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National Basketball Association
Oklahoma City 114, Chicago 95
When: 8:00 PM ET, Saturday, October 26, 2024
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
Officials: #58 Josh Tiven, #83 Andy Nagy, #96 Intae Hwang
Attendance: 20923

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 first half's final 25 points.

Gilgeous-Alexander had a pair of 3-pointers among his 10 points during the flurry, while Holmgren mixed in two layups.

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 going 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 along 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.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Oklahoma City   Chicago
Jalen Williams 24 Scoring Zach LaVine 22
Jalen Williams 8 Assists Ayo Dosunmu 6
Chet Holmgren 16 Rebounds Nikola Vucevic 13
Chet Holmgren 5 Free Throws Made Zach LaVine 6
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 4 Steals Zach LaVine 2
Alex Caruso 2 Blocks Zach LaVine 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Oklahoma City 114 42.1 8-40 16-20 21 54 5 15 10
Chicago 95 34.8 15-53 16-22 23 61 2 6 26
Upcoming Games
  • Chicago will play their next game on the road against Memphis. The Bulls have a W/L % of .000 after a win and 1.000 after a loss.
  • Oklahoma City will play their next game at home against Atlanta. The Thunder have a W/L % of 1.000 after a win and .000 after a loss.