Norman Powell scored 25 points and rookie Caleb Wilson added 21 on Friday to help the visiting Chicago Bulls earn a 132-125 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Leonard Miller had 19 points, while Jalen Smith chipped in 14 points and 13 rebounds for Chicago, which rebounded after suffering a 43-point loss to the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. Buddy Hield scored 13, Isaac Okoro had 12 and Tre Jones tallied 11 points and eight assists for the Bulls, who trailed by 15 points after the first quarter.
Tyler Herro led Milwaukee with 34 points, followed by Jaime Jaquez Jr.’s 19 points and 11 boards. Kyle Kuzma scored 14 and Myles Turner had 12, while Ryan Rollins, AJ Green and Kel’el Ware scored 11 apiece for the Bucks, who lost their second straight to open the season.
Rookie Brayden Burries made a 3-pointer and Ware scored around the rim to give the Bucks a five-point lead with 2:55 left in the third quarter. Smith beat the third-quarter buzzer with a dunk that cut the Bulls’ deficit to 104-102 entering the fourth.
Chicago scored the first six points of the final quarter and grabbed a 108-104 lead on Wilson’s slam. The Bulls pushed the lead to eight on Hield’s trey with 7:19 remaining.
With Milwaukee trailing by five, Herro connected on back-to-back 3-pointers, returning the lead to the Bucks.
Wilson made two free throws to put the Bulls ahead 124-123 with 1:16 left.
After Jones picked off Rollins’ pass, Wilson made another pair from the foul line to push the lead to three. A missed 3-pointer by Herro and two more free throws from Powell gave the Bulls a five-point cushion with 20 seconds left.
Wilson’s steal and Jones’ subsequent two foul shots sealed Chicago’s victory.
Milwaukee jumped out to a 19-6 lead on Herro’s first triple less than five minutes in. Green sank a 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the first quarter to give the Bucks a 32-17 advantage.
Matas Buzelis’ slam pulled the Bulls within seven, but Kasparas Jakucionis and Rollins hit consecutive treys to build the margin to 44-31 with 8:35 left in the first half.
Chicago answered again and took a 55-51 lead on Hield’s 3-pointer, which stamped a 16-0 run.
Kuzma made a layup with three seconds left in the first half to give the Bucks a 62-61 halftime edge.
