The 72-10 Bulls Easily Dismantle "Showtime" 98-81
Screenshots:
KAJ and his famous sky-hook
Kukoc doing what he does best
Magic never looks when he passes... there might be something wrong with his neck
MJ being black
Which way? Which Way?
Pippen shutting his man down
What a beast
Fade away... and make it Worthy
Recap:
1st Half...
The game started off as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar easily tipped to ball from Luc Longley to Magic Johnson. The 1st quarter was a mess. No other way to put it. The supposed two best teams in NBA history played like a bunch of high schoolers: bad passes, stepping out of bounds, missing point blank shots... The Bulls were the first to get a grip and pretty much cruised all the way from that point. After a Pippen 3 pointer and a Longley put-back dunk, the Bulls finally got things going offensively ending the quarter on a 9-2 run. The Lakers managed to score an embarrassing 16 points while letting the Bulls score 23. 2nd quarter the Lakers finally got things going as Kareem made his signature sky hooks twice in a row. Magic Johnson also lived up to his name as he blew by Ron Harper in several occasion for the easy lay-up. They finally tied the game at 27 but unfortunately for the Lakers, that was the closest they will get. The rest of the first half was pretty much neck and neck as both team traded baskets. The Bulls, however, got a nice surprise on the offensive end from Dennis Rodman as he hustled for 4 offensive rebounds, putting back 3 of them. Scottie Pippen was also on fire from the 3 point line as he sank two more in the quarter. The half ended with the Bulls on top 43-39.
2nd Half...
As expected, Michael Jordan stole the show as the 2nd half began. While he "only" scored 9 points in the first half shooting 4-13, the beginning few minutes of the 2nd half was a whole new story. He poured in 14 points for the quarter and single-handedly put the Bulls up by 12 for the quarter. He made fadeaways, along with break away dunks, and forced 3 steals. The only bright spot for the Lakers was Magic Johnson who continued to score inside but was limited in his passing as the Bulls played the passing lane perfectly. For the game Magic had 5 turnovers and the Lakers had 22 in total. The quarter ended with the Bulls on top 72-60. The 4th quarter was rather boring as the Bulls' rallied on. The Lakers did manage to cut it down to 7 with 6 minutes to go as Worthy and Kareem abused the Bulls' 2nd string front court. After substituting for the starters again (except Kukoc), the Bulls widened the gap with MJ, Pippen, and Kukoc doing the scoring. The game ended 98-81.
The player of the game honor went to Dennis Rodman who grabbed 14 boards while scoring 14 points (7/8) mostly off putbacks. He also blocked two shots and got 3 steals.
Key players:
Lakers
Magic Johnson: 24 pts, 3 rebs, 3 assists
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 18 pts, 5 rebs
Byron Scott and James worthy also had 9 pts apiece
Bulls
Michael Jordan: 31 pts (12/31) 2 rebs, 3 assists
Scottie Pippen: 18 pts (3/3 from the 3), 4 rebs, 2 assists
Dennis Rodman: 14 pts, 14 rebs, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 3 steals
Luc Longley and Kukoc both scored 12 points apiece