Bulls ride the bench in win over Nuggets |
Dustin Riese
· · 2 hours ago
DENVER - Coming off a tough double OT loss to the Utah Jazz on Sunday, the Chicago Bulls (7-6) were back on the floor Monday for the second leg of a back-to-back against the Denver Nuggets (10-3) in desperate need of a victory. Entering the game with a seven-game winning streak and unbeaten at the Ball Arena, the Bulls had their work cut out for them, as Denver has always been a tough place to play.
Basketball is a game of runs, and this one had all kinds of runs as Chicago found itself in another challenging yet exciting game. From several massive in-game runs from both sides, to Jamal Murray scoring 11 straight at one point in the third, this one came down to the final seconds, which shouldn't surprise anyone. Ultimately, it was the Bulls' bench that came through from start to finish, outscoring the Nuggets' bench 66-9, helping the Bulls secure a massive 130-127 victory. There is a reason the Bulls' bench is one of the better, if not the best, second units in the game, and tonight you saw exactly why, as the Nuggets looked like the team coming off the back-to-back, not the Bulls. You got a sense of how things would go as the first quarter unfolded, as the Bulls took the Nuggets' best shot and raced out to a 30-28 lead after one. It was in the second quarter that the game completely changed as Billy Donovan went to his bench to alter the flow of play, and the Nuggets had no answers. Whether that be Ayo Dosunmu, who led the bench with 21 points on a near-perfect 8-9 shooting, or the sudden step up in play from Jalen Smith, who added 16 points, the Bulls used a massive 22-6 run at one point in the second quarter to help Chicago stretch their lead to 20 points. Just as fast as the Bulls broke the game open, the Nuggets fought back, with their starting five dominating the Bulls' starting five throughout the game. Having someone like Nikola Jokic does play a role in that, as the big man posted his 171st career triple-double in 39 minutes, leading all scorers with 36 points. Jokic added 18 rebounds and 13 assists as the Bulls had no answers for him most of the night. As good as he was, Aaron Gordon was a problem for the majority of this game, only to cool off in the end. Still, with 24 points and 10 points of his own, it was the Nuggets ending the first half on a 34-13 run to give them a one-point lead at the break. Hoping to stop the bleeding in the second half, both the Bulls and Nuggets came out firing in the third with Cam Johnson connecting on several buckets as part of his 19-point effort to keep the Nuggets in front early. Even with guys like Kevin Huerter and Matas Buzelis who started to heat up in the third and were two of the three Bulls starters to finish in double figures, it was the Bulls bench that once again flipped the script in this one as their ability to sprint the court had the Nuggets gasping for error as the Bulls once again pushed their lead to double digits. Jevon Carter deserves plenty of credit as part of that run, as he came up clutch with 15 points, with all of them coming on five triples. For someone who hasn't played a lot of minutes, Carter is starting to see more game action, and so far, he has done a great job of making the most of his minutes. Looking to finish off the Nuggets in the fourth after building that impressive lead, things weren't going to come easy for the Bulls, as the Nuggets had one last run in them. Midway through the fourth, it was the Nuggets finding a way to take the lead as they used a massive 15-2 run to seize the advantage. All 15 points came from Murray and Jokic, with Murray scoring 11 straight points at one point, as he finished the night with 34 points and 11 rebounds to give Denver three players with at least a double-double. Once the Bulls slowed him down, Chicago was able to play its game, with Josh Giddey starting to get more looks on the inside. He led the Bulls with 21 points and 14 rebounds for another double-double. The key to the game was Nikola Vucevic, who, although he struggled for most of the game, came through when the Bulls needed him to. After going 0-6 from the floor in the first half, Vucevic appeared to be getting into a better groove in the third, but it wasn't until the fourth when he came through. Holding just a one-point lead late in the fourth, it was Vucevic coming through with another clutch triple to put the Bulls on top by four, which proved to be too much for the Nuggets to overcome in their 130-127 defeat.
