Sacramento recovers De'Aaron Fox for this match in Chicago, but it is the Bulls who make the first gap, thanks in particular to Nikola Vucevic who forces Domantas Sabonis to cover a lot of ground.
However, this +8 (22-14) in the middle of the first quarter will be the biggest lead of the match for the locals… and quite simply the biggest lead of the match. Because the Kings are catching up very quickly and the two teams are not going to give up on each other.
Behind their duo Zach LaVine – Nikola Vucevic, and a Lonzo Ball on fire from afar, Chicago will regain an 8-point lead (88-80) in the third quarter. But the Kings will once again pick up.
The two teams enter the last quarter with only one possession difference but in this crossover, the Kings have more weapons, with DeMar DeRozan and De'Aaron Fox, while Zach LaVine is alone opposite. The latter struggles to allow his team to believe in it… until this five-second violation which buries the Bulls in “money-time” and allows Doug Christie's players to string together a seventh victory (124- 119).
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– A five-second violation that buries the Bulls. “It’s a quick five seconds” railed the Bulls commentators. In the meantime, Josh Giddey flirted too much with the limit and was punished. With 14 seconds left and while his team was only trailing by three points (122-119) and therefore had a chance to equalize on possession, it was an error that was very, very costly for Chicago…
– Zach LaVine, too alone and too lonely? The guard has been in great form lately, and he proved it again with 36 points on 12/24 shooting, plus 10 rebounds. It is mainly thanks to him that the Bulls were able to believe in it until the end, even if he undoubtedly wanted to force the decision too much at the end. He thus missed his four shots in the last two minutes while trying to make the difference in the middle of the entire opposing defense.
– Seventh victory for the Kings. At the bottom of the bucket a fortnight ago, Domantas Sabonis and his teammates (20 wins – 19 losses) racked up victories and climbed the rankings in the West.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
