The Chicago Bulls suffered an embarrassing 132-92 home loss to the Detroit Pistons, trailing by as many as 49 points and scoring just 29 in the first half. Head coach Billy Donovan called the performance "embarrassing" and highlighted the team’s ongoing struggles with physicality against stronger opponents.
The Chicago Bulls suffered a humiliating defeat on Tuesday night, falling to the Detroit Pistons by 40 points at home in a lopsided 132-92 loss.
The game was effectively over by halftime, as the Bulls managed just 29 points in the first half while the Pistons built a staggering 71-29 lead. Detroit even extended its advantage to as many as 49 points at one point, setting a new franchise record for its largest halftime lead.
After the game, Bulls head coach Billy Donovan didn’t mince words about the team’s performance.
"It’s embarrassing when you’re sitting there and that’s happening, there’s no question about it," Donovan told reporters. "I think our guys probably feel the same way. It’s one of those things, on the home court, yeah. Who wants to go through that? Whether it be the players, the fans, the coaches, anybody."
The Bulls had a difficult time matching the physicality and toughness of the Pistons.
"The physical part is something that we've always had a challenge with," Donovan admitted. "We're gonna have to find a way to fight through some of it. Some of the time, quite honestly, we do get overwhelmed physically with size and strength, we just do."
"In a game like that, what I’d like to see a little bit more of is someone taking a charge, something like that. These are the kinds of things that we get confronted with that we need to respond to, quite honestly," the coach added.
Cade Cunningham played a great game for the Pistons, scored 20 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and dished 7 assists. Malik Beasley scored 24 points, making 7 three-pointers out of his 10 attempts.
Matas Buzelis scored 12 points for the Bulls on 71.4% from the field, Josh Giddey added 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists.
The Bulls won’t have much time to dwell on the loss, as they are set to face the Pistons again at home on Wednesday.
With the NBA All-Star break just around the corner, Chicago, having lost 7 of their last 10 games, are 10th in the Eastern Conference with a 22-32 record.
Like what we are doing? You can express your gratitude here.
