Buzelis Hits Five Threes as Bulls Force 30 Turnovers in Win Over Bucks

MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee’s turnovers gave Chicago extra scoring chances Wednesday night. The Bulls made them count, then added 20 three-pointers to keep the Bucks at a distance.

Matas Buzelis scored 19 points and hit five three-pointers as the Bulls beat the Bucks 125–104 at Fiserv Forum. Chicago forced 30 turnovers, converted Milwaukee's mistakes into 43 points and made 20 threes in a preseason win that was comfortably in hand before the fourth quarter.

Leonard Miller added 18 points and seven rebounds off the bench. Norman Powell scored 16, Jalen Smith supplied 15 points and seven rebounds, and Jaylin Sellers and Caleb Wilson finished with 10 points apiece. The scoring came from enough different places that Chicago did not need one player to take over the entire evening.

Buzelis finished 6-for-9 from the field and 5-for-7 beyond the arc in just under 24 minutes. He also had three assists, a steal and a block without committing a turnover. In a game with considerable waste on both sides, his scoring was unusually economical.

The second quarter created the separation

The Bulls led 24–15 after the opening period, then put together a 38-point second quarter while holding Milwaukee to 24. That turned a nine-point advantage into a 62–39 halftime lead.

Milwaukee found more offense after the break, scoring 39 points in the third quarter. Chicago answered with 40 of its own. The Bucks' improvement therefore did little to change their position: the Bulls entered the fourth ahead 102–78, having added another point to their halftime margin.

That exchange mattered more than the final quarter, which Milwaukee won 26–23. The Bucks had produced their best offensive period without recovering ground. Chicago had already built enough room to absorb a less productive finish and still leave with a 21-point victory.

The Bulls' largest lead was 34 points. Their advantage was not the result of winning every possession or dominating every statistical category. It came from creating more useful chances out of Milwaukee's mistakes and making a substantially greater number of three-point shots.

Buzelis and Miller supplied efficient scoring

Miller gave Chicago 18 points in 18 minutes, 30 seconds, shooting 7-for-11 overall and 3-for-4 from three. He collected three offensive rebounds and two steals. His production helped a bench that finished with 59 points, keeping the offense from depending entirely on the starting group.

Buzelis and Miller combined for eight threes on 11 attempts. That pair accounted for 37 points while taking only 20 shots from the floor. Chicago received both scoring and efficiency from two of its forwards, with Miller providing his contribution in substantially fewer minutes.

Smith added another three makes from beyond the arc. Powell took a different route to his 16 points, making eight of 10 free throws despite finishing 3-for-8 from the field. Those contributions gave the Bulls several ways to maintain their scoring when individual possessions did not produce a clean perimeter opportunity.

Josh Giddey scored six points but handed out nine assists. Tre Jones added seven assists in fewer than 17 minutes, and Chicago finished with 35 assists on 42 field goals. The passing totals offer another explanation for the distribution of the scoring: multiple players were able to finish possessions rather than having to create every opportunity themselves.

Turnovers outweighed Milwaukee's rebounding edge

The Bucks won the individual rebound count 51–42, including a 17–14 edge on the offensive glass. Both teams scored 42 points in the paint. Neither figure, however, compensated for Milwaukee's giveaways or its difficulty keeping pace from three-point range.

Chicago made 20 of 50 threes, while Milwaukee made 10 of 43. That was a 30-point difference in scoring from beyond the arc. The Bulls also held a 22–6 advantage in fast-break points, alongside their 43–23 edge in points scored off turnovers.

Chicago had its own possession problems, committing 21 turnovers, and made only 21 of 30 free throws. The result should not erase those shortcomings. Against an opponent that gave the ball away even more frequently, the Bulls were better able to turn the game's disorder into points.

Kam Jones led Milwaukee with 23 points on 9-for-14 shooting. Brayden Burries scored 19, Kasparas Jakučionis added 18, and Cormac Ryan finished with 14. Ousmane Dieng supplied 10 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Those performances gave the Bucks several individual positives, but they did not reverse the separation Chicago created before halftime.

For the Bulls, the useful takeaway is specific: Buzelis shot efficiently, Miller delivered a productive bench stint, and the offense turned Milwaukee's mistakes into points while consistently making perimeter shots. It was a preseason performance to build on, with the turnovers and missed free throws still providing work to address.