Josh Giddey had a triple-double with 29 points, 15 rebounds and 12 assists, Nikola Vučević made a three-pointer with 3.2 seconds remaining and the Chicago Bulls came back from a 24-point deficit to beat the Philadelphia 76ers 113-111.
Philadelphia’s Quentin Grimes missed a three-pointer at the buzzer that would have won it.
Giddey is the first Bulls player to have back-to-back triple-doubles since Michael Jordan in 1989. He drove to the basket before hitting Vučević with a pass for the corner three on the game’s decisive possession.
Vučević finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Isaac Okoro added 16. The Bulls held the Sixers to just 16 points in the fourth quarter.
The Sixers scored 45 points in the first to take an 18-point lead and stayed in front for the majority of the game. Tyrese Maxey scored 12 points on four-of-six shooting from three-point range during the early offensive outburst.
The Bulls trailed by as many as 24 points late in the second quarter, but rallied to cut the deficit to 95-84 by the start of the fourth. Chicago continued chipping away, pulling within 111-110 on Giddey’s basket with 1:19 left.
The two teams have been some of the best in the NBA during the season’s opening weeks. Chicago improved to 6-1 while Philadelphia fell to 5-2.
Maxey led the 76ers with 39 points on 14 of 26 shooting, including 6 of 10 from 3-point range. Joel Embiid scored 20 and Kelly Oubre Jr added 18. Rookie VJ Edgecombe had 12 points and 11 rebounds.
AP
