The Chicago Bulls failed to extend their winning streak to three games on Wednesday night, falling to the Cleveland Cavaliers 121-105. The final score indicates a much closer game than this one truly was.
It was yet another game without all-star guard Zach LaVine, who remains in the league’s health and safety protocols. In addition to LaVine, the Bulls were without Troy Brown Jr. in this one.
Still, this was a very winnable game. That point is proven by the recent win against these same Cavaliers just a few nights earlier. The Bulls failed to repeat their performance from that one and now find themselves searching for answers ahead of the second night of a back-to-back.
On Thursday evening, the Bulls will be playing yet another important game. This time it will be against the Charlotte Hornets. The takeaways from the loss to the Cavs will hopefully be points of emphasis for the Bulls so they can bounce back and get themselves into the win column Thursday night.
Takeaways from the Chicago Bulls loss to the Cavaliers: Inability to carry momentum
The Bulls really should have carried some sort of momentum into this one coming off a big win against the Boston Celtics the game prior. Instead of doing so, the Bulls came out lackluster early and were never able to overcome that start.
The Cavaliers led from start to finish in this one. Additionally, the Bulls started out with an embarrassing first quarter in which they managed to score just 12 points. That type of start is inexcusable, coming off a big win is just confusing.
The Bulls shot 0-8 from behind the arc in the opening quarter and dug themselves a hole they had no chance of digging back out of. Nikola Vucevic, who struggled mightily in the loss, scored half of the team’s 12 points in the game’s opening 12 minutes.