Bulls pull off stunning 24-point comeback to beat Sixers 113-111
The Chicago Bulls pulled off the biggest comeback in the NBA this season Tuesday night, rallying from 24 points down to stun the Philadelphia 76ers 113-111 on Nikola Vucevic’s clutch 3-pointer with just 3.2 seconds left.
“Tonight was one of the best wins that I’ve ever been a part of,” Bulls guard Josh Giddey said after the game. “Just in terms of how bad we were down that early in the third. And to gut that one out and dig ourselves out of the hole that we did was unbelievable.”
The victory pushes Chicago to a surprising 6-1 start, matching their best opening stretch since the 2021-22 season – the last time they made the playoffs.
Giddey was absolutely on fire, finishing with 29 points, 15 rebounds, and 12 assists.
It was his second straight triple-double, making him the first Bulls player to accomplish that feat since Michael Jordan did it back in 1989.
Vucevic, the hero of the night, added 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Isaac Okoro chipped in 16 points and 5 assists. In total, six Bulls players scored in double figures.
The Sixers seemed to be cruising to an easy win for most of the game. They jumped out to a commanding 45-27 lead after the first quarter and led by as many as 22 points in the second half.
Tyrese Maxey was nearly unstoppable for Philly, pouring in 39 points. Joel Embiid added 20 points in 25 minutes, but the big man went ice-cold in the second half, hitting just 1 of 10 shots.
The Comeback
Chicago’s defense clamped down after halftime, holding Philadelphia to just 20 points in the third quarter.
The Bulls then outscored the Sixers 29-16 in the fourth to complete the stunning turnaround.
With 1:19 left and trailing by one, Giddey drove to the basket and scored to pull Chicago within 111-110. Bulls coach Billy Donovan then called a timeout to set up what would become the game-winning play.
“Whenever you come back down 20-something and win the game, it’s big, especially against a team like Philly’s been playing great so far,” Vucevic said. “I think it just showed the resilience we have, the belief we have, the togetherness we have.”
On the final play, Vucevic positioned himself in the corner as Giddey drove toward the basket. The Bulls guard then kicked it out to Vucevic, who drained the three to give Chicago its first and only lead of the entire game.
The Bulls have now beaten the Pistons, Magic, Hawks, Knicks, and Sixers – all teams expected to contend for playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.
But despite the thrilling win, Vucevic knows they can’t keep digging themselves into early holes.
“It’s also important that we understand this is not how you can become a good team by getting down 20 and then waking up and start to finally play,” he cautioned. “We have to play better from the beginning. This game was a great example of what we can be when we play the way we need to. So hopefully we can use this as a good learning experience for us and understand that we have to do this for 48 minutes.”
Can the Bulls keep their hot streak going? They’ll face another tough test when they visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday.
