ATLANTA – Somehow, the game ended on a missed shot. Up until that point, however, it was all about the offense. The Chicago Bulls defeated the Atlanta Hawks 152-150 on Sunday, holding on as Trae Young’s running shot rimmed out at the buzzer, in the highest-scoring regulation game of the season thus far.
The tone was set right from the first play, when the Hawks’ Young threaded a bounce pass between Chicago center Nikola Vučević’s legs and to a cutting Onyeka Okongwu for a dunk. Young finished with 35 points and nine assists, including seven of eight makes from 3, despite playing on a minutes restriction that capped his night at 26.
However, he was victimized often at the other end, along with the rest of his Hawks teammates. Chicago’s offensive onslaught included 83 points in the first half, when the Bulls finished with a 10-point lead, and featured multiple Atlanta mistakes in transition defense that led to wide-open layups. One notable error allowed Chicago forward Matas Buzelis to soar in for a poster dunk mere seconds after an Atlanta made basket.
“I looked at it at halftime, and it was 83 points, it was crazy,” said Buzelis, who led a balanced Bulls attack with 28 points. He missed only one corner 3-pointer in his 10-for-11 shooting night. “Even that one felt good,” he said; his other seven 3-point attempts all found the net.
Amazingly, the Bulls scored 152 points despite missing 13 free throws, including several in the final two minutes, when the Hawks mounted a furious rally that nearly tied the score. Chicago shot 66 percent inside the arc, made 20 3-pointers and, despite the game’s scalding pace, committed only 12 turnovers.
SEASON-HIGH 152 POINTS.
SEASON-HIGH 41 ASSISTS.
SEASON-HIGH 47.6% 3FG%.
SEASON-HIGH 57.6% FG%. https://t.co/Ern94wW9Ps
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) December 21, 2025
“Look, we’re not a great defensive team,” said Bulls coach Billy Donovan, sounding almost apologetic about winning a game in which they gave up so many points. He stressed that they could communicate and execute much better and will need to in 48 hours when these teams, amazingly, meet again.
Hawks coach Quin Snyder, meanwhile, lamented multiple breakdowns in transition in the first half especially, after devoting much of his pregame news conference to the importance of defending the fast-paced Bulls in that area.
His team will get another chance Tuesday, but the short-handed Hawks may be further diminished by then. Forward Vit Krejčí, whose 20 points included six 3s, appeared to injure his left hand in the third quarter, and forward Jalen Johnson (36 points) briefly left the game in the first half after a hard fall.
