NBA

Chicago Bulls at Detroit Pistons

· National Basketball Association
40-26, 16-16 Away
Final
114 - 108

18-48, 11-22 Home

DeRozan has big 4th quarter, helps Bulls snap losing streak

“There's no doubt he is playing the best basketball of his career,” said Pistons coach Dwane Casey, who coached DeRozan for eight years in Toronto. “He doesn't have the analytics on his side, because he uses the mid-range jumper, but he gets to the line. We gifted him 13 free throws tonight, and he beat us.”

Zach LeVine added 25 points for the Bulls, and Nikola Vucevic had 21 points. They won despite only hitting three 3-pointers.

“We have to stop putting ourselves in holes like we did again tonight,” DeRozan said. “We can't wait for the fourth quarter to get aggressive.”

Cade Cunningham had 22 points for the Pistons, but no one else scored more than 12.

“I love watching the way he's developing,” DeRozan said about Cunningham. “You don't see a lot of young guys with his patience, and he's got size and skill and the confidence to make plays. He's got a great coach, too.”

Detroit had won three straight.

“He's obviously a great player and he showed that down the stretch tonight,” Pistons center Kelly Olynyk said. “What makes him so tough is, in today’s NBA, you are usually trying to get guys to shoot mid-range jumpers, but that's how he kills you.”

The Pistons led 99-92 with 8:59 left before DeRozan and Zach LeVine took over.

DeRozan’s layup gave the Bulls a 101-99 lead with 5:44 left and, after a Detroit miss, LeVine made two free throws to finish an 11-0 run. Two more baskets from DeRozan made it 109-101, and the Pistons couldn’t hit enough shots down the stretch.

“I don't know what changed down the stretch, but that was definitely the difference in the game,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. “We played with a level of desperation in the fourth quarter that was good to see on both ends of the floor. Our defense was a huge, huge factor in the fourth.”

Neither team led by more than eight points in the first three quarters, but Hamadou Diallo's put-back dunk gave the Pistons a 91-84 advantage going into the fourth.

“They were just going by us for three quarters,” DeRozan said, “In the fourth quarter, we started playing defense again and getting into transition. That's how we have to play to win games.”

TIP INS

Bulls: Vucevic missed Chicago's loss to the 76ers on Thursday night with a hamstring strain. He played 29:11 despite being limited to six-minute stretches by the team's medical staff.

“Obviously, I'm used to playing longer than that, but I had to do whatever I could to make it work,” he said. “I felt pretty good and the guys got me a lot of open looks.”

Pistons: C Isaiah Stewart (knee), G Frank Jackson (back) and G Killian Hayes (adductor) missed the game.

LOPSIDED FREE THROWS

The Bulls were 31-35 from the free-throw line, including 11-13 in the fourth quarter. The Pistons finished 13-17 and made one of two attempts in the fourth.

“I'm going to have to go back and look at the film to see how we ended up in that position,” Casey said.

UP NEXT

Bulls: Host Cleveland on Saturday night.

Pistons: At Boston on Friday night.

Regular Season Series

CHI leads series 4-0

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 114 - 108
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 114 - 108
4th 1.0 Pistons offensive team rebound 114 - 108
4th 2.3 Saddiq Bey misses 27-foot three point jumper 114 - 108
4th 14.7 Javonte Green enters the game for Nikola Vucevic 114 - 108

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/chi.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originCHI https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/det.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originDET
40-76 FG 42-82
52.6 Field Goal % 51.2
3-15 3PT 11-31
20.0 Three Point % 35.5
31-35 FT 13-17
88.6 Free Throw % 76.5
33 Rebounds 32
2 Offensive Rebounds 5
31 Defensive Rebounds 27
19 Assists 25
13 Steals 6
0 Blocks 3
11 Turnovers 16
0 Team Turnovers 0
11 Total Turnovers 16
1 Technical Fouls 0
1 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
19 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 23
13 Fast Break Points 4
60 Points in Paint 56
15 Fouls 25
8 Largest Lead 7
Detroit Pistons Detroit Pistons Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Jaden Ivey, PG Day-To-Day Oct 10
Tobias Harris, F Day-To-Day Oct 9
Jalen Duren, C Day-To-Day Oct 9
Colby Jones, G Day-To-Day Sep 29
Chicago Bulls Chicago Bulls Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Julian Phillips, F Day-To-Day Oct 13
Kevin Huerter, SG Day-To-Day Oct 13
Tre Jones, PG Day-To-Day Oct 13
Coby White, PG Day-To-Day Oct 13
Yuki Kawamura, G Day-To-Day Oct 12

Game Information

Little Caesars Arena

Location: Detroit, MI
Attendance: 18,022 · Capacity:

2025-26 Central Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Milwaukee 3 0 1.000 - W3
Indiana 2 1 .667 1 L1
Chicago 2 1 .667 1 L1
Detroit 1 1 .500 1.5 L1
Cleveland 0 3 .000 3 L3
Full Standings

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