In frustratingly unfamiliar fashion, the Miami Heat got the best of the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night.
Leading the way for most of the evening, the Bulls were able to piece together a decent comeback effort that fell short in the final seconds. They shot just 39.0 percent against the Heat’s physical defense, spearheaded by one of the worst first-half shooting performances in the paint that you will see this season. Chicago went just 9-25 from inside 15 feet over the first two quarters and finished the evening with just 38 points in the paint. Conversely, Miami cruised to 60 points.
Turnover troubles also proved to be a key difference-maker. Miami took full advantage of the extra possessions, turning the Bulls’ mistakes into 23 points. While the Bulls were able to clean things up slightly in the second half, as well as do a better job forcing their way to the free throw line, sloppiness showed itself again in the final moments.
One would like to think that this group now knows what they can tweak for their second-straight meeting with Erik Spoelstra. But this also isn’t expected to be the same group. With four games in five days, the Bulls are banged up and appear destined to be missing multiple key contributors.
How to Watch
Who: Chicago Bulls (23-25) at Miami Heat (26-23)
Where: Kaseya Center
When: 6:00 P.M. CT
Watch: Chicago Sports Network, FanDuel Sports Network Sun
Projected Starting Lineups
Chicago Bulls
1. Ayo Dosunmu
2. Kevin Huerter
3. Isaac Okoro
4. Matas Buzelis
5. Lachlan Olbrich
Miami Heat
1. Kasparas Jakučionis
2. Dru Smith
3. Pelle Larsson
4. Andrew Wiggins
5. Bam Adebayo
Injury News