WINDY CITY FALLS 111-102 TO THE TEXAS LEGENDS FOR FIFTH STRAIGHT LOSS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | POST-GAME RECAP
February 2, 2018

HOFFMAN ESTATES, IL – The Windy City Bulls, presented by BMO Harris Bank, the NBA G League affiliate of the Chicago Bulls, extended their losing streak to five in a 111-102 defeat to the Texas Legends on Friday night at Dr. Pepper Arena.

Windy City was without the services of Antonio Blakeney and Brandon Wood. Blakeney was on assignment with the Chicago Bulls, while injury forced Wood to sit out. For the second time this season, Mychal Mulder led the team in scoring with 18 points on 7-of-12 shooting. Four players scored 15 points including Jarell Eddie and Ryan Arcidiacono who rejoined Windy City for Friday’s contest. In addition to his 15 points, Arcidiacono collected 13 assists for his fourth double-double and seventh double-digit assist game of the season. Karrington Ward pitched in with 10 points, six rebounds, two blocks and a steal off the bench.

There wasn’t much to choose from as both teams struggled to score in the first period. The opening 12 minutes was a seesaw battle that featured three ties and three lead changes. Ochefu had the hot hand early and scored six first quarter points to lead all Windy City players. Both teams shot under 40 percent from the floor and combined to shoot 2-for-11 from three with 11 total turnovers. The Bulls scored back-to-back buckets late in the period to tie the game at 18, but the Legends scored the final three points and led 21-18 at the end of the first stanza.

Six Legends scored in double figures led by Donald Sloan who poured in a game-high 26 points and added four rebounds, two assists and three steals. Jalen Jones scored 18 points, while Jameel Warney tallied 17 points and six rebounds. Kyle Collinsworth, who was on assignment from the Dallas Mavericks, collected a triple-double with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, and Xavier Johnson scored 12 points off the bench.

The second quarter began in similar fashion as neither team created separation. For the first six minutes of the quarter, Windy City stayed within shouting distance and didn’t trail by more than six. Tyler Harris furthered the comeback effort and made it a three-point game with 3:14 remaining in the half, but the Legends closed the quarter strong, aided by a 13-4 run. Texas made 5-of-7 field goals to end the half and lead by a dozen, 55-43 at the intermission.

Ochefu picked up where he left off and scored the first two baskets of the third quarter and nine points in the period. After trailing by nine with just over seven minutes to play, Windy City used an 8-0 spurt to make it a 66-65 game. The one-point deficit was as close as the Bulls had been since the Legends led by two early in the second quarter. For every Windy City run, Texas had an answer and never allowed the Bulls to tie the game. Sloan was a key contributor and scored 13 points in the quarter to help keep Windy City at bay. Despite scoring 32 points in their best offensive quarter of the night, the Bulls were down 83-75 heading into the fourth quarter.

Texas scored the first two baskets of the fourth period and used a 6-2 run to reopen a double-digit lead. The Bulls struggled to score and managed just one field-goal in the opening four minutes of the quarter. The Legends led by as many as 16 points on a couple occasions, but Windy City made things interesting down the stretch. Trailing 106-90, with 3:50 left to play, the Bulls rattled off eight consecutive points to make it an eight-point game. After a Brandon Ashley free throw, Eddie knocked in a pair of free throws of his own to trim the lead to six, but that is as close as the Bulls would get. The Legends iced the game at the free throw line and grabbed their 21st win of the season and are now a half-game ahead of the Austin Spurs in the Southwest Division.

Windy City went winless on their four-game west coast road trip and now return home for a season-long six-game home stand beginning on Wednesday against the Grand Rapids Drive. Tip-off is 7:00 p.m. CST at Sears Centre Arena.

Fans can stay up-to-date on team news by following the team on Twitter (@WindyCityBulls) or visiting (WindyCityBulls.com). Full season membership, group, and single tickets for the 2017-18 Windy City Bulls season are on sale now. For all ticket information and full season schedule, visit WindyCityBulls.com.