FINAL : Detroit 99 Bulls 83 ( Bulls: 22-43, 7-25 on the road)
LEADING SCORERS: Bulls: Payne: 17. Detroit: Griffin: 25
LEADING REBOUNDERS: Bulls: Valentine: 7. Detroit: Drummond: 17
LEADING ASSISTS: Bulls: Portis and Valentine: 5 . Detroit: Griffin: 8
CCI 24 SECONDS COMMENTARY: The Bulls went with Robin Lopez and Justin Holliday in the starting lineup and as we know, Rolo is always ready no matter when his number is called, which it was Friday night. Seeing his first action since February 14, Lopez was energized taking Andre Drummond to the rim from the opening tip, scoring nine first quarter points before calling it a night. The Bulls got a lift from Cam Payne who matched his career high with 17 points. Detroit ran isolated plays for Blake Griffin who scored 25. Detroit outscored the Bulls in each of the last three quarters.
CCI GAME BALL: Normally I only hand out the coveted CCI game ball after a win but I am breaking with tradition and awarding the prestigious award to Robin Lopez. Lopez is a coach’s dream and is a true professional. He had not played in nearly a month but stayed ready and when called upon delivered.
Happy 23rd Birthday to Zach LaVine. Next year you will see the real Zach LaVine with tons of “Zach Attacks.”
UP NEXT: At Atlanta Sunday.
NBA NEWS AND NOTES:
Toronto 108 Houston 105. The Raptors fed off a crazy ACC crowd led by Drake and ended Houston’s 17 game win streak. Jonas Valanciunas (14-10) made some big plays at crunch time for the Raps. Lowry with 30. Harden with 40.
With Houston losing, the hottest team in the NBA is Portland. Make it nine straight for the sizzling Blazers as they bounced the Curry-less Warriors , 125-108. Ed Davis pulled down 15 rebounds. The Moda Center in the Pacific Northwest is jumpin’.
Washington 119 NOLA 97. The Pelicans played without Anthony Davis (ankle). No Davis. No win. The Pelicans saw their ten game win streak end.
LAC 116 Cleveland 102. DeAndre Jordan, rumored to be a Cavalier at the trade deadline, scored 20 points and grabbed 23 rebounds.
Darren Collison scored 17 points in 21 minutes as the Pacers ripped the Hawks 112-87
Milwaukee 120 NY 112. The Knicks have lost 14 of 15.
Utah 95 Memphis 78. The Jazz won their 5th straight. The Grizzlies lost their 16th straight.
Denver 125 Lakers 116. Paul Millsap is back and that’s a good thing for the Nuggets as he poured in 22.
Sacramento 94 Orlando 88. That’s all I got.
Charlotte’s Michael Carter Williams will undergo season ending shoulder surgery.
Thanks for reading CCI. Email me at cswirsky@bulls.com or Twitter: @ctsbulls
Always a pleasure!