Right now, the Bulls are doing pretty well.
At the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia on Monday night, the Chicago Bulls stunned the Philadelphia 76ers, 108-104, in what turned out to be their most spectacular victory of the season. The Sixers’ six-game winning streak was ended by the victory, which improved the Bulls’ record to 11-17.
Formidable opponent
The Bulls were playing against a Sixers team that had annihilated their previous five opponents by an average of more than 31 points, so the odds were stacked against them. The Bulls trailed 16–4 early in the first quarter and appeared to be headed for another Sixers blowout until they rode Coby White’s hot shooting, scoring 16 points in the first half to put the Bulls ahead 55–44 at the half.
The Bulls kept their cool and responded with a 13-2 run to put them ahead 100-92 after a three-pointer by Nikola Vucevic with 3:04 remaining. The Sixers persisted and took the lead back at 89-87.
Tyrese Maxey’s three-pointer put Philadelphia within one, but with 16 seconds remaining, DeMar DeRozan split his free throws to give his team a 106-104 lead. The ball was lost by the MVP candidate, Joel Embiid, as he was going up for a shot by the Sixers. DeRozan then grabbed the rebound and added two more free throws to seal the victory for the Bulls.
On the right track
The Bulls have now won six of their last nine games following a terrible start. With 24 points, 9 assists, and 8 rebounds, Coby White maintained his rise in the NBA. DeRozan finished with 15 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals, and a block, while Vucevic finished with 23 points, 8 boards, 4 assists, and 2 blocks.
“We are all encouraging one another, and it spreads,” Vucevic remarked.
“We also had some success in the games we played. Even though we’re only 11–17 years old, hopefully we can stay on this positive trajectory.”