FINAL FROM THE UNITED CENTER: Atlanta 123, Bulls 118. (Bulls: 18-46, 7-25 at home)
LEADING SCORERS: Bulls: Markkanen: 19pts. Atlanta: Len: 28 pts.
LEADING REBOUNDERS: Bulls: Markkanen: 9. Atlanta: Dedmon: 12.
LEADING ASSISTS: Bulls: Dunn: 6. Atlanta: Bembry: 7.
CCI RECAP: No excuses. Both teams won’t use fatigue as a factor but the truth of the matter is, it was. It led to a sloppily played game as the two teams after playing a four overtime affair on Friday had very little left in the tank. The Bulls shot 51% from the field but only 29% from three point range, yet came within a few plays of pulling this one out. The Bulls trailed 118-117 with 1:14 left but Atlanta’s Kevin Huerter‘s hoop gave the Hawks just enough of a cushion for the win. Otto Porter Jr. sat out with load management. Atlanta missed two starters. The Atlanta bigs of Alex Len and Dewayne Dedmon combined for 41 points and 21 rebounds.
Trae Young was ejected in the third quarter after receiving technical fouls in each half. After scoring 49 points on Friday, Young poured in 18 points in 18 minutes before chilling in the visitor’s locker room after he was banished for a taunting technical for staring down Kris Dunn.
A positive sign for the Bulls came from their bench as they collectively scored 58 points. Antonio Blakeney had 17 points in 20 minutes. Ryan Arcidiacono registered his third straight double figure scoring game.
CCI IN THE LOCKER ROOM: "We were fighting uphill all game, I thought we battled. To get down 16, we hung in there... We had a couple of opportunities to tie it up but just couldn’t get over the hump." - Coach Boylen
UP NEXT: At Indiana, Tuesday
CCI 24 SECONDS NBA NEWS AND NOTES
Detroit 112, Toronto 107 OT: Kawhi Leonard rested... again. Let’s be honest: the Raps are saving him for the playoffs. It’s all about playing in the Finals for Toronto and I’m NOT talking about the Eastern Conference Finals. The Pistons have won 10 of their last 13 games and are back at the .500 mark for the first time since late December. They now stand at 31-31.
Houston 115, Boston 104: James Harden lit it up scoring 42 points, his 24th 40+ game. The Rockets have won five straight. Boston has lost five of six.
Los Angeles Clippers 128, New York 107: The Knicks lost their 50th game of the season. Landry Shamet drilled seven-three point field goals. It was a win-win trade for Shamet/Clippers and the 76ers acquiring Tobias Harris.
Oklahoma City 99, Memphis 95: Russell Westbrook nailed a big three pointer. Paul George missed another game with a shoulder injury. Steven Adams hit the glass with 22 boards.
Portland 118, Charlotte 108: Rodney Hood scored a season-high 27 points. Jusuf Nurkic had a monster 26-15 game. Don’t look now, but the Blazers have won six out of their last seven and are 15 games over .500.
Cleveland 107, Orlando 93: After getting blown out at home Saturday to the Pistons, the Cavs played their second home game in as many nights with different results. The Cavs hung 40 on the Magic in the fourth quarter. Kevin Love scored 16 points and grabbed 14 rebounds.
Washington 135, Minnesota 121: Bobby Portis had a 26-12 game. Jabari Parker added 22. The T-Wolves have lost four of their last five games.
Thanks for reading CCI. Reach out at cswirsky@bulls.com or Twitter: @ctsbulls. Always a pleasure!