On Sunday, the Chicago Bulls came into Crypto.com Arena and dealt the Los Angeles Lakers a somewhat surprising, 118-108, loss by winning the effort categories.
The two teams played again on Wednesday in the Windy City, and this time, Los Angeles was better prepared and more energetic.
It came out sharp and established a 17-point lead in the first quarter. That lead disappeared in the second quarter, but the Lakers responded with a spurt to take a 59-51 lead into halftime. They wouldn’t relinquish control of the game, increasing their advantage and then cruising to a 121-110 victory.
This time around, the Lakers thoroughly outplayed Chicago. They outrebounded it, 45-32, while shooting 30 free throws, compared to just 13 for the home team. Even better, after mustering five fast-break points on Sunday, L.A. managed a solid 19 fast-break points on Wednesday.
This win allowed the Lakers to move up to eighth place in the Western Conference. They’re one game behind the seventh-place Minnesota Timberwolves, who they play next on Friday.