Bulls win close one against Knicks at MSG |
NEW YORK—Nothing comes easy for the Chicago Bulls (5-7) this season, but they will keep things entertaining throughout the game. With their first game of the in-season Tournament Group Stage lingering on Friday, the Bulls hit the road to take on the New York Knicks (5-6) at Madison Square Garden.
Coming off a hard-fought loss to the unbeaten Cleveland Cavaliers, whom the Bulls will see again on Friday, the Bulls looked different on Monday. Many felt that loss could potentially change the outlook on the Bulls' season. That loss told us the Bulls are a better team than they have shown thus far, as they can compete with anyone when they stop beating themselves. They showed that again tonight as the Bulls not only built up a double-digit lead at that half but also had a 17-0 run in the first half to open that lead as they led the Knicks 59-47 after one half of play. As has been the case a lot this season, Chicago can't seem to play two consistent halves of basketball as the Knicks erased that double-digit deficit with a 17-0 run of their own and managed to grab the lead at one point in the half. That was when the Bulls showed everyone something they haven't shown this season: finding a way to battle back from adversity. Despite trailing late in the game, Coby White came up clutch down the stretch. He drew a foul on a three-point attempt and was awarded three shots from the line. White then stepped up and confidently knocked those shots down to put the Bulls in front, and they would hold on for the 124-123 win. White was a perfect 8-8 from the free-throw line and was one of four Bulls in double figures, finishing with 22 points for another solid game. However, the story of the night for the Bulls was the continued play of Zach Lavine on both ends of the floor. He continues to shoot the ball well while also playing the best defense of his career. Lavine knocked down 12-17 shots in the morning, including four of the Bulls' 14 triples, as he led Chicago with 31 points in what was just another big night in the Garden. He also made his prescence felt on the defensive end with the way he guarded Jalen Brunson as that has become a topic of conversation with Lavine this season. Both White and Lavine shouldered a lot of the load in the second half, but you can't look past the games that Patrick Williams and Nikola Vucevic had, as they, too, added double-figure showings. In what was another day at the office for Vooch, the Bulls big man continues to be a model of consistency. He finished with 19 points on another efficient night of shooting while hauling in 11 boards for another double-double. You then had Patrick Williams not only come out strong with 11 first-half points but played by far his best game of the season, as his numbers have been trending upward lately. Williams finished the game with 18 points on just nine shots to go with six rebounds, as those are the games he is capable of having. The same can be said about Ayo Dosunumu off the bench, as he was once again responsible for shouldering the load off the bench, scoring 16 of the Bulls' 29 points off the bench. Julian Phillips added five of those, with Dalen Terry and Matas Buzellis each picking up four. You also saw Josh Giddey play his first game at the Garden that didn't result in a triple-double, as he ended with five points and six assists. To the Knicks credit, this was their second game of a back-to-back, and when they fell behind by double-digits at the break, they could've packed it in. That isn't how a Tom Thibideau-coached team works, and Karl Anthony-Towns took it upon himself to have one of the best games of his career to keep things close. Traded to the Knicks as the centerpiece for the Julius Randel deal, Towns had a monster night to lead all scorers with 46 and adding 10 rebounds for a huge double-double. He was the main reason the Knicks were able to come back and make this a game, but New York did get plenty of production across the board, including from Brunson. Despite the defense that Lavine played on him most of the night, Brunson still got his by having a solid night. He chipped in with 24 points and dished out eight assists. The same can be said about Mikal Bridges as those two continue to relieve their Villanova days. With arguably the Bulls best defender in Williams guarding him most of the night, Bridges took what Williams gave him to finish with 20 points and pulled down six boards. New York also benefitted from OG Anunoby adding 14 points as they matched the Bulls with four starters in double figures. Like Chicago, the Knicks bench couldn't deliver as much as they would have liked, but with only 13 points compared to the Bulls' 29 points, this played a massive role in the Bulls' ability to win. Cameron Payne did his part with 11 points for the second unit, but with only two more points coming from Miles McBride, New York couldn't finish the job as the Bulls picked up another road win to move above .500 on the road. Things won't get any easier for the Bulls, who will open the group stage of the In-Season Tournament on Friday when they head to Rocket Mortgage Arena in Cleveland. With their win the other day, Cleveland is 13-0 for the season and became just the sixth team in NBA history to start 13-0.
