The Clippers suffered a heartbreak loss to the Bulls behind some end-of-game gaffes and a monster performance by DeMar DeRozan. Keep reading for a full recap of the Clippers’ loss to the Bulls.
Summary
The Clippers played strong basketball to start the game, seizing an early lead behind crisp ball movement an solid defense. Paul George continued his strong play, Marcus Morris hit his jumpers, and Ivica Zubac was a menace on defense. Ty Lue rode the starters for a long time, with the first sub being Terance Mann at 3:47 for PG, followed by Hart for Zu and Luke for Batum. This hybrid bench-starter unit played well, too, and pushed the lead to 10 going into the second period.
The Bulls started the quarter on a 9-0 run, keyed by multiple poor Clippers’ turnovers as well as a couple unfortunate missed shots. The Clippers were able to scratch back with a George midrange jumper and some Luke free throws, but offensive rebounds to Tristan Thompson cost them, letting the Bulls hang around. Nic Batum checked in for George, and the Clippers went on an 11-0 run, as their defense with Nico and RoCo together was absolutely ferocious. The Bulls couldn’t make a shot, while the Clippers punished them with ball movement. Late in the quarter, Ty Lue went big with RoCo, Nico, Morris, and Zu together alongside Reggie, and this lineup (as well as PG in place of Nico) was fine too. The Bulls made a late push with some free throws and a LaVine three to cut the Clippers’ lead to nine, but it was still a great first half for the Clips.
The third quarter followed a very similar pattern. The Clippers would push the lead to the mid-teens, threatening to blow the game wide open, and then the Bulls would answer back to cut it to single digits, mostly behind flurries of buckets from DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine. Morris and Reggie were once again the offensive leaders for the Clippers, as Paul George’s shot looked off. Ultimately, the seesaw ended with the Clippers up 10 going into the final frame.
The Clippers started the quarter playing hard, but numerous 50-50 balls went against them, and the Bulls pushed. Paul George continued to shoot poorly, with the Bulls cutting the lead down to four. The Clippers barely hung on throughout the period, mostly because of Reggie Jackson. A Bulls run was ended by an and-one by PG and then another layup, but DeMar DeRozan would not let up, and the Bulls inched closer. Reggie missed an open three with the Clippers up 3 that would have effectively ended the game, and LaVine quickly scored to bring the deficit down to one. George made free throws, DeMar dunked, and RoCo made free throws again to give the Clippers a three point lad with seven seconds left. From there, things unraveled. Mann fouled DeRozan before the inbound, giving the Bulls a free throw. Then George fouled DeRozan on a 3, giving him the chance to put the Bulls ahead. He missed the last free throw, and the game went to OT.
The Clippers battled in overtime with a Reggie-Luke-Nico-Morris-Zu lineup and no PG due to a minutes restriction, but while they were shockingly able to score for the most part, they simply had no idea or prayer of stopping DeRozan, who cooked them time after time. The Clippers ultimately fell short 135-130 in a loss that probably won’t mean much, but is one of their more embarrassing defeats of the season.
Notes
Great Reggie, Nico, and Morris Games: It’s a shame the Clips lost this one considering that three of their starters had some of their best games of the season. Reggie scored 34 points on 12-23 shooting with 7 assists, Morris contributed 20 points and 4 assists on 7-12 shooting, and Nic added 17 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks on 5-9 shooting. Reggie was extremely efficient and generally made good decision, Morris was decisive and moved the ball, and Nico was spectacular defensively while making half of his threes. Considering how many minutes they all played, with Jackson at 40 and Morris and Batum at 39 and 38 respectively, it would be a bit surprising to see any of them suit up tomorrow against the Bucks in a seemingly hopeless game on the road against a rampaging Giannis.
PG Reverts: After a “too good to be true” first game back against the Jazz, Paul George was much more like I expected him to be tonight. He was mostly good on defense, if not the menace he was Tuesday, but was fairly icy from the field (7-20 overall) and frigid from three (2-9). He also had five turnovers, mostly on miscommunications and sloppy passes, which will come after three months of no games. He still looked healthy and showed a lot of verve in getting to the rim, so it’s another encouraging game for PG. Not all of them will be like Tuesday.
DeMar Unstoppable: For all that the Clippers absolutely collapsed at the end of the 4th quarter, DeMar DeRozan won this game. He scored 50 points on 26 shots, made 14 of 15 free throws, and dished 6 assists to just 2 turnovers. It was a masterclass for the veteran star, who scorched each and every Clipper who guarded him tonight.
That about does it for this recap of the Clippers’ disappointing loss to the Bulls. Leave your comments below!