FINAL: Toronto 122 Bulls 98. (Bulls: 20-37, 13-16 at home).
LEADING SCORERS: Bulls: Portis: 18. Toronto: Ibaka and Lowry each with 20.
LEADING REBOUNDERS: Bulls: Markkanen and Nwaba each with 6. Toronto: Valanciunas: 9.
LEADING ASSISTS: Bulls: Grant: 7. Toronto: Lowry: 10.
CCI 24 SECONDS COMMENTARY: Terrific first quarter by the Bulls, as they scored 33 points on the Raptors and led by six. However, Toronto’s second unit continued to excel, as they outscored the Bulls by 18 points in the period and put the game to bed. Toronto’s reserves scored a whopping 56 points.
CCI GAME BALL: Kris Dunn. Dunn returned to action after missing nearly a month and played a restricted 20 minutes; he scored 8 points, dished out three assists, and pulled down three rebounds. It was great to see him back on the floor. It’s on to LA for the Rising Stars Game on Friday night for himself and Lauri Markkanen.
CCI SECOND GAME BALL: Bobby Portis. He has become a go to guy with the Bulls’ second unit, and has registered six-straight double figure scoring games (a career high).
VONLEH MAKES BULLS DEBUT: Late in the fourth quarter, the Bulls got their first glimpse of Noah Vonleh, who acquired from Portland at the trade deadline. Vonleh played six minutes, scoring three points and grabbing four rebounds.
UP NEXT: Home with Philadelphia, February 22nd.
NBA NEWS AND NOTES
What a ballgame in Portland, as Damian Lillard scored 44 points and beat Golden State, 123-117, despite Kevin Durant’s 50 points. The Blazers are just two games behind Minnesota in the Northwest Division.
The Bulls next opponent, Philadelphia, came from behind to beat the Heat, 104-102. In his first game in a 76ers’ uniform, Marco Belinelli scored 17. Ben Simmons recorded a triple-double.
The once mighty Celtics are slumping. They’ve dropped four out of their last five games; LAC has won four out of five, as the Clippers prevailed, 129-119. DeAndre Jordan with a 30-13 game.
Don’t invite Isaiah Thomas and Rajon Rondo to the same party. Both players were ejected in the Pelicans blowout win over the Lakers, 139-117. Anthony Davis with another absolutely ridiculous line: 42-15-3-3 (steals).
Utah won it’s 11th straight game, ripping the Suns, 107-97. For Phoenix, loss number 41. A remarkable turnaround for Utah. Quinn Snyder deserves a long look as NBA Coach of the Year.
Detroit’s Blake Griffin flirted with a triple double: 13-12-9. The Pistons ended a mini three-game losing streak, beating the Hawks, 104-98. The Hawks are 5-24 on the road.
The Knicks blew a 27-point lead at home, as the Wizards stormed from behind to hand NY its eighth-straight loss, 118-113.
Indiana 108 Nets 103. Brooklyn has lost seven-straight and the Cavs rejoice!
Houston won its 11th-straight and 17 out of 19, smashing Sacramento, 100-91. James Harden with 28-9-9. The Rockets go into the All Star break at 44-13.
OKC buried a season high 17 3-pointers, as they handed Memphis its sixth-straight loss, 121-114. Westbrook notched his 17th triple-double of the season.
Dwight Howard with a 22-13 game, as the Hornets ended a four-game losing streak, edging the Magic, 104-102.
Thanks for reading CCI. Email me at cswirsky@bulls.com or Twitter: @ctsbulls.
Always a pleasure!