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Chuck Checks In - 02.09.21

FINAL FROM THE UNITED CENTER: Washington 105, Bulls 101 (Bulls: 9-14, 3-8 at home).

LEADING SCORERS: Bulls: LaVine: 35pts. Wizards: Beal: 35pts.
LEADING REBOUNDERS: Bulls: Temple: 9. Wizards: Avdija and Hachimura: 10 apiece.
LEADING ASSISTS: Bulls: LaVine and Young each with 6. Wizards: Beal and Smith each with 7.

CCI STAT OF THE NIGHT: The Wizards scored 54 points in the paint.

CCI RECAP: The undermanned Bulls fell to the Wizards who played without Russell Westbrook. Zach LaVine's drive to the rim rolled off with less than a second remaining that would have tied the game. LaVine and Bradley Beal each scored 35 points. Beal sank three free throws in the final nine seconds to seal the deal. Rui Hachimura scored 19 points and 10 rebounds on his 23rd birthday. The Wizards went 27-36 from the line. Washington entered the game averaging 26 free throw attempts per game. Beal went 14-15 from the stripe. The Bulls allowed 54 points in the paint.

Lauri Markkanen is out two to four weeks with a sprained right shoulder joining Otto Porter Jr., Wendell Carter Jr. and Chandler Hutchison on the sideline.

UP NEXT: Home with New Orleans Wednesday.

CCI CCI NBA NEWS AND NOTES

Milwaukee 125, Denver 112. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton combined for 59 points. Middleton went 0-5 from three point range but 11-11 from the foul line. Denver's Nikola Jokic with another robust performance of 35-12-6 and zero turnovers in 39 minutes.

Los Angeles Lakers 119, Oklahoma City 112 OT. LeBron James recorded his third triple-double of the season ( 28-14-12) as the Lakers won their fifth straight. Anthony Davis sat out with right Achilles tendinosis.

Charlotte 119, Houston 94. LaMelo Ball made a career high seven-three pointers and finished with 24-7-10. Ball is 21 of 40 from three point range in his last six games. The Rockets shot 2-19 from the field in the fourth quarter.

Toronto 128, Memphis 113. Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam each scored 32 points.

Dallas 127, Minnesota 122. The Mavs played before home fans for the first time in nearly a year opening the doors to one-thousand spectators. Minnesota's Karl-Anthony Towns missed his 12th straight game, remaining on the health and safety protocols list.

Phoenix 119, Cleveland 113. Devin Booker scored a season high 36 points. The Suns who played without Chris Paul (hamstring) have won six of their last seven.

San Antonio 105, Golden State 100. San Antonio's Dejounte Murray with an impressive 27-10 and eight steals game. Golden State's James Wiseman missed his fourth straight game with a sprained left wrist.

Thanks for reading CCI. Reach out: cswirsky@bulls.com or Twitter @ctsbulls.

All In. All Bulls. 365. 24-7. Always a pleasure. Go Bulls!