Bulls fall in overtime to Bucks despite DeRozan's 41 points |
MILWAUKEE - At some point, you knew the schedule would get tougher for the Chicago Bulls (9-15) as they continue to navigate life without Zach Lavine. The schedule got tougher on Monday when the Bulls traveled to Fiserv Forum to take on the Milwaukee Bucks (16-7). One thing that we will learn about this Chicago Bulls team over the next month is just how good they can be without Lavine.
Since his injury, the team has not only looked better but came into Monday riding a four-game winning streak, which was their longest of the season. It's a small sample size, yes, but the trend they are showing since his absence has to be encouraging going forward, as there is a real possibility that Lavine may not suit up in a Bulls uniform again. Considering the amount of success the Bucks have had over Chicago over the past five years, most fans expected the worst, especially with Alex Caruso out of the lineup. Instead, the Bulls gave the Bucks all they could handle and more as Milwaukee searched for answers throughout the game. Even with the team down nine at the half and flirting with double digits several times, they continued to fight and pulled within two points at the end of three. A big reason for that was the play of Demar DeRozan, as he dropped a season-high 41 points while adding 11 assists for another double-double. Throw in the continued output of Coby White and his 33 points, and the Bulls managed to force overtime before coming up short in the end 133-129. A loss is never what you want, but some losses are more acceptable than others, and this is one of those losses. This team gave it their all for 52 minutes and came up just short, but they continued to play much better without their leading scorer. Since going down with his injury, guys like White have continued to step up as he added to his franchise's best three-pointer stretch, going 6-10, and now has 11 consecutive games with at least three triples. Coming out of college, everyone knew White was a good shooter, but no one expected him to do what he has done this season, which is a massive win for the Bulls when you look at his contract. Fourth-year man Patrick Williams is another one who has picked up his game since Lavine has gone down, and although not at the same level as White, he continues to play aggressively and prove he is worth at least a look for a long-term contract. Williams came through with 15 points, with Nikola Vucevic adding 14 points and 10 rebounds. They made up for Ayo Dosunmu and his zero points in 28 minutes, as he didn't have his best game. With Caruso out and Dosunmu struggling to find his shot, the Bulls bench was going to be tested, and although no one stood out the same way the starters did, several had great showings, with Andre Drummond doing Drummond things with nine points and an impressive 16 boards. Torrey Craig and Jevon Carter chipped in with seven each, but that wasn't quite enough to fend off the Bucks. As expected, the Bucks only go as far as Giannis Antetokoumpo can take them, but for the most part, the Bulls made him work for everything. Sure, he finished with a team-high 32 points and 13 rebounds, but a lot of those points came in the second half and Overtime as he got stronger as the game went on. Giannis is going to be Giannis, especially against the Bulls, but the Bucks biggest flaw in recent seasons has been their lack of consistent production from their supporting cast. Adding Damian Lillard was supposed to help, but with only 14 points, he continues to go through an up-and-down season. The same can be said about Khris Middleton, who failed to knock down a shot from a distance and finished with only 13 points as the Bucks starting lineup was looking for a spark. Leave it to Malik Beasley and Brook Lopez for that as the duo combined for 38 additional points, 19 each while also combining to knock down seven of the Bucks 15 triples. Had it not been for them, you are looking at a potential double-digit win for the Bulls, which would've been huge at this point in the season. However, the biggest X-Factor in the game continues to come from a familiar face as Bobby Portis continues to haunt his old team. For whatever reason, the Bulls gave up on Portis way too soon, and since coming to Milwaukee, he has become one of the best sixth-man type of guys. With 17 points and seven rebounds, that trend continues as he continues to prove he could start anywhere in this league, but he is happy with his current situation in Milwaukee. Chicago will continue their gauntlet of a stretch in the second game of a back-to-back tomorrow when they welcome the defending NBA Champion Denver Nuggets to the United Center.
