Bulls grab lead in second quarter, but go on to lose to Suns
CHICAGO (AP) — Devin Booker scored 35 points and matched his career high with six 3s, Kevin Durant added 20 points in his second game with Phoenix and the Suns beat the Chicago Bulls 125-104 on Friday night.
Josh Okogie scored 25 and made five 3-pointers and the Suns withstood big efforts by DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine to win for the eighth time in 11 games.
Phoenix regrouped after Chicago used a big second quarter to grab a four-point lead. The Suns outscored the Bulls 34-21 in the third and scored 10 straight midway through the fourth to bump their lead to 17.
Booker made 6 of 10 3-pointers, and Okogie hit 5 of 10.
Durant continued to make a seamless transition following the trade from Brooklyn and once again showed no lingering issues from a sprained right knee that sidelined him for seven weeks. The 34-year-old star took just 10 shots. Hr he had nine rebounds and six assists, helping the Suns win their seventh in a row against Chicago.
DeRozan led the Bulls with 31 points, and LaVine had 27.
The Suns, eyeing a big finish after making the huge trade for Durant, didn't exactly have an easy time with the Bulls. But they steadied themselves in the second half.
Durant had a big hand in that, scoring seven straight early in the third to put the Suns back on top, 70-67. Cameron Payne gave Phoenix a double-digit lead when he hit a 3 to make it 88-78 with 3:41 left in the quarter.
It was 107-100 midway through the fourth when Chris Paul nailed a 3 to start a 10-0 run that buried the Bulls.
LaVine had 17 points in the first half, DeRozan added 15 points and Chicago led 64-60 at the break after trailing by 13.
Chicago scored the final 10 points. DeRozan put the Bulls on top when he hit a 20-footer with just over a minute left, and LaVine brought the lively crowd to its feet when he nailed a step-back 3 with 0.2 seconds remaining.
Booker and Okogie each scored 18 in the half for Phoenix. Okogie made four 3-pointers and Booker hit three.
TIP-INS
Suns: Chicago coach Billy Donovan said he expects Durant and Paul to be "great" together. Donovan had both superstars in Oklahoma City, albeit on separate occasions and not as teammates. "You've got two guys that are very driven, very motivated, very detailed, put the work in in every aspect possible to be the best they can be," he said. "And everything is done from a perspective of how they can influence, impact winning." ... F Terrence Ross (sore right toe) missed his second game in a row.
Bulls: The Bulls have not beaten the Suns since March 18, 2019. ... Donovan said DeMar DeRozan feels "really, really good" since his return from a strained right quadriceps that kept him out of back-to-back games prior to the All-Star break. The six-time All-Star averaged 20 points in four games prior to Friday's contest. ... The Bulls signed G Carlik Jones from their Windy City G League affiliate.
UP NEXT
Suns: At Dallas on Sunday.
Bulls: Host Indiana on Sunday.
