Just another night of the same from the Sixers. Excluding the game against the Grizzlies on Saturday, when they lost 103-77, the Sixers had two phenomenal efforts against the Pacers. Philadelphia showed the poise they did in those games tonight against the Bulls, but again failed to get over the hump late in the game. In case you haven't been keeping track, this is their 22nd straight loss overall and 17th straight at home. The Bulls take this one, 102-94. Here's tonight's recap…
Thaddeus Young opened scoring on the night with an early three-pointer to put the Sixers up 3-0. Chicago scored six straight points to make it 6-3. The Bulls looked like they would pull away after extending their lead to six at 13-7. The Sixers stormed back to retake the lead on a step-back jumper from Thaddeus Young, making it 20-18 with 3:08 to go in the quarter. A strong push by the Bulls at the end of the quarter gave them the early advantage, 28-26.
The second quarter was not kind to the Sixers to start. They went scoreless over four minutes, allowing Chicago to take a ten point lead with 5:50 to go in the quarter. Byron Mullens hit a pair of free throws to end the scoreless drought and bring the Sixers back within single digits. With the Bulls up 48-40 with 2:12 to go, Michael Carter-Williams hit a free throw. That was followed by a tip-in off the hands of Jarvis Varnado. MCW answered a Joakim Noah shot with a layup of his own to cut the lead to just five. Noah finished the first half scoring with a couple of free throws, giving the Bulls a 52-45 lead.
The third quarter saw the Sixers climb to within four after Thaddeus Young's made layup and three-point shot. Unfortunately, a Henry Sims foul on Carlos Boozers' made shot gave the Bulls a seven point lead, 59-52.
With 7:02 to go in the third, MCW hit a jump shot to pull within three, 61-58. Kirk Hinrich answered with a three-pointer to put the Bulls back up by five. After a Brett Brown timeout with 6:06 to go in the third, the Sixers cut the lead to one thanks to a Thad three-pointer and a hook shot from Henry Sims. That is as close as they would get in the third, with the Bulls holding a 75-69 lead heading into the final quarter. Through three quarters, free throw shooting again proved to be a difference maker as the Sixers could make just nine out of 18.
With 10:49 to go in the game, the Bulls went up 79-72 on a dunk from Jimmy Butler. Elliot Williams followed with a slam of his own and then Byron Mullens buried two straight three-pointers, making it 81-80.
After two Bulls free-throws made it 85-82 with 7:58 to go in the game Thaddeus Young ended up with the ball after a scramble for it. He wasted no time in draining a three-ball to tie things up at 85. The tie wouldn't last for long though, as the Bulls Jimmy Butler put in a three-pointer of his own to make it 88-85. Three missed layups for the Sixers proved to be costly as DJ Augustine put Chicago back ahead by six with a wide-open three in transition.
Tony Wroten would not give the game away just yet, hitting a three with 4:26 to go to make it 93-90. A DJ Augustine three-pointer pushed the lead to six again, not allowing the Sixers to get any such momentum.
Down six with just over 1:20 to play, Byron Mullens managed a steal and score in transition to make it a four-point ballgame, 98-94. After a Tony Wroten wouldn't fall on a basket that may have been a goal tend, a Sixers foul resulted in two made free throws from Jimmy Butler, extending the lead back to six at 100-94. The Sixers wouldn't get any closer, falling eventually to the Bulls by a score of 102-94. A frustrated Michael Carter-Williams fouled out with under five seconds to play.
A few weeks ago, we spoke to how the Sixers three-point shooting was causing their losses, struggling to drain much of anything from beyond. That wasn't the case tonight, shooting 45.8% from three-point range. Instead it was free throw woes that kept this game out of reach in the end. The Sixers shot just 47.4% (9-for-19) from the charity strike.
The free throws–we go 9-for-19. This is where you end up. There's no inch for error. No wiggle room. – Sixers coach Brett Brown
Thaddeus Young led all scorers with 24 points. Meanwhile, Michael Carter-Williams came up a rebound and three assists short of a triple-double. He finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Tony Wroten played well, contributing 17 points and dishing out seven assists. Byron Mullens helped the Sixers surge late in this one with 12 points off the bench.
For the Bulls, Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and Carlos Boozer all managed double-doubles. Noah had 14 points to go with 10 rebounds, Gibson scored 19 and pulled down 13 boards while Boozer finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. DJ Augustine seemed to silence each Sixers push in the final quarter. He led Bulls scorers with 20.
Up Next: The Sixers host the Knicks on Friday night at 7PM before heading on the road for three games. The Sixers and Knicks most recently played earlier this month, with the Knicks prevailing by a score of 123-110. The Sixers then travel to face the Bulls, Spurs and Rockets over the next week.
Brandon Apter is a writer for Sixerdelphia. Follow him on Twitter @ApterShock
