3rd Quarter Report

After a tough loss on the road their last time out, the Bulls look much better today on their home court. They have jumped out to a 93-86 lead against the Bucks.

The Bulls entered the match with three straight defeats and they’re well on their way to making it four. Can they turn things around, or will the Bucks hand them another loss? Only time will tell.

Who’s Playing

Milwaukee Bucks @ Chicago Bulls

Current Records: Milwaukee 16-13, Chicago 13-18

How To Watch

• When: Saturday, December 28, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET
• Where: United Center — Chicago, Illinois
• TV: Chicago Sport Network
• Follow: CBS Sports App
• Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
• Ticket Cost: $78.00

What to Know

The Milwaukee Bucks will wrap up 2024 with a road trip to face off against the Chicago Bulls at 8:00 p.m. ET on Saturday at United Center. The Bulls have the home-court advantage, but the Bucks are expected to win by 3.5 points.

The experts predicted the Bucks would be headed in after a win, but the Nets made sure that didn’t happen. The Bucks took a 111-105 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Nets. The loss hurts even more since Milwaukee was up 55-42 with 2:19 left in the second.

The losing side was boosted by Brook Lopez, who went 8 for 12 en route to 20 points plus seven rebounds and two steals.

Meanwhile, the Bulls’ recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Thursday after their third straight loss. They took a 141-133 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Hawks. Chicago was up 108-87 in the third but couldn’t hold on to the lead.

Even though the team lost, they still had their share of impressive performances. One of the best came from Zach LaVine, who went 7 for 9 from beyond the arc en route to 37 points plus seven assists and five rebounds. That’s the most threes he has posted since back in November. Another player making a difference was Jevon Carter, who went 7 for 11 from beyond the arc en route to 26 points plus five assists.

Even though they lost, the Bulls were working as a unit and finished the game with 36 assists (they’re ranked fourth in assists per game overall). That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they’ve now racked up at least 27 assists in three consecutive matchups.

Milwaukee’s defeat ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 16-13. As for Chicago, their loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 13-18.

Keep an eye on the arc in Saturday’s game: The Bucks have made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having averaged 14.5 threes per game. However, it’s not like the Bulls struggle in that department as they’ve been averaging 16.5. Given these competing strengths, it’ll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.

The Bucks took their victory against the Bulls when the teams last played on Monday by a conclusive 112-91. Will the Bucks repeat their success, or do the Bulls have a better game plan this time around? We’ll find out soon enough.

Odds

Milwaukee is a 3.5-point favorite against Chicago, according to the latest NBA odds.

The line has drifted a bit towards the Bucks, as the game opened with the Bucks as a 1-point favorite.

The over/under is 229.5 points.

See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.

Series History

Milwaukee has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Chicago.

• Dec 23, 2024 – Milwaukee 112 vs. Chicago 91
• Nov 20, 2024 – Milwaukee 122 vs. Chicago 106
• Oct 25, 2024 – Chicago 133 vs. Milwaukee 122
• Mar 01, 2024 – Milwaukee 113 vs. Chicago 97
• Dec 11, 2023 – Milwaukee 133 vs. Chicago 129
• Nov 30, 2023 – Chicago 120 vs. Milwaukee 113
• Nov 13, 2023 – Milwaukee 118 vs. Chicago 109
• Apr 05, 2023 – Milwaukee 105 vs. Chicago 92
• Feb 16, 2023 – Milwaukee 112 vs. Chicago 100
• Dec 28, 2022 – Chicago 119 vs. Milwaukee 113