It’s a very good time for the Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls to satisfy as a result of one in every of them will come away with a victory once they conflict Thursday in Chicago.
Both groups had strong stretches in January, however they’re nonetheless struggling.
Charlotte had two units of two-game successful streaks within the latter half of January. The final of these ended with Tuesday’s 124-115 street loss in opposition to the Milwaukee Bucks.
Hornets level guard LaMelo Ball set the franchise document for profession triple-doubles by posting his eighth on the power of 27 factors, 10 rebounds and 11 assists.
“LaMelo is young and he has the right attitude and approach to get better and better,” Hornets coach Steve Clifford mentioned. “He’s just beginning.”
The Hornets topped the Bulls 111-96 on Jan. 26 at residence behind Terry Rozier’s 28 factors. Chicago was 4 of 25 on triples in that sport.
After matching their greatest three-game stretch of the season with three wins in a row in mid-January, the Bulls have dropped three of their final 4 video games. That consists of Tuesday’s 108-103 setback to the Los Angeles Clippers that opened a four-game homestand.
The Bulls dedicated premature turnovers and totaled 20 within the sport.
“The turnovers were uncharacteristic,” mentioned Chicago coach Bill Donovan. “But we also didn’t take great shots We needed to generate better looks.”
The Bulls received seven instances in January, almost a 3rd of their 23 complete wins. With seven of 12 February video games at residence, Chicago has reached a essential a part of its schedule.
Chicago beat Charlotte at residence 106-88 on Nov. 2.
There could possibly be a very good battle on the boards between the groups. Charlotte’s Mason Plumlee averaged 11.3 rebounds per sport in January. Chicago’s Nikola Vucevic has double-digit rebounding totals in 13 of the Bulls’ final 15 video games, and he averaged 13.1 rebounds per sport final month. He had solely 9 boards in opposition to the Hornets final week.
Vucevic led the Bulls in scoring for simply the fourth time with 23 factors in opposition to the Clippers.
Clifford mentioned the Hornets didn’t make good choices within the lane within the loss to Milwaukee. That accounted for the Bucks blocking eight photographs and Charlotte going 20 of 38 inside.
“It was a big emphasis going in and we didn’t do a good job with that,” Clifford mentioned.
The Hornets are simply 8-21 in street video games, though these eight wins account for greater than half of their 15 complete victories. The Bulls are 13-11 in residence video games.
