Diagnosing the Chicago Bulls 4th quarter collapse against Minnesota Timberwolves
With 6:47 left in the fourth quarter, the Timberwolves took a 107-106 lead, their first since early in the opening period. The Chicago Bulls were out in front almost the entire game and it looked like they may be able to steal one against a Western Conference finalist from last season.
That’s when Anthony Edwards then decided to close things out. Over the next 5:01, he scored all 13 of his fourth quarter points to end, sending the game into garbage time with over a minute to spare.
The Wolves won it 135, 119. What had been a competitive game to that point had unraveled into a blowout.
“We just didn’t finish the job,” Nikola Vucevic said. “That’s a very good team, a team that’s playing for a championship. So it was to be expected for them to rise at the end. And we just couldn’t match it.”
The Wolves scored 45 points in the fourth quarter alone, beating the Bulls by 21 in the period.
Billy Donovan‘s diagnosis?
“I thought the turnovers, the live ball turnovers hurt us at times,” he said. “And then I thought the second chance opportunities, when we did get stops. But I think the thing was disappointing, there was opportunities to provide help, and we weren’t there when we needed to be there…that the fourth quarter, we just didn’t really have enough answers.”
