On one hand, it’s easy to say the Bulls failed to take advantage on a day their bench played especially well, but so many of their recent problems were on display in Friday’s 111-101 loss at Indiana.

For starters, the Bulls got off to another terrible start, falling behind 22-8. They eventually tied the score in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t finish it off.

“It’s something, you’ve got to take it personally,” Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg told reporters after the game. “You’ve got to come out with the energy needed to get off to a good start. About a week and a half ago, that was us going out and getting off to good starts. The last few, we’ve dug ourselves holes. You spend so much energy digging your way out of it, we just didn’t have enough to finish.”

In most of the Bulls’ best performances this season, point guard Rajon Rondo was at the top of his game. On Friday, he was benched for the entire second half after going scoreless with 1 assist in 11 minutes.

Michael Carter-Williams got most of the minutes at point guard, finishing with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 1 assist. Jimmy Butler led the Bulls with 25 points, while Dwyane Wade had 20 points and a team-best 5 assists.

“I thought Michael gave us really good energy in that first half,” Hoiberg said about the decision to sit Rondo. “I went with him to start. Jerian (Grant) I thought played really solid last time we played against these guys, so I went with Jerian with the backup minutes; just the decision we made.”

Hoiberg said the coaching staff will evaluate the situation and make a decision on who will start at point guard

when the Bulls (16-17) host Milwaukee on Saturday. He also wasn’t concerned about Rondo taking the demotion poorly.

“I thought he (Rondo) was great, I could hear him over on the bench,” Hoiberg said. “He was a great teammate to those guys out there on the floor. He was leading the cheers over there on the bench. I thought he was good.”

“Nothing surprises me in this league,” Rondo said after the contest. “I’m a veteran, I’m a professional. I will always prepare well with the expectation to play and contribute.”

Backup center Cristiano Felicio played down the stretch in the fourth quarter and recorded his first career double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. It’s a good sign, but Indiana plays a small lineup most of the time. Felicio has struggled to hold onto rebounds against taller opponents in recent games.

Doug McDermott scored 10 points, hitting 4 of 5 shots from the field, but didn’t even attempt a shot in the second half. That’s also been a problem, getting open looks for one of their best shooters.

“Doug’s a guy that teams are going to hug on the perimeter, especially when he hits a couple,” Hoiberg said.

Nikola Mirotic didn’t have a great game, hitting just 3 of 14 shots from the field. Some poor defensive positioning by Mirotic allowed Indiana’s Paul George (32 points) to get an open path for a lay in late in the fourth quarter.

The Bulls tied the score at 97-97 on a Butler drive with 4:52 remaining. After an exchange of misses, George was fouled on a 3-point attempt and hit all 3 free throws. Wade’s runner brought the Bulls back within 1 and they missed a chance to take the lead.

From there, George got the open lane to the basket to make it 102-99, Mirotic missed a corner 3, then a lob to Thaddeus Young put the Pacers up by 5 points with 2:18 left.

• Get the latest Bulls news via Twitter by following

@McGrawDHBulls.