Short-handed Bulls stun Bucks with overtime win |
CHICAGO - This is what makes sports so great. Just when you thought you had seen it all and expected the Chicago Bulls (6-14) to continue losing, they turn in a performance like they did on Thursday. Not only was it a performance that was arguably their best of the season, but it came against the Milwaukee Bucks (13-6) and has most fans wondering where that has been all season.
All it took was for two of the Bulls best players to miss the game with injuries leaving an already struggling team short-handed against one of the best offensive teams in the league. That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Instead, the Bulls came out and showed more heart and fight than they have in any game this season, as they gave the Bucks all they could handle throughout. Even when they would fall behind, this team refused to go away as they trailed Milwaukee by three points late in regulation. That set the stage for Mr. Cool himself, Alex Caruso, as his fade-away three at the buzzer tied things up and sent the game into overtime. That was the momentum swing the Bulls needed as they doubled up the Bucks 14-7 in the extra frame to secure their first win in five games, 120-113. To say this was a confidence booster would be an understatement, but now it is up to this team to build off of this; otherwise, it won't mean much in the end. Considering how this team was down six at the break after being outscored 31-23 in the second quarter, you have to give them a ton of credit for battling back, as no one would've been surprised had they packed it in right there. For all the criticism Billy Donovan has gotten this season, and to be fair, he has brought it on himself, this game is going to go down as not only his best coaching job of the season, but you could make the case that this was the best coaching job of his entire Bulls tenure. Beating the Bucks is tough enough when healthy, but with Zach Lavine being ruled out with a foot injury and then having Demar DeRozan added late with a sprained ankle the Bulls two best scorers were unavailable for the game. That apparently was a blessing in disguise for this team as they looked like a completely different team, and it brings up the argument that the Bulls should consider sitting both of them until trades are completed. While 2/3 of the Bulls Big three were unavailable, Nikola Vucevic was still on the court and was looking to respond from two of his worst games as a Bull. Vucevic delivered by dropping a game and season-high 29 points while adding 10 boards. Those are the games the Bulls have been waiting for, and for whatever reason, he plays better when Lavine isn't on the floor. Another player who continues to step up when called upon is Coby White, who was simply incredible. White played 45 minutes which isn't easy, but did so by adding 23 points and dishing out seven assists. He may not be as polished as Lonzo Ball, but White is proving he can handle a starting PG position and has done a great job this season. Those may have been the only two players to score 20 points, but the Bulls had eight players score in double figures, including all five starters. Any time you get that kind of production you will win a ton of games as Patrick Williams continued his hot stretch with 12 points and Caruso picking up 11. However, Ayo Dosunmu deserves some recognition in this one, as he filled in for Lavine and put forth his best game of the season. Not only did he give the Bulls his season-high in minutes, but with 14 points, six rebounds, and six assists, he proved he deserves more minutes than he has gotten. Take notes, Donovan, as this group played well together. With Caruso and Dosunmu in the starting five, the Bulls were short-handed scoring-wise and short-handed as a two as they lost two of their better bench options. That didn't bother them, and for whatever reason, the Bulls bench was still very good as they scored 31 points. All of those points came from three players, with Jevon Carter leading the way with 11 and Torrey Craig and Andre Drummond picking up 10. As expected, the Bucks have gone through some growing pains this season as new head coach Adrian Griffin and his team are still ironing out the kinks. Regardless of where they sit right now, this will be an NBA finals-contending team come the spring as long as Giannis Antetokoumpo stays healthy. The Greek Freak has dominated the Bulls over his career, but Chicago did a great job on him in this one, holding him to 26 points and 14 rebounds. It was a good game nonetheless, but not at the level he usually gets, so it would come down to the rest of their roster to step up. Brook Lopez was one of those guys stepping up as he backed Giannis with 20 points, giving the Bucks two players with at least 20 points to match the Bulls. Milwaukee also matched the Bulls with four starters in double figures, but their starters were more consistent and outplayed them overall. Malik Beasley knocked down five triples to finish with 19 points, while Damian Lillard added 18 points as he continued to fight through some early-season shooting issues. Khris Middleton only had nine points, but the Bucks' starting five still outscored the Bulls' starting five, which shouldn't be a surprise. The night's biggest surprise was the bench scoring as the Bulls outscored the Bucks 31-21. Marjon Beauchamp led the Bucks second unit with seven points, but that 10-point difference was the difference in the game as the Bulls can at least smile for a few days before facing off against a very good Pelicans team on Saturday.
