Chicago fell to Milwaukee for the second time this season.
It's been a roller-coaster season for the Chicago Bulls, who have had two five-game winning streaks, a five-game losing streak and a seven-game losing streak over the past two months. Riding their latest run of five consecutive victories, the Bulls ran into the unstoppable force of Giannis Antetokounmpo on Saturday night.
Antetokounmpo, making his return from a calf injury that caused him to miss the previous eight games, powered the Bucks to a 112-103 win at the United Center. Milwaukee (13-19) denied Chicago the opportunity to break .500 for the first time since late November, dropping the Bulls' record to 15-16.
Behind Antetokounmpo's 29 points and eight rebounds, the Bucks outscored the Bulls in all four quarters. Ryan Rollins hit five threes en route to 20 points, while Bobby Portis and Myles Turner combined for 30.
Six Bulls scored in double figures, though no starters finished with strong statistical performances. Nikola Vucevic and Coby White each had 16 points, Josh Giddey logged 13 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and Ayo Dosunmu scored 11 with a pair of steals. Zach Collins notched his first double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 boards.
Both teams traded metaphorical punches to start, with three triples apiece from Rollins and White leading the charge. Milwaukee led by one early in the second quarter, then used a 14-2 run to deal a devastating blow to the Bulls. Three consecutive dunks by Antetokounmpo forced Billy Donovan to call a timeout with the Bucks ahead, 44-31.
That reset provided a spark for Chicago, as a quick spurt cut the deficit to single digits. The Bulls' bench closed the half on a 10-2 run, making it a 54-50 game at the break.
Chicago hadn't led since the opening quarter, but another surge from the bench mob eventually pulled the Bulls in front during the third. Eight points from Giddey helped keep the margin close, then Dosunmu turned a steal into a fastbreak layup to take a 77-76 lead.
Milwaukee soon regained its advantage as the Bulls had no answer for Antetokounmpo. As destiny would have it, though, Chicago once again found itself in a clutch game down the stretch. Giddey continued his strong second half with a triple to cut it to one, but Rollins immediately answered the shot with a three-pointer of his own.
Turner rebounded his own miss for a second-chance layup, and AJ Green connected from deep to go back up by nine. However, White and Vucevic refused to let the game get away from them by scoring seven straight points. With 33 seconds remaining and a four-point deficit, Chicago's defense forced a five-second violation on an inbound pass, but the Bulls ultimately couldn't score in the game's final seconds.
Both benches cleared when Antetokounmpo pulled off a windmill dunk just before the buzzer. The Bulls' players did not attempt to foul Antetokounmpo after he got a defensive rebound with seven seconds left, and he ran down the court for an uncontested jam. Vucevic took issue with the late score, meeting the two-time MVP at mid-court.
The Bulls will look to reach .500 again on Monday when they host the Timberwolves.