Chicago Bulls’ winning streak comes to an end with 117-114 loss to Houston Rockets in opener of 6-game trip

HOUSTON — Jalen Green scored 28 points and the Houston Rockets extended their winning streak to six games with a 117-114 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.

Green hit a 3-pointer that gave the Rockets a 100-98 lead with 5 minutes, 52 seconds to play and then followed with a layup, and the Bulls never led again.

Coby White scored 23 points and Tre Jones added 19 for the Bulls, who had their four-game winning streak snapped in the opener of a six-game trip. With 15 games remaining, the Bulls are in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, one game behind the Miami Heat and four games in front of the Toronto Raptors.

Alperen Sengun had 24 points and 15 rebounds, and Fred VanVleet scored 18 of his 23 points in the second quarter for the Rockets, who outrebounded the Bulls 54-36.

Josh Giddey missed his second straight game with a right ankle injury and Lonzo Ball didn’t travel with the Bulls while he rests his sprained right wrist. Ball missed his seventh straight game, but coach Billy Donovan said the team has no plans to shut him down.

Ball’s injury is on the same wrist that kept him out the first 15 games of the season. Donovan said there’s no timeline for his return.

“I think the intention that he’s doing right now is just trying to get himself back to playing,” Donovan said before the game. “Doctors aren’t saying, ‘Hey, listen, you’ve got to sit out.’ It’s just when he feels that he can do things on the court that he’s comfortable with.”

Ball has played in 35 games, averaging 7.6 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.3 assists.

The Associated Press created portions of this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Originally Published: March 15, 2025 at 10:14 PM CDT

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