The Chicago Bulls halted a six-game losing streak and breathed life into their playoff hopes Sunday afternoon with a 115-107 victory against the visiting Brooklyn Nets.
The Nets, who had a four-game winning streak snapped, looked lethargic and out of sync playing without stars James Harden and Kevin Durant due to hamstring injuries.
With the loss, the Nets are now 34-16. The Bulls improved to 20-28.
The Bulls got a game-high 25 points from Zach LaVine and a strong effort from Tomas Satoransky, who added 19 points and 11 assists. Nikola Vucevic, the Bulls’ multi-dimensional center, contributed 22 points and 13 rebounds. Thaddeus Young had 12 points, Patrick Williams scored 11 and Daniel Theis chipped in 10.
Chicago shook off a sluggish start by outscoring Brooklyn 32-18 in the second quarter. The Bulls finished the game shooting 55.1 percent from the field.
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Kyrie Irving led six Nets in double figures with 24 points and a season-high 15 assists. Jeff Green added 21 points off the Brooklyn bench. LaMarcus Aldridge and Joe Harris scored 11 points apiece and Blake Griffin and Bruce Brown each had 10.
Brooklyn shot 48.4 percent for the game, including 39.3 percent (11 of 28) from behind the arc. The Nets were outscored 21-6 at the free-throw line.
Griffin scored six early points as the Nets jumped out to a 24-15 lead, an advantage that evaporated as the Bulls chipped away to take a 35-33 lead on Young’s two free throws at 6:57 in the second quarter.
The Bulls extended that lead throughout the second quarter, taking a 57-46 lead into halftime. Lavine led the way for Chicago in the first half with 12 points.
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The Nets struggled offensively to find a rhythm, their offense clearly missing the impact of Harden to stretch the floor.
Brooklyn lost guard Tyler Johnson early in the fourth quarter with a right knee strain.
–Field Level Media