The Brooklyn Nets welcomed Caris LeVert back to the court, but not much else went the way they would have liked Friday night at Barclays Center in a 125-106 loss to the Chicago Bulls.,
The Nets beat the Bulls in the first three meetings between the two teams, but couldn't close out the season sweep as Chicago shot 50 percent from 3-point range and 54.1 overall.
LeVert, who suffered a dislocated foot against Minnesota on Nov. 12, entered the game for the first time with 10:39 to go in the first quarter and grabbed four steals in six minutes of action before halftime.
He returned at the start of the fourth quarter and finished with a line of 15 minutes, 11 points, five steals and four assists.
With the Nets trailing 104-86, LeVert tipped off an 11-2 run with seven straight points. Two Joe Harris drives brought the Nets within 106-97. But Chicago answered with 3-pointers from Lauri Markkanen and Otto Porter Jr. and went on to a 14-4 run that sealed the game.
D'Angelo Russell led the Nets with 23 points and had six assists and Jarrett Allen posted his 17th double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Allen Crabbe had 19 points while shooting 5-for-9 from 3-point range in his second game back after missing 26 games and Joe Harris had 19 points and five assists.
A 12-3 run in the closing minutes of the second quarter powered Chicago to a 55-48 halftime lead.
The Nets trailed by as many as 10 points earlier in the quarter, but closed in on the Bulls with an 8-0 run capped by a LeVert basket in the lane, his first points since being injured on Nov. 12. Zach LaVine converted a three-point play for Chicago for a 43-38 lead, but Russell answered with a drive and then a three-point play to even the game at 43.
But 3-pointers from LaVine and Wayne Selden capped the Bulls' 12-3 run before Harris made two free throws to make it a 55-48 game at the break.
The Bulls extended their lead to 13 points on back-to-back 3-pointers to open the second half from LaVine and the newly acquired Porter. The Bulls went on to a 38-point quarter and carried that 13-point lead into the fourth quarter with a 93-80 advantage.
UP NEXT
The Nets have a two-game road trip to Toronto and Cleveland next week before the All-Star break.