Hornets Vs Bulls: Miller, Knueppel propel Charlotte to 131-99 rout, Chicago drops 10th straight
The Charlotte Hornets overwhelmed the Chicago Bulls 131-99 Tuesday night, a result that reshaped the month for both clubs in the latest hornets vs bulls meeting. Charlotte's efficiency and a dominant third quarter turned a one-point halftime deficit into a 32-point victory that extended the Hornets' road streak and sank the Bulls deeper into a losing slide.
Hornets Vs Bulls: Third-quarter surge seals rout
Charlotte outscored Chicago 42-16 in the third quarter, punctuating that stretch with a decisive 22-2 run that flipped the game. The Hornets' hot shooting — 51. 6% from the field and 25 of 57 from beyond the arc, one three-pointer shy of the team record — created separation after a halftime score of 56-55, which followed Chicago falling behind by nine midway through the second quarter. That third-quarter onslaught, initiated in part by back-to-back 3s from Kon Knueppel, carried Charlotte to the final margin.
Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel power Charlotte offense
Brandon Miller led Charlotte with 23 points, including five 3-pointers, while Kon Knueppel added 21 points and drained three 3s on six attempts. Knueppel's long-range totals rose to 201 career 3-pointers, and in his 58th game he became the fastest player to reach 200. He hit back-to-back triples midway through the third quarter and scored 10 straight points during the run that put the Hornets up 14. Miller followed by hitting his next three shots — one of them another 3 — to push the lead to 88-65 and cap the decisive run.
Miles Bridges, LaMelo Ball and lineup returns
LaMelo Ball scored 16 points and Miles Bridges, returning from a suspension, also finished with 16. Bridges and Moussa Diabate were back in the starting lineup after sitting out four games for their roles in a fight against Detroit on Feb. 9. Coby White, who was traded away from Chicago earlier this month, made his Hornets debut in this matchup: he entered midway through the first quarter, played 15: 33 and scored 10 points. Chicago honored White with a short video tribute recognizing his 6 1/2 seasons with the franchise.
Matas Buzelis and Bulls' turnovers compound skid
Matas Buzelis produced a career-high 32 points for Chicago and made six 3-pointers while grabbing six rebounds, but the Bulls were undermined by 19 turnovers. Patrick Williams and Guerschon Yabusele each scored 11 points, and Collin Sexton — facing his former team — added 10. Josh Giddey, coming off a hamstring issue, had eight points; Isaac Okoro scored seven; and Rob Dillingham led the team with five assists. The combination of Chicago miscues and Charlotte's hot shooting widened the gap and delivered a lopsided final score.
Standings, streaks and schedule implications for Chicago
The loss left Chicago 24-35 and extended their losing streak to 10 games, matching the franchise's longest slide since January 2019 and creating a run of seven straight home defeats. Insights shows the Bulls are the only winless team in the NBA for the month, and the defeat meant they avoided the rare feat of going an entire month without a victory only because of earlier results; had outcomes differed they would have gone a full month without a win. Chicago's last victory came on January 31, a 125-118 win over the Miami Heat — one of the final games in which Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu, Nikola Vucevic and Kevin Huerter were with the team before roster changes at the trade deadline.
Short-term outlook: upcoming games and what to watch
The Bulls head into a Thursday matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers to close out February, and then will remain at home on Sunday to open March against the Milwaukee Bucks. What makes this notable is how quickly a roster that still featured recent starters and rotation pieces before the trade deadline has pivoted into a prolonged slump, with turnovers and an inability to stop hot shooting combining to produce the current stretch. The Hornets, meanwhile, claimed a team-record eighth straight road win with the victory, highlighting Charlotte's contrast of offensive rhythm and defensive opportunism on the road.
