Fourth straight win: Massive second half leads Bulls over Spurs |
SAN ANTONIO - It took long enough, but the Chicago Bulls (9-14) are finally learning how to win games, and all it took was for their leading scorer to get injured. For whatever reason, this team plays better without Zach Lavine, and given that he will be out for roughly a month, it will be interesting to see how well this team can play.
Already with three straight wins in his absence, the Bulls hit the road to take on the No. 1 overall pick, Victor Wembanyama, and the San Antonio Spurs (3-18). Currently in the middle of a rebuild, the Spurs could be a better team, and with a 1-9 record at home entering the night, they also have the worst home record in the league. You wouldn't have guessed that based on how the first half played out, as the Spurs came out fast to open up a 33-24 lead after 12 minutes. They continued to build on their lead and stretched it to 11 at the break as the Bulls searched for answers early on. Then came the second half, particularly the third quarter, as their defense set the tone from the start, leading to their offense getting going. Not only did the Bulls drop 35 points on what was a very sound Spurs defense in the first half, but the defense held the Spurs to just 20 points and helped the Bulls take what was an 11-point deficit and turned it into a four-point Bulls lead with 12 minutes to go. Looking to close things out from there, the Bulls made enough plays down the stretch to pick up their fourth straight win 121-112. Losing a player like Lavine is never easy from an offensive side, but it has taught the Bulls to play with more balance and confidence. That has led to several outstanding performances from many players, but you could make the case that Friday was the best overall showing of them all. Not only did the Bulls have five players in double figures, but four came from the starting lineup, and all four had at least 20 points. Any time that happens, you have to like your chances, as the balanced offensive attack by the Bulls worked in their favor. Coby White continues to put on an offensive clinic as he has proven to be worth every penny of his new deal. With the future of Lonzo Ball still unclear, White has shown he can run an offense, finishing with 24 points and six assists. He is the PG of the future for this team and one the Bulls can't afford to move on from at this point. After a long stretch of subpar games, Nikola Vucevic has responded in a big way the past few games and has gotten back to the player the Bulls hoped he would be with 21 points and 16 rebounds. The 16 rebounds stood out the most as he gave up six inches in size to Wembanyama and still managed to come away with that many rebounds. Joining those two were Patrick Williams and Demar DeRozan as they picked up 20 points, with DeRozan dishing out 10 assists for the second time in three games. Although that isn't the DeRozan most Bulls fans are accustomed to, this is the version from his Spurs days, and the Bulls will happily take the version of him. The problem is having his days numbered in Chicago, as it is almost guaranteed that he will be traded this offseason. While most of the game was good for Chicago, there was some bad as Alex Caruso left the game with an ankle injury and didn't return. Before the injury, he wasn't doing much offensively, as he finished with four points. However, fans have seen it in the past, where an extended absence from Caruso leads to a declining defense. Chicago hopes that isn't the case this time, but seeing Torrey Craig drop a season-high 16 points in his absence was encouraging. Even though the Spurs are struggling, Wembanyama continues to impress as he has proven to be the No. 1 overall selection. He led the Spurs with 21 points and hauled in 20 rebounds for another big double-double. Joining him in having a great day was Keldon Johnson, who chipped in with 20 points and five assists to give the Spurs two 20-point scorers. Those were the only two who dropped 20, but considering the Spurs had four starters in double figures and six total players, they managed to hang with the Bulls throughout. Devin Vassell (11 points) and Malaki Branham (10 points) rounded out the double-digit starters, but the Spurs bench managed to keep them afloat, with Tre Jones coming up huge with 18 points. Although not a starter on the Spurs, Jones has proven consistently that he can start and may find his way into the starting lineup with more games like this. Zach Collins added 12 points and nine rebounds to round out the night for San Antonio, but it wasn't enough to tame the Bulls in this one.
