|
 Butler grinned when asked about breaking up an alley-oop pass in the
fourth quarter.
"That was me being a Denver Broncos cornerback," said Butler, who
wore the No. 88 jersey of Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas. "I
saw Aaron Rodgers try to throw the ball over the top."
Butler's dream of becoming a multi-sport star might have to wait,
but Chicago's vision of building a consistent winner under
first-year coach Fred Hoiberg is starting to come into focus.
Forward/center Pau Gasol scored 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds
as Chicago survived a late rally by the Magic. Forward Nikola
Mirotic scored 16 points, and Butler added 14 points and five
assists for the Bulls (3-1), who did not trail after the midway
point of the first quarter.
Forward Evan Fournier led the Magic with 19 points. Center Nikola
Vucevic scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to register his
first double-double of the season. Orlando (0-3) remained winless
under new coach Scott Skiles.
The Bulls led 81-66 with 9:16 left in the fourth quarter before
Orlando rallied to cut the deficit to one. Guard Shabazz Napier hit
a running jump shot to cap a 16-2 run that pulled the Magic within
83-82 with 3:36 remaining. Chicago regrouped with a 9-5 run to
finish the game.
"We were just lethargic on both ends," Skiles said. "We had a nice
stretch in the fourth quarter where we had five stops in a row. We
started getting something going. We were down 15 most of the game.
We just weren't here tonight."
Hoiberg said the Bulls pushed the ball for most of the game before
going into a fourth-quarter funk. He praised his players for playing
hard on defense but said the offense needed more consistency.
"If you get them down by 15, you have to build it up to 20," Hoiberg
said. "We have let teams back in. We have to continue that pace."
Both teams struggled from the field. Chicago shot 37.9 percent (33
of 87) and committed 15 turnovers. Orlando shot 38.9 percent (35 of
90) and committed 17 turnovers, including five by Vucevic.
Chicago guard Derrick Rose managed only six points on 2-for-8
shooting. Rose's poor shooting was mirrored by that of Magic point
guard Elfrid Payton, who scored four points on 2-for-7 shooting.
Rose said double vision continued to affect his long-distance
shooting. He dished out eight assists and grabbed seven rebounds
with frequent drives to the paint.
[to top of second column] |
"I'm pushing the ball, trying to get people in positions to be
successful," said Rose, who sustained a left orbital fracture during
training camp. "As long as we're winning games, I could (not) care
less about my eye."
Orlando trailed 75-63 entering the fourth quarter. Fournier made a
jump shot and a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to single digits late
in the third quarter, but Chicago responded with 3-pointers from
Mirotic and forward Tony Snell to regain a 12-point lead.
Chicago established a 54-40 halftime lead after finishing the second
quarter on a 17-6 run. Forward Doug McDermott sparked the Bulls with
a pair of 3-pointers and a baseline drive. Orlando shot 1-for-8 from
beyond the arc during the second quarter and finished the game
7-for-23 (30.4 percent).
Orlando's three losses have come by nine points combined.
"Including myself and a lot of other guys, we had a lot of easy
shots that just didn't fall," Magic forward Tobias Harris said.
"With that being said, we've still got to play solid defense and use
that as our catalyst to start us going. We didn't do that until the
fourth quarter."
NOTES: Bulls G Kirk Hinrich was sidelined by a toe injury. The
ailment is not considered to be serious. ... Magic assistant coach
Adrian Griffin greeted Chicago players and broadcasters outside the
visitors' locker room before the game. Griffin spent the previous
five seasons as a Bulls assistant coach before joining Orlando
during the offseason. ... Bulls G/F Mike Dunleavy missed his fourth
game because of a back injury. ... Orlando F Aaron Gordon came off
the bench for the third consecutive game. However, defending the
former Arizona Wildcats standout remained a priority for Chicago.
"If you give Gordon any type of downhill run at the ball, he's going
to put you on 'SportsCenter,'" Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. Gordon
finished with four points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
