Chicago's Three-Point Shooting and Ball Movement Bury Milwaukee
Chicago won by shooting 40% from three to Milwaukee's 23% while producing 35 assists to Milwaukee's 21, giving the Bulls major advantages in both perimeter efficiency and ball movement. After Milwaukee erased Chicago's early nine-point lead and went ahead 10-9, Chicago answered with a 10-0 first-quarter run to take a 19-10 lead and never trailed again, then expanded the margin to 23 by halftime. Matas Buzelis scored 19 points on 5-of-7 three-point shooting, while Leonard Miller added 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Chicago won despite being outrebounded 51-42 and shooting 70% from the free-throw line to Milwaukee's 81%.
Game flow
When the lead changed
CHIMIL
CHI led by as many as 34 · MIL led by as many as 1 · 2 lead changes
Quarter-by-quarter momentum
Quarter winners and scoring margin
Q1
CHI24
MIL15
CHI won by 9
Q2Biggest margin
CHI38
MIL24
CHI won by 14
Q3
CHI40
MIL39
CHI won by 1
Q4
CHI23
MIL26
MIL won by 3
Game turning points
Moments identified from the scoring timeline
Final lead changeQ1 · 4:07
Chicago Bulls went ahead and did not trail again.
CHI 12–MIL 10
Momentum swings
Key runs
5 runs · 7+ unanswered points
Q1 · 10:28–8:11
Chicago Bulls9–0run
CHI 0 – MIL 0→CHI 9 – MIL 0
Q1 · 7:43–5:28Largest run
Milwaukee Bucks10–0run
CHI 9 – MIL 0→CHI 9 – MIL 10
Q1 · 4:07–2:25
Chicago Bulls10–0run
CHI 9 – MIL 10→CHI 19 – MIL 10
Q3 · 12:00–11:45
Chicago Bulls8–0run
CHI 56 – MIL 39→CHI 64 – MIL 39
Q3 · 9:14–7:50
Chicago Bulls8–0run
CHI 68 – MIL 47→CHI 76 – MIL 47
Players who shaped the game
Player impact
From the box score
Chicago Bulls
CHI
Leading scorerMatas Buzelis
19PTS2REB3AST1STL1BLK
Impact contributorLeonard Miller
18PTS7REB1AST2STL0BLK
Impact contributorJalen Smith
15PTS7REB2AST0STL1BLK
Milwaukee Bucks
MIL
Leading scorerKam Jones
23PTS4REB1AST1STL0BLK
Impact contributorBrayden Burries
19PTS5REB5AST4STL0BLK
Impact contributorOusmane Dieng
10PTS11REB4AST0STL1BLK
Team performance
Biggest advantages and setbacks
What the winner did best—and what it overcame
Advantages
AssistsWinner edge
Chicago Bulls had a 14 edge in assists.
CHI 35MIL 21
StealsWinner edge
Chicago Bulls had a 7 edge in steals.
CHI 14MIL 7
Three-point shootingWinner edge
Chicago Bulls had a 17 percentage points edge in three-point shooting.
CHI 40%MIL 23%
Setbacks
Points off turnoversOpponent edge
Chicago Bulls trailed in points off turnovers by 20.
CHI 23MIL 43
Total reboundsOpponent edge
Chicago Bulls trailed in total rebounds by 9.
CHI 42MIL 51
Free-throw shootingOpponent edge
Chicago Bulls trailed in free-throw shooting by 11 percentage points.
CHI 70%MIL 81%
The numbers behind the win
Evidence
6 signals
Three-point shooting
Chicago held a 17-percentage-point advantage from three, the clearest shooting difference between the teams.
CHI40%
MIL23%
Ball movement
Chicago recorded 14 more assists than Milwaukee, with Josh Giddey contributing 9.
CHI35
MIL21
Overall shooting
Chicago shot 8 percentage points better from the field overall, complementing its much larger advantage from three.
CHI47%
MIL39%
Fast-break scoring
Chicago outscored Milwaukee by 16 points in fast-break situations.
CHI22
MIL6
Second-quarter scoring
Chicago entered the second quarter ahead by 9 and won the period by another 14 points, building a 62-39 halftime lead.
CHI38
MIL24
Editorial turning point
MIL 10-9 CHI → CHI 19-10 MIL
Chicago entered the second quarter ahead by nine, then outscored Milwaukee 38-24 to expand the lead to 23 by halftime. That second-quarter surge created the decisive separation, and Milwaukee never recovered enough to threaten the lead.
This game’s Winning DNA
How Chicago Bulls got it done.
The winning formula behind this game.
Chicago Bulls
3PT Shooting
40%
Playmaking
30%
Pace
20%
Turnovers
10%
Editorial weights for this game — not fan-vote percentages or official NBA statistics.
Team Comparison
Chicago Bulls125 PTSVSFiserv ForumMilwaukee Bucks104 PTS
42-90
FG
32-82
20-50
3PT
10-43
21-30
FT
30-37
42
REB
51
35
AST
21
14
STL
7
5
BLK
5
22
TO
30
The Debate
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