The Chicago Bulls improved to 17-20 on the season with a 118-95 blowout victory over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday, March 14, at the United Center.
The Bulls finished with nine players in double figures and avoided a third straight loss after the All-Star Break. Rookie Patrick Williams led all scorers with 23 points, six rebounds, and four assists in 27 minutes of play.
The rookie scored 23 points without Coby White and Wendell Carter Jr. in the starting lineup.
“I really appreciate Coby and Wendell making sacrifices for the team,” said Coach Billy Donovan, via the AP. “It’s not like those guys are out of the rotation or not important pieces of the team.”
After back-to-back subpar outings by both White and Carter, Donovan decided to keep them out of the starting lineup.
“It’s more about trying to get a consistent combination through 48 minutes,” Donovan said via the AP.
In response to their benching, White and Carter combined to score 25 points off the bench. White added 13, and Carter finished 12 points and 11 rebounds.
The Bulls assisted on 19 of their first 20 field goal attempts in the first half. Their ability to share the ball helped them build a 58-49 halftime lead.
In the second half, the Bulls outscored the Raptors 60-46 to close out the game.
The team finished with nine players in double-figure scoring. This included 23 points from Patrick Williams, 15 points from Zach LaVine, 13 points from Lauri Markkanen, 13 points from Coby White, 12 points from Wendell Carter Jr., 11 points from Otto Porter Jr. and Denzel Valentine, and 10 points from Thaddeus Young and Tomas Satoransky.
Final Score: Bulls 118, Raptors 95.
Chicago Crusader Players of the Game:
Rookie Patrick Williams, Bulls, led all scorers with 23 points.
Zach LaVine, Bulls, finished second in scoring with 15 points.
The Bulls finished with nine players in double-figure scoring.
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected].
Joseph Phillips is the Sports Editor for the Chicago Crusader Newspaper. He is a Chicago native, who has been a sports writer for over 17 years. He also hosts the SC Media News and Sports Network Q&A radio show on WHPK 88.5 FM Chicago.
