Shai Gilgeous-Alexander contributed 10 points to a 22-3 run to close the first half and the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder spoiled Lonzo Ball’s first game before the home fans in almost three years with a 114-95 triumph over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.
Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 23 points, one behind team leader Jalen Williams, and Chet Holmgren added 21 for the Thunder, who completed a 2-0 trip that began with a similarly easy 102-87 win at Denver on Thursday.
Ball, who last played a home game for the Bulls in January of 2022, scored just three points in 16 minutes off the bench. He missed five of his six shots, including four of his five 3-pointers, while also pulling down five rebounds.
Having played the night before in a 133-122 victory at Milwaukee, the Bulls were within 37-36 midway through the second quarter before watching the visitors score 22 of the half’s final 25 points.
Gilgeous-Alexander had a pair of 3-pointers among his 10 points in the flurry, while Holmgren mixed in two hoops.
Gilgeous-Alexander also had eight rebounds and four steals in the win. Holmgren completed a double-double with a game-high 16 rebounds, while Williams added nine rebounds and a game-high eight assists to complement his game-high point total.
Alex Caruso, dealt from the Bulls to the Thunder in the offseason, had three points and a pair of rebounds, assists, steals and blocks in 22 minutes off the bench.
The Thunder built the big margin despite shooting just 8-for-40 on 3-pointers. Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren combined to go 2-for-14 from deep.
Nikola Vucevic posted an 18-point, 13-rebound double-double for the Bulls, who have been swept in each of the previous two season series by the Thunder. Zach LaVine paced Chicago with 22 points to go with nine rebounds.
LaVine did a majority of his scoring from beyond the 3-point arc, going 4-for-9. The Bulls outscored the visitors 45-24 from deep.
In his first career game against Oklahoma City, Josh Giddey had 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists against his old team.
