Nikola Vucevic had 28 points and 14 rebounds and Josh Giddey contributed 19 points and 11 assists to boost the Chicago Bulls to a 115-111 victory against the visiting Detroit Pistons on Wednesday in the teams’ season opener.
Cade Cunningham had 23 points and 10 assists for the Pistons, while Isaiah Stewart had 20 points and 10 boards.
Trailing by double digits for much of the night and 15 entering the fourth quarter, Detroit rallied to tie the game at 105 on Ronald Holland II’s 3-pointer with 2:54 remaining.
The teams traded baskets on the next five possessions, with the Bulls grabbing the lead for good at 111-109 on Vucevic’s hook shot with 1:31 left.
Detroit drew within 112-111 down the stretch. A replay review overturned an apparent Giddey turnover to a foul against Cunningham. Giddey swished a pair of free throws with 13.8 seconds left.
Cunningham and Harris both missed 3-pointers before Giddey secured a rebound and split two free throws to seal the victory.
Matas Buzelis (21 points), Kevin Huerter (15), Ayo Dosunmu (14) and Tre Jones (12) also scored in double figures for Chicago.
Holland chipped in 19 points for the Pistons. Jalen Duren (15), Ausar Thompson (11) and Tobias Harris (10) followed.
The Bulls outrebounded the Pistons 50-46. Harris and Thompson had nine boards apiece for Detroit.
Jones had eight assists.
Chicago led by as many as 23 points in the first half, pushing the pace and finding a rhythm from beyond the arc.
The Bulls scored 25 of the final 32 points of the first quarter, helping keep the Pistons out of sorts while using sharp ball movement to create open looks on the perimeter. Giddey, Huerter and Vucevic each drilled treys during a 1:35 stretch midway through the first.
After starting 6-for-9 from the floor, the Pistons slumped to shoot 2-for-13 the rest of the quarter. Detroit showed improved energy to start the second quarter but still trailed 64-49 at the half.
Cunningham led the team with 10 points and seven assists at the break. Vucevic had 15 points and 12 boards in the first half. He has notched a double-double in seven of his past eight games against the Pistons.
Chicago stopped a three-game series losing streak.
