Bulls give up 143 points in ugly road loss to Pelicans |
Dustin Riese
· · 1 hour ago
NEW ORLEANS - You would think that having one of your veteran leaders call the team out after a win for being soft would be the wake-up call the Chicago Bulls (9-8) needed. Chicago evidently didn't get that memo, as they not only continued to struggle defensively but were without the man who called the team out, Nikola Vucevic, on Tuesday.
Even without their big man, Tuesday was one of those games that the Bulls had to have as they traveled to the Smoothie King Arena to take on the struggling New Orleans Pelicans (3-15), who are trying to find their way since firing their head coach. These are the games you have to win if you want to be a playoff team, and once again, it was the Bulls falling behind early and not being able to come back as they dropped an ugly game to the Pelicans, 143-130. Slow starts have been an issue for the Bulls all season, and that continued in this one, as the defense was a liability right from the jump. Behind a strong first-quarter surge from Zion Williamson (29 points) and Trey Murphy (20 points), the Pelicans raced out to a 37-30 lead and never looked back. As if one 37-point quarter wasn't bad enough for the Bulls, why not make it two as the Pelicans continued to gash the Bulls' defense throughout the first half, as an acrobatic layup from Murphy pushed the Pelicans' lead to 55-33 at one point and had the Bulls searching for answers. Led by Josh Giddey, who finished with 21 points (13 in the first half), and Coby White chipping in with 24, the Bulls did their best to battle back, but with a 74-58 halftime deficit, it was the Bulls that had plenty of work to do. Whatever Billy Donovan said in the locker room at the break appeared to be working for the Bulls in the early stages of the third quarter as they came out with a much different mindset. Led by Ayo Dosunmu (28 points) and White, Chicago began to cut into the Pelicans' lead by relying on the three-point shot to pull them back into it. That has been a big part of the Bulls' offensive success this season as they continue to be one of the best three-point shooting teams in the NBA. Just when it looked as if the Bulls were starting to get momentum back to their side, the Pelicans responded as Saddiq Bey had all the answers. As having two starters drop 20 points against you wasn't hard enough, the Bulls had to contend with three, as Bey added 20 points and 13 boards for the Pelicans. His presence on both ends of the floor was pivotal, but it was his ability to put the ball on the floor and slash to the hoop that gave the Bulls trouble in the third, resulting in a 108-93 Pelicans lead after three. As you have seen more often than not this season, no matter the deficit, this team will continue to scratch and claw for all 48 minutes, and this game was no exception. Although it may not have seemed like anything, the Bulls spent the first half of the fourth quarter chipping away at the Pelicans' lead with guys like Jalen Smith (13 points), Tre Jones (10 points), and Jevon Carter (11 points) giving this team some life as they pulled within single digits. Just as quickly as the Bulls started to climb back into things, it was the Pelicans who once again created some separation, as Jose Alverado's layup at the 4:40 mark had the Pelicans back up by 18 before they closed things out for the 143-130 victory. Eight players scored in double figures for the Pelicans, who saw their nine-game losing streak come to an end with the victory. As bad as the Bulls were defensively once again, they continued to light it up from distance, connecting on 20 of their 50 three-point attempts. This was also the first win for Pelicans acting interim coach James Borrego, as the Bulls kicked off what was supposed to be one of their soft spots on the schedule in ugly fashion.
