Bulls Swat the Hornets, Beat Charlotte 131-117

The Bulls finished the quarter up one, 29-28. Giddey stuffed the stat sheet, recording five points along with four rebounds and four assists. Nikola Vucevic continued his hot streak, scoring eight quick points while Patrick Williams chipped in seven. New Charlotte Hornet Jusuf Nurkic led the team with nine points.

The lack of quality NBA caliber depth for the Hornets hurt Charlotte in the second quarter. The Hornets had zero defensive awareness, allowing 16 points in the paint, while the Bulls assisted on 10 of their 16 made field goals. 

The Hornets kept it close at the beginning, but the game begun to get out of hand with about six minutes left in the half. The Bulls went on a 18-6 run, with Coby White finishing the half scoring eight points in a row. Chicago hit the gas, outscoring Charlotte 46-27 in the quarter. 

Coby White scored 18 in the second, finishing the half with 20. Josh Giddey was on track for another triple-double, finishing the quarter with 14 points along with five rebounds and seven assists. The Bulls led at half, 75-55. 

After shooting 60% from deep, the Bulls started the second half on a cold streak, going 0/4 from three-point range and shot 35% from the field. However, Charlotte also struggled, only making nine field goals in the third quarter. Bulls led Charlotte after three, 95-81. 

The Bulls saw former Bulls legend Taj Gibson early in the fourth quarter, however he could not get the Hornets going either as the Bulls maintained a solid lead all quarter. While only playing nine minutes in the fourth, White scored 10 points. Matas Buzelis scored five points going perfect from the field. Bulls fans got to see all the guys on Sunday as E.J. Liddell, Jahmir Young, and Emmanuel Miller, who scored his first NBA points with a nice dunk, all saw some time late in the game. 

The Bulls end up beating Charlotte 131-117 behind a 37-point performance by Coby White and a near 23-point triple-double from Josh Giddey. 22 points for Mark Williams led the way for Charlotte, while rookie K.J. Simpson and Nurkic both chipped in 18. The Bulls shot 44% from three and 53% from the field while assisting on 26 of their 46 field goals made.

What's On Tap Next?

The Bulls head into their last week of the regular season. On Tuesday, April 8, the Bulls head to Cleveland to take on the top team in the East, the Cavaliers. 

As always...See Red!