The Chicago Bulls squandered a 15-point lead and fell to the Charlotte Hornets 112-99 at United Center on Saturday night, ending their two-game winning streak.
Miles Bridges led Charlotte with 26 points and 14 rebounds. Brandon Miller added 22 points, while Kon Knueppel contributed 18. LaMelo Ball finished with 17 points and seven assists as the Hornets improved to 12-23 on the season.
Nikola Vucevic paced the Bulls with 28 points, eight assists and seven rebounds. Matas Buzelis scored 17 points for Chicago (17-18), which closed out a 3-3 homestand after beating Orlando 121-114 on Friday night.
First Half
The Bulls jumped out to a strong start, taking a 39-27 lead after the first quarter. Chicago led by as many as 15 points in the second quarter before carrying a 58-50 advantage into halftime.
Ayo Dosunmu scored 14 points in the first half on 6-for-7 shooting, capping the opening quarter with a half-court buzzer-beater. The Bulls shot 56.8% from the field in the first half while building their lead.
Third Quarter Collapse
Charlotte completely turned the game around in the third quarter, outscoring the Bulls 32-17 in the period. The Hornets made seven three-pointers in the quarter, with Miller hitting three of them.
Chicago's offense went cold, shooting just 21.7% (5-for-23) from the field in the third quarter. Miller's three-pointer with 49.3 seconds left in the period gave Charlotte an 82-73 lead, though Dosunmu's driving layup trimmed the Bulls' deficit to seven entering the fourth quarter.
Fourth Quarter
The Hornets pulled away with a decisive 10-0 run in the final period. Miller capped the stretch with a fadeaway jumper that extended Charlotte's lead to 105-87 with 4:01 remaining.
The Bulls never threatened the rest of the way as the Hornets closed out the victory.
Injuries
Bulls guards Josh Giddey (left hamstring) and Coby White (right calf) each missed their third consecutive game after suffering injuries in Monday's loss to Minnesota. Jalen Smith departed in the third quarter after a collision with Ball and was being evaluated for a concussion.
Charlotte played with a depleted frontcourt but still outrebounded Chicago 52-43. The Hornets were without Moussa Diabate (wrist), Ryan Kalkbrenner (elbow), Mason Plumlee (groin surgery), Grant Williams (knee surgery) and Tidjane Salaun (ankle soreness).
Notable Performances
Charlotte improved to 5-2 on the second night of back-to-back games this season after the victory snapped a three-game losing streak.
The Hornets had lost five of seven games before Saturday's win.
Chicago committed 16 turnovers compared to just three by Charlotte, a key factor in the loss.
Next Up
The Hornets travel to Oklahoma City to face the Thunder on Monday night.
The Bulls visit the Boston Celtics on Monday night.