Not much was working for the Bulls during Friday night's loss.
After appearing to get back on track at the end of their road trip, the Bulls suffered a setback on Friday night in an NBA Cup match against the Heat. Miami used a strong second quarter and 44 shots from the foul line to defeat Chicago, 143-107.
The Bulls fell to 8-7 with the loss, while the Heat won their third consecutive game to reach 10-6. Miami is now 2-1 in Group C of NBA Cup Play; Chicago is 1-2 and all but eliminated from a trip to Las Vegas and Knockout Round contention.
Miami's runaway victory also served as the Bulls' first blowout loss of the season. Chicago's largest margin of defeat previously came against the Milwaukee Bucks, who won by 16 points two weeks ago.
Kel'el Ware led a well-rounded scoring effort for the Heat with 20 points and 14 rebounds. Bam Adebayo stuffed the stat sheet with 18 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three blocks, while Norman Powell finished with 19. Eight Miami players ended up scoring in double figures.
Ayo Dosunmu's 23 points headlined a tough shooting day for the Bulls. Josh Giddey posted 19 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. As a team, Chicago shot just 41.1% overall and 27.9% from deep.
The Heat raced out to an early lead behind 13 first-quarter free throw attempts. Eight different Bulls scored in the opening period, and Jalen Smith's eight points on 2-of-3 from deep kept Chicago within striking distance. A 6-0 run to start the second period gave Miami a double-digit lead that grew as the Bulls struggled to shoot.
Miami's onslaught did not slow down. Powell canned a pair of triples and Ware owned the paint, ballooning the Heat's advantage to as large as 25 points in the second quarter. The Bulls' scoring woes came from all parts of the floor — they made just 3-of-12 shots to start the period, including 1-of-6 from deep.
The return of Giddey and the other starters provided some juice to the Bulls' offense, but not enough to make a difference before the break. Chicago managed to narrow the deficit to 16 points, and two free throws from Powell made it 70-52 at halftime.
Bulls guard Kevin Huerter was ejected in the third quarter after picking up a technical foul. The sharpshooter appeared to bat a dead ball away from him after the whistle was blown, which ended up going in the direction of a referee. Upon further review, the action met the criteria for disqualification, and Huerter was ejected with three points. He had been averaging 12.8 points per game as a key player off Chicago's bench.
Promising sophomore Matas Buzelis also left in the third quarter, though he later returned. The 21-year-old forward landed awkwardly on his right ankle and required trainer assistance to head back to the locker room, but re-entered after roughly five minutes of game time.
Chicago kept pace with Miami for much of the third until a 13-2 run essentially sealed the deal. The Heat entered the final period with a 102-75 lead and kept their feet on the gas pedal.
The Bulls have played the second-hardest strength of schedule in the NBA so far, but project to have a much easier slate moving forward. After hosting the Wizards in the second half of a back-to-back on Saturday, Chicago will face the Pelicans, Hornets and Pacers to close out November.
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