusader Player
of The Game:
Bulls: NIKOLA VUČEVIĆ logged his 13th double-double of the season with 26 points and 16 rebounds in 33 minutes of play.
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago.
