Friday night, the Memphis Grizzlies and Chicago Bulls played each other for the second time this week. Earlier this week, the Grizzlies beat the Bulls 101-90 in Memphis. Friday night’s affair was played at Chicago’s United Center.
Memphis has had an up and down year as they came into Friday night’s game with a 27-26 record and 8th place in the Western Conference. They are led by the second-year point guard from Murray State Ja Morant. Morant averages 18.9 points, 7.4 assists, and 3.5 rebounds per contest.
Chicago came into Friday night’s contest with a 22-32 record and the 10th seed in the Eastern Conference. Chicago is led by the newly formed duo of Zach Lavine and Nikola Vucevic. Lavine averages 27.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game. Vucevic has also had a good year, averaging 22.5 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 3.3 assists per game.
The Bulls unfortunately were without one of their stars Friday night. Zach Lavine did not play because of the NBA’s health and safety protocol.
First Half
The first half was very tight and went back and forth the whole time. Both teams traded buckets and played a great brand of basketball. The two teams were very even on almost every from in the first half. Both teams shot better than 40% from the field and both teams made 9 three-point shots in the first half. Both teams scored 33 points in the first quarter, 24 in the second quarter and found themselves all knotted up at 57 at the half.
Even though Chicago was without their leading scorer Lavine, other players stepped up in the first half. Colby White led the way early for Chicago, scoring 13 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and dished out 5 assists in the first. Vucevic also had a strong first half scoring 11 points, grabbing 8 rebounds, and dishing out 5 assists.
Dillon Brooks was the man in the first half for Memphis. Brooks led all Memphis scorers with 10 points at the break. Morant had a solid half as well, scoring 7 points as well as recording 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
Second Half
Memphis took control of this game in the third quarter and never looked back. They outscored Chicago 37-28 in the third quarter. Dillon Brooks exploded for 15 points in the quarter and was a big reason for Memphis carrying a 94-85 lead going into the final quarter. Brooks wasn’t the only player to have a big third period; Chicago’s Coby White scored 11 points in the third.
Memphis kept their momentum from their big third quarter into the fourth. They had an answer for any comeback effort Chicago had. The big second half gave Memphis their second win over Chicago this week, 126-115.
Dillon Brooks scored a season-high 32 points in the win Friday night. Memphis big man Jonas Valanciunas scored 16, grabbed 5 rebounds, and recorded 5 assists. Morant finished with 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists in the contest. The Memphis bench was huge in this game, scoring 46 points, making 8 three-pointers, stealing the ball 7 times, and dishing out 11 assists in the contest.
Despite the loss, Bulls point guard Colby White had a great game. White finished with 27 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists. Vucevic scored 24, grabbed 14 rebounds, and dished out 7 assists in the loss. The Bulls are now 3-9 since acquiring Vucevic at the trade deadline.
What’s next?
With the win, Memphis is now 28-26 this season and hold a 1 game lead over the Golden State for the 8 seed in the Western Conference. Memphis will look to continue their hot play against Milwaukee in their next game.
The first game without Lavine didn’t go well. Chicago fell to 22-33 with the loss and now sits as the 11 seed in the East. They will look to bounce back in their next game against Cleveland.
