Game preview and injury report: Chicago Bulls continue quest for Playoffs vs. Houston Rockets

The Chicago Bulls visit the Houston Rockets tonight, coming off a surprising 117-96 road win against the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday.

Sitting 11th in the East with a 30-36 record, the Bulls continue their quest for the 2023 NBA Playoffs as they look to tie the season series against the Rockets, who are last in the Western Conference.

Chicago Bulls (29-36) vs. Houston Rockets (15-51)

Saturday, March 11 – 08:00 PM ET at Toyota Center

Chicago Bulls

Points Per Game: 113.1 (21st of 30)
Opponent Points Per Game: 112.5 (9th of 30)
Bench Points Per Game: 30.2 (24th of 30)
Pace: 99 (17th of 30)
Offensive Rating: 113.3 (24th of 30)
Defensive Rating: 112.7 (7th of 30)
Net Rating: +0.6 (14th of 30)

Houston Rockets

Points Per Game: 110.3 (29th of 30)
Opponent Points Per Game: 118.5 (28th of 30)
Bench Points Per Game: 99.3 (14th of 30)
Pace: 98.5 (19th of 30)
Offensive Rating: 110.5 (28th of 30)
Defensive Rating: 118.8 (29th of 30)
Net Rating: -8.3 (29th of 30)

Contain Jabari Smith Jr.

Jabari Smith Jr. scored 30 points on 10-of-19 shooting and 3-of-5 from three-point range with 12 rebounds, three assists, and two steals in Thursday’s 132-125 overtime loss against the Pacers on the road.

The rookie forward played 47 minutes and had the best offensive game of his career so far. Smith has shot over 50 percent from the field in three of his last four games and is averaging 18.7 points and eight rebounds in his last three games.

Win the rebounding battle

The Bulls won the battle of the rebounds for the first time in a while and it proved to be the X-factor against the Nuggets. Chicago outrebounded Denver 50-44 and outscored them 66-38 in the paint.

The struggling Bulls are a very strange team; they just went to Denver and beat the best team in the West and the best home team in the league (30-5), yet no one would be surprised if they lost tonight.

The Bulls don’t play as they did on Wednesday consistently, which is one of the reasons why they’ve underperformed this season. They just had a statement win and hopefully, they can build on it.

With 16 games left in the regular season, there's no more room for error if they want to at least secure a Play-In spot.

Injury Report

Chicago Bulls: Lonzo Ball (left knee injury) and Javonte Green (right knee soreness) are out

Houston Rockets: Kevin Porter Jr. (bruised thigh) is probable

Noteworthy:

The Rockets won the last meeting, 133-118, on December 26
Chicago beat Houston three of the last five times.
The Bulls are 3-7 in the last ten matchups against the Rockets
Bulls’ projected lineup: Vucevic, Caruso, LaVine, DeRozan, Beverley
Rockets’ projected lineup: Sengun, Smith, Martin, Green, Nix