Tatum's triple-double powers Celtics past Bulls |
CHICAGO - It's hard enough to beat the Boston Celtics (22-6) once, let alone twice in back-to-back games. That is the task the Chicago Bulls (13-16) were up against on Saturday as they returned to the United Center for the second leg of a home and home with the Defending Champions. Chicago played arguably their best game of the season on Thursday when they beat the Celtics, and if they could pull it off again, there would be some serious questions about this team's ceiling.
For the second night in a row, the Bulls gave the Celtics all they could handle early on. They managed to keep things tied at the end of one, 28-28 and hung around for most of the second quarter. Eventually, Boston would pull away toward the half to take a seven-point lead into the break, but it was the second half that put this game out of reach. Boston outscored Chicago 62-44 in the second half to deliver the 123-98 win. Jayson Tatum was a massive reason for the Celtics victory as he came through with an impressive 43-point effort to lead all scorers, but scoring wasn't all Tatum did. The St. Louis native added 16 rebounds and 10 assists to post a triple-double as he continued to dominate the Bulls. He was an issue all game and something the Bulls couldn't recover from despite Nikola Vucevic trying his best to keep pace. The Bulls' big man took a little while to settle in, but once he did, he was the team's main scoring option. He led the Bulls with 19 points and pulled down 10 boards. He was one of four starters to finish in double figures, but he was the only one to score more than 15 points, which doesn't bode well going up against a team like Boston. Patrick Williams, Zach Lavine, and Coby White all had double-figure outings for the Bulls, each with 14 points. Apart from those four, scoring was an issue for the Bulls, with Matas Buzelis coming off the bench with nine points, the next highest on the team. Ayo Dosunmu rounded out the starting lineup with seven points, as did Julian Phillips, as Chicago struggled to get things done. Anytime a player posts a game like Tatum, a win becomes very unlikely, but basketball is a team game, and it takes a team performance to win. Boston is not only a great team but arguably the best team in the league yet again, and they continued to show why, as Tatum wasn't the only one getting the job done. Kristaps Porzingis had another strong game, scoring 22 points, while Jaylen Brown added 19 points and had eight assists. Ironically, those were the only players to score double figures for the Celtics, but given Tatum's game, those three nearly outscored the entire Bulls roster, which makes picking up a win that much easier. Chicago returns to the court on Monday for another tough matchup. They will play host to a surging Milwaukee Bucks team. Milwaukee is coming off its In-Season Cup win and has erased a terrible start to become one of the hottest teams in the NBA.
WINDY CITY CLOSES OUT THE FIRST HALF WITH A LOSS TO SANTA CRUZ
Not only were the Chicago Bulls in action, but so were the Windy City Bulls (5-11) as they closed out the Winter Showcase and their first half-season schedule against the Santa Cruz Warriors (7-9). This was a game where the Bulls couldn't get much of anything going in the opening 12 minutes as they found themselves down 28-17 after one.
The Bulls would respond by outscoring them by seven in the second quarter to pull within four at the break before a back-and-forth second half resulted in the Warriors 112-107 victory. Despite having six players in double figures, scoring was an issue for both Windy City and Chicago on the night as DJ Steward led the entire organization with 21 points. The Chicago native has been a consistent force for Windy City all season, as he added 12 assists to his strong game.
Those assists came in handy as all five starters finished in double figures, with Adama Sanogo picking up 16 points and Chris Duarte adding 15. EJ Liddell chipped in with 13 points, and Ben Coupet Jr rounded out the starting five with 12. David Muoka had a strong game off the bench with his 12 points, as the Bulls had plenty of scoring to go around.
The same can be said about Santa Cruz, which not only had all five starters in double figures but seven total players. Ironically, none of those players cracked the 20-point threshold, with Quinten Post and Kevin Knox leading the way with 17. Post also picked up 11 rebounds, as he was more than just a scoring threat in this one.
Jackson Rowe (14 points) and Yuri Collins (10 points) were two more players to land in double figures, but it was Pat Spencer putting together arguably the best game of the night for either side. Not only did Spencer come away with 16 points, but he also added nine rebounds and eight assists for the near triple-double and helped the Warriors take care of Windy City. The Bulls will get some extended time off before kicking off the second half of their season next Friday.
