Chicago Bulls go cold in 3rd quarter and lose to Charlotte Hornets 112-99 to finish homestand at 3-3

Miles Bridges had 26 points and 14 rebounds, helping the Charlotte Hornets beat the Chicago Bulls 112-99 on Saturday night at the United Center.

Brandon Miller scored 22 points for the Hornets, and Kon Knueppel finished with 18. LaMelo Ball added 17 points and seven assists.

The Hornets had lost three straight and five of seven. They improved to 5-2 on the second day of back-to-back games.

Nikola Vučević had 28 points, eight assists and seven rebounds and Matas Buzelis scored 17 for the Bulls, who had won two in a row and seven of nine.

Photos: Charlotte Hornets 112, Chicago Bulls 99

The Bulls closed out a 3-3 homestand after they beat the Magic 121-114 on Friday night.

The Hornets trailed by 15 before moving in front with a big third quarter, outscoring the Bulls 32-17 in the period. Miller made three of the Hornets’ seven 3-pointers in the third, and the Bulls shot 21.7% (5-for-23) from the field in the quarter.

Miller’s 3 made it 82-73 with 49.3 seconds left, but Ayo Dosunmu’s driving layup trimmed the Bulls’ deficit to seven going into the fourth. Dosunmu finished with 16 points off the bench.

The Hornets pulled away with a 10-0 run in the final quarter. Miller capped the decisive stretch with a fadeaway jumper that made it 105-87 with 4:01 left.

The Hornets outrebounded the Bulls 52-43 while playing with a depleted frontcourt. Moussa Diabate (wrist), Ryan Kalkbrenner (elbow), Mason Plumlee (groin surgery), Grant Williams (knee surgery) and Tidjane Salaun (ankle soreness) were sidelined by injuries.

Bulls guards Josh Giddey (left hamstring) and Coby White (right calf) each missed their third consecutive game after they suffered injuries in a loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night. Jalen Smith left in the third quarter after a collision with Ball, and the Bulls said he was being evaluated for a concussion.

The Bulls had a 58-50 lead at the break. Dosunmu scored 14 points in the first half on 6-for-7 shooting, including a half-court buzzer-beater at the end of the first quarter.

Up next

• Bulls: At Boston Celtics on Monday night.
• Hornets: At Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night.