Saric, Long lead Sixers past Bulls in Chicago

Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor  

The Philadelphia 76ers (27-45) rebounded from a blowout loss on Wednesday with a convincing win on Friday night, defeating the Chicago Bulls (34-39), 117-107, on the road. The victory snapped a mini two-game skid and also broke the Sixers' 12-game losing streak against the Bulls overall. They hadn't won in Chicago since November 2, 2013. Tonight also marked the Sixers' 10th road win of the season after posting a combined nine victories away from home over the past two seasons. There were plenty of positives from tonight's win, but Dario Saric and Shawn Long stood out as the top performers for the Sixers.

Philadelphia trailed by as many as 10 in the opening quarter and four after one, but put together a 20-6 run in the second to pull ahead 38-32 with just over seven minutes to play in the first half. They never looked back from there, leading by 13 at the break. The Sixers came back from halftime with the same energy as they had in the second quarter, and extended their lead to 20 early in the second half. After three, they maintained a 93-71 advantage. Chicago cut the Sixers lead to 10 midway through the fourth, but Dario Saric hit a contested three to extend their lead back to 13. The Bulls made a push in the fourth, but Philadelphia held them off for a 10-point win.

Saric and Long both set new rookie career highs this evening, with Dario scoring 32 points to go along with 10 rebounds on 12-for-19 shooting. Meanwhile, Long, in his eighth career NBA game, finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and two steals. He led the team with a +32 on the night. Over the last four games, Long is averaging 10.7 points and 4.7 rebounds. After looking a little shaky in the first four games, he's settled in nicely, especially in the last two.

The Sixers bench played a big part in their second quarter run, and Sergio Rodriguez was a big part of the surge. He put together a strong night with 12 points, seven assists and four boards. The Sixers, as a team, shot 55.4 percent and out-rebounded the Buls 46-39.

On the Bulls end, Jimmy Butler led scorers with 36 points to go along with 11 assists while Nikola Mirotic finished with 15 points a few nights after scoring a season-high 28 points against Detroit.

Up Next:

The Sixers head to Indiana on Sunday for the fourth game on their five-game trip. Tip-off against the Pacers is set for 6:00 p.m.