Bulls show little resistance in blowout loss to Rockets

It got out of hand pretty quickly for the Bulls.

The Rockets and Bulls battled in the first quarter. Baskets were hard to come by. But in the second quarter, the Rockets began to attack the paint, and protecting the paint is the Bulls’ biggest problem, which is saying something considering the team’s myriad defensive issues.

The Bulls’ poor second quarter provided the springboard for the Rockets to pull away for a 143-107 victory on Sunday. The Bulls allowed 41 points in the second quarter and 40 points in the third and were down 39.

Allowing 143 points goes beyond offensive sets and X’s and O’s, and the players know they have to perform better. This game was unacceptable. The Bulls realize they need to be more physical and offer more resistance to drives.

“It’s just a competition thing; you have to compete at a higher level,” guard Coby White said. “We have to be more physical. We have to make decisions.

”To give up 140 plus in back-to-back games is unacceptable. It’s embarrassing. It’s a disservice to the organization, a disservice to the fan base.”

The Rockets scored 80 points in the paint, while the Bulls offered little resistance.

The Bulls were unable to muster many stops. At their best, the Bulls turn opponents’ misses into transition opportunities. But because they fouled or allowed the Rockets to get what they wanted in the paint, the Bulls were forced to play more of a half-court game than they’d like — only the Grizzlies get out in transition more than the Bulls — and they had just 15 fast-break point.

The Rockets were the ones dictating the tempo and turning miscues into points. It was a disappointing performance for the Bulls in the first game of a back-to-back and the start of five games in seven days.

“People don’t care,” guard Zach LaVine said.

“Teams aren’t going to come in and say, ‘Oh, they’re playing five out of seven.’ They don’t care. You’ve got to play everybody in front of you.”

Coach Billy Donovan believed the shooting woes affected the team. The Bulls attempted a franchise-record 56 three-pointers, but made only 14.

“I thought because we struggled to shoot the basketball after one period, it drained us,” Donovan said. “And this is one of those games where you have to find alternative ways to try to win because we definitely created a lot of really good looks.”

LaVine said the Bulls can’t “let our offense dictate our defense” and the team needs to be tougher to avoid nights like this.

Although the Bulls allowed 144 points against the Cavaliers, White said the necessary effort was there. The Cavs were just off offensively. But White felt the Rockets imposed their will on the Bulls.

“They were more physical than us,” White said. “They outplayed us. They dominated us on both ends of the floor.”

The Bulls’ schedule doesn’t stop after Monday’s game in Detroit against the mighty Pistons with games against the Bucks and Hawks.

“We’ve got to be a lot tougher collectively,” LaVine said.

“We just can’t let it snowball like it did tonight. We’ve played well all year and (have been) competitive. Tonight was the complete opposite of that.”