The Contest of the King of the Last Quarters
After losing to the Atlanta Hawks, the Phoenix Suns ended their eleven-game winning streak, but then they immediately beat the Washington Wizards and got back on the winning track. It can be said that the Suns this season are the most stable team, and the record of the league's first place is the best evidence. Chris Paul is playing at MVP level, and he is the key to this team being in this position, but this game, Paul is facing another player who plays MVP, that is, Demar DeRozan.
The Chicago Bulls are in second place in the East, and it's all thanks to DeRozan's stunning performances this season. In the case of Durant's injury, DeRozan and Paul are definitely two of the best mid-range scorers in the league today, and besides that, the king of the last quarter is their label.
Bull reversal failed
At the beginning of the first quarter, Booker was in full swing, with 16 points and 2 assists on 6-of-7 shooting, Paul only had 2 mid-range shots, all hits, got 4 points, 1 rebound and 4 assists, under the leadership of the two cores, the Suns bombed 36 points in a single quarter, and the Bulls also scored 29 points, of which DeRozan had 10 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists, and LaVine also had 6 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists. After returning from the second quarter, the Bulls suddenly fell into a scoring drought, and although LaVine had 11 points and 3 rebounds, the team only had 20 points.
So the Suns seized the opportunity to win by 11 points in a single quarter and lead the Bulls by as many as 18 points at the end of the half. In the second half, DeRozan and Lavin continued to work hard, and the two joined forces to shoot down 23 points, leading the team to 34 points, but the point difference was still widening. Booker had 14 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists in the quarter, and Paul also began to exert his strength, scoring 9 points and 4 assists on 4-of-4 shooting, and the Suns extended their lead to 19 points. After returning from the final quarter, the Bulls continued to catch up, and DeRozan took over the game completely.
In just half a quarter, DeRozan had 12 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist on 6-of-7 shooting, and the Suns only scored 11 points on the team. Under DeRozan' leadership, the Bulls narrowed the gap to 12 points. In this quarter, DeRozan exploded with 15 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists, but LaVine only had 2 points, 1 rebound and 3 assists on 3-of-0 shooting, and the Bulls chased fruitlessly, announcing that the shot was conceded in the last minute, but who could have imagined that after Malcolm Hill came up, he scored 7 consecutive points, but it was too late, and finally the Suns narrowly defeated the Chicago Bulls 127-124.
There were no three points, but 38 points were fired
The Chicago Bulls lost and failed to complete a 27-point comeback, but DeRozan's personal performance was really impeccable. On 16 of 27 shots, there was no three-pointer, but he bombed 38 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals, including 15 points in the final quarter, which was deservedly the king of the final quarter. Although LaVine also had 32 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists, he did not stand up in the final quarter when the team needed him the most. Vucevic only had 13 points and 12 rebounds, 6-of-15 shooting, and White on the bench had 13 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist, and no other player scored in double figures.
In contrast, the Phoenix Suns have more scoring points, the whole team of 6 people scored in double figures, sent 31 assists, while the Bulls only had 18 assists, which is the gap between the two teams, of course, the absence of Ball and Caruso's two core point guards, the impact is not small. Booker hit five three-pointers and had 38 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists, Paul was efficient on 7-of-11 shooting and dropped 19 points, 3 rebounds and 11 assists, Ayton had 13 points and 9 rebounds, McGee also had 16 points and 8 rebounds, Bridges had 15 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, and Crowder had 10 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists.