The Bulls gave the Lakers a great lesson in aggression last night and were rewarded for their efforts with another important success, still in the absence of Zach LaVine, to which was recently added that of Torrey Craig. Despite some weak times, Chicago was able to start strong and finish well to ensure the essentials.
The Lakers first took a red surge for a quarter and a half, finding themselves trailing by 18 points, unable to stop the White-Caruso duo and its licensed gunners like Patrick Williams and Ayo Dosunmu at the end of the first quarter. (33-22), then the Carter-DeRozan-Drummond trio which then brought the score to 48-30. But while Chicago perhaps thought they had done the hardest part, LA responded immediately with a 13-0 to completely get back into the game (48-43). Untenable, Taurean Prince burst the screen with his 10 points and an assist for Austin Reaves' 3-pointer which then brought the Lakers to -2 (53-51)!
A playoff match
Everything had to be done again for Chicago which did not give up after the break, resuming its march forward without trembling, even after the 2+1 from LeBron James which seemed to confirm the return to business of the Californians (64-63). Nikola Vucevic and Alex Caruso hit 3-pointers, DeMar DeRozan planted two baskets including a dunk on the counter-attack to give the locals a 9-length lead as if nothing had happened (76-67). In turn, Pat Williams and Coby White set the sights behind the arc, until Andre Drummond and DeMar DeRozan made the circle suffer again to put Chicago back at +15 (90-75).
Rui Hachimura's 3-pointer at the third quarter buzzer did not change the dynamic at the end of the match. Because even if LeBron James refuses to abdicate like his new “and-one” (96-87), the Bulls have once again done what is necessary to regain their distance. There was an 8-2 fueled by 3-pointers from the White-Dosunmu pair (104-89), then an 8-3 with this time Jevon Carter, DeMar DeRozan and Pat Williams at the helm to put an end to to the last hopes of the Lakers (115-98). Enough to ensure a quiet last four minutes for Chicago which won 124-108, continuing its good momentum of the moment with a 7th success in 10 games.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
–Straight Outta Compton. A native of the Compton district of Los Angeles, once announced to the Lakers a year and a half ago, DeMar DeRozan was happy to remind LeBron James' teammates what they had missed with a new remarkable performance against the “Purple-and-Gold”. In the right tempo, inspired, the All-Star back was an essential cog in the Bulls' victory. His mid-range game is still just as valuable, his few dunks delighted the crowd, but his performance took on a complete dimension thanks to his 9 assists which also did the greatest good for the collective. He is also the player who finished with the best +/- (+17).
– Poor LeBron… Who remembers Darvin Ham's summer statements? When the coach congratulated himself on having expanded his squad and that would allow him to take care of LeBron James a little more? After almost two months of competition, LeBron James is still averaging more than 34 minutes per game, and tonight's meeting once again demonstrated that he could not “rely” on his teammates. How sad to see the King having to do everything while the score was -18 after 17 minutes of play to prevent the Lakers from sinking again. The worst part is that he did the job, finishing the game one assist short of the triple-double (25 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists) without being rewarded with victory. Above all, he still spent 37 minutes on the pitch…
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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.
