Ring out the old: Bulls fade in second half and lose to Bucks
There was an amazing statistic dug up by Bulls radio statistician Jeff Mangurten before Monday's game against Milwaukee.
The result of the Bulls' final game in 2019 would decide whether they finish with a better record in the 2010s than in the 1970s.
Well, chalk one up for Jerry Sloan, Artis Gilmore and the 70s. Those Bulls had to deal with Milwaukee's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but the current Bulls aren't doing any better against Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Monday's game was no exception. The Bulls trailed by 3 points at halftime, but were thoroughly dismissed in the second half and lost 123-102 at the United Center. Milwaukee improved its league-best record to 30-5 and won for the 24th time in the last 26 games.
"Everybody's ticked off," Kris Dunn said. "You should be. We've been playing well. I feel like Milwaukee gave us a little bit of humble pie. We've got to be able to take that and go back to the drawing board and get back to work. We've got another good team coming in, Utah. We've got to go out there and show the improvement and get a win."
This week is not only a transition to a new decade, but a test of whether the Bulls really are getting better. They lack quality wins, but get Milwaukee, Utah and Boston at home.
Milwaukee built an early 13-point lead. The Bulls got back in it with some hot shooting from long range. They were 8-for-13 from 3-point land in the second quarter and tied the score at one point.
But their long-distance advantage was negated on the foul line. The Bulls didn't attempt a single free throw in the first half, while the Bucks went 12-for-15 at the line. Asked about the free-throw discrepancy after the game, coach Jim Boylen declined to comment.
The Bulls drew a few fouls in the second half and finished 5-for-8. There were plenty of times when they missed a shot in traffic and stared at a referee wondering why there was no whistle.
It's a long-standing tradition in the NBA, though. Established teams can get away with more contact, especially against a young squad like the Bulls. And, of course, the Bucks have some serious length inside, which helps explain why the Bulls shot 39 percent from inside the paint, according to the box score.
"I thought we hung our head a little bit. We haven't done that in a while," Boylen said. "I thought their length and athleticism was an issue for us."
There was talk after the game about the Bucks sagging off Dunn, a notoriously poor 3-point shooter. But that happens most every game.
"We've had this situation before," Boylen said. "We need (Dunn) defensively, we need his playmaking, we need his heart. He's a big part of our team. Do you put him off the ball and they shrink off him, or do you put him on the ball and hope he can make some plays and they guard him? That's the dilemma. They executed their game plan and we struggled to score."
The Bulls finished with just 10 fast-break points. Their offense looked good only when they were knocking down 3-pointers. Coby White (18 points) hit 3 in a row to start the second-quarter comeback, while Lauri Markkanen (18 points) shook off a stomach ailment to go 5-for-9 from behind the arc.
"We play our best basketball when we get stops and get out in transition," Dunn said. "We didn't get to do that tonight. We didn't get the stops that we need. It's hard to score on a team like that that has a really good half-court defense."
Kris Middleton led the Bucks with 25 points, while Antetokounmpo finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds. Point guard Eric Bledsoe returned from an eight-game absence with a leg injury to score 15 points.
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