Sexton Erupts for 17 in the First Quarter, Buzelis Hits Go-Ahead Layup as Bulls Survive Rockets' Comeback 132-124

Collin Sexton came off the bench to score 25 points, Matas Buzelis finished with 23 and the go-ahead layup with 10.2 seconds remaining, and the Chicago Bulls survived a furious Houston rally to beat the Rockets 132-124 on Monday night at the United Center. Chicago scored a season-high 41 first-quarter points and built a 22-point lead, then watched Houston claw all the way back to take a brief lead in the fourth before Buzelis' basket decided it. The Bulls improve to 29-42, snapping a two-game losing streak. The Rockets fall to 43-28.

Josh Giddey had 15 points and 13 assists with only 2 turnovers — his cleanest game of the homestand. Tre Jones added 15 points and 6 assists. Jalen Smith, returning from a left ankle sprain that kept him out of the Cleveland game, tied his season high with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting including 3-of-5 from three in 26 minutes. Leonard Miller contributed 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting with 9 rebounds off the bench. Kevin Durant led Houston with 40 points on 15-of-23 shooting — his ninth straight game at 50 percent or better from the field — and Alperen Sengun recorded a triple-double with 33 points (16-of-19 FG), 13 rebounds, and 10 assists. Amen Thompson added 23. Guerschon Yabusele (left ankle sprain) and Isaac Okoro (right knee) did not play for Chicago.

41 First-Quarter Points, Then a Fight to the Finish

This was two games in one. The first twelve minutes belonged entirely to Chicago, and Sexton was the reason. The trade-deadline pickup, still just a month into his Bulls tenure, scored 17 points in the first quarter alone — three threes, a step-back jumper, a technical free throw, and two flagrant free throws — on 5-of-7 shooting in eight minutes off the bench. His three-point shooting was electric: two came off Leonard Miller assists and one was unassisted, all from well beyond the arc with confidence that suggested a player who knew his shot was going in before the ball left his hand. Around Sexton, the rest of the Bulls contributed in waves: Jalen Smith hit a three off a Giddey assist, Giddey himself hit a running jumper off a Jones feed, Richards threw down an alley-oop dunk off Buzelis, and Buzelis connected from deep off Jones. When the first quarter ended, Chicago led 41-21 — a 20-point margin built on 50-percent shooting and a Houston defense that could not find answers for anything.

The second quarter was quieter. Houston chipped away behind Sengun, who scored 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting in the period with baskets inside — an 8-foot jumper, a 5-foot two-pointer, a dunk off Sheppard, a floater — while Thompson added driving layups and free throws. Dillingham scored 7 off the bench for Chicago and Smith hit another three, but the Bulls' shooting cooled and the lead trimmed to 17 at halftime: Bulls 65, Rockets 48.

The third quarter was Houston's. The Rockets outscored Chicago 39-30, and the margin that had felt comfortable suddenly looked fragile. Sengun was the primary engine again — 12 more points on 6-of-6 shooting including a 27-foot three, plus 6 assists in the period — and Durant added 12 on a series of pullup jumpers and a fade-away. Sheppard hit two threes. Thompson had a running dunk off Durant. By the end of the third quarter, a 22-point lead had been reduced to 8: Bulls 95, Rockets 87.

The fourth quarter turned into a heavyweight fight. Durant scored 15 of his 40 points in the final period — step-back jumpers, a driving floater, a three-pointer — and Jabari Smith Jr. hit a three with 5:56 remaining that gave Houston its first lead of the game. The Rockets had completed the comeback. But the Bulls did not fold. Buzelis answered with two threes — one unassisted, one off Sexton — and Giddey hit a three off Jones, then a floater, then found Jalen Smith for a three. The lead changed hands multiple times in the final minutes before Buzelis drove to the basket and hit the go-ahead layup with 10.2 seconds left. Rockets coach Ime Udoka was ejected on his second technical foul with 9.1 seconds remaining. Giddey hit the resulting technical free throw, Sexton made two more from the line, and Durant's 28-foot heave at the buzzer missed. The final: Bulls 132, Rockets 124.

Everyone Contributed, and Giddey Ran the Show

Giddey's 15 points and 13 assists on just 2 turnovers represented his most controlled performance of the homestand. After the zero-rebound game against Toronto and the 19-assist, 5-turnover split against Cleveland, Monday's game felt like a step toward balance. He shot 4-of-14 from the field — not the most efficient — but his 3-of-8 mark from three was an improvement, he went 4-of-4 from the free throw line, and his distribution was clean and purposeful throughout. In the fourth quarter, when Houston had the lead and the building was tense, Giddey found Jalen Smith for a three, hit a three himself off a Jones assist, and delivered the kind of steady playmaking that the comeback required. His 13 assists led to clean looks at the rim and open threes in a game where Chicago shot 50 percent from deep as a team.

Buzelis finished with 23 points on 8-of-16 shooting and 5-of-9 from three — his best three-point game in weeks. His first-half numbers were modest: 5 points on 2-of-7 in the first two quarters. But he came alive when it mattered. He scored 8 in the third on 3-of-5 shooting with two threes, and then in the fourth he delivered 10 points on 3-of-4 including two more threes and the go-ahead layup with 10.2 seconds left. That layup was the basket that put Chicago ahead to stay — the Bulls' first win over Houston in the last five meetings between the teams. For a second-year player still establishing himself, clutch moments like that are how you earn trust.

Smith's return was a welcome development. He had missed the Cleveland game with a left ankle sprain and was listed as questionable Monday, but he tied his season high with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting and 3-of-5 from three in 26 minutes. He also contributed 6 rebounds and 2 blocks. His presence in the starting lineup gave Chicago a floor-spacing big who could punish Houston's interior defense from the perimeter, and his +17 in the first quarter reflected how much his gravity opened up driving lanes for everyone else.

Miller continued his strong stretch off the bench with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists in 23 minutes. His third-quarter stretch — 6 points on 3-of-3 from the field — kept Chicago afloat during Houston's big run. Dillingham added 9 points on 4-of-7 shooting with 3 assists in 18 minutes. The collective depth of this bench, with Sexton providing instant offense, Miller providing size and efficiency, and Dillingham providing pace, gave Chicago the kind of sustained production that is hard to match when everyone is hitting.

Looking Ahead

The Bulls are 29-42 and sit 23 games behind Detroit in the Central Division. They are 5-12 since the All-Star break — a bleak record, but Monday's win was the kind of performance that at least demonstrated what this team is capable of when the young players are aggressive and the ball is moving. Chicago shot 50 percent from three as a team (19-of-38) and assisted on 30 of their 45 made baskets. The next game is Wednesday at Philadelphia at 6:00 p.m. ET.

For Houston, the loss dropped the Rockets to 43-28 and, combined with San Antonio's 136-111 win over Miami, the Spurs clinched the Southwest Division. Kevin Durant's 40-point night on 15-of-23 shooting — his ninth straight game at 50 percent or better from the field, the third-longest streak of his career — was not enough to overcome a three-point shooting disparity that told the story: Houston went 11-of-41 (27%) from deep while Chicago went 19-of-38 (50%). Reed Sheppard shot 3-of-14 from three. The Rockets visit Minnesota on Wednesday night on ESPN.