Chicago Bulls 109 VS 105 Toronto Raptors summary: stats and highlights | NBA Play-In
The Bulls are on to the next round of the Play-In where they will play Miami on Friday night. The winner gets the 8 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
DeRozan might have disappeared for a stretch in the game, but he came in when his team needed him. He had 23 points including this slam down the middle of the lane.
Once Chicago took the lead you got the sense that they weren't going to let it up. LaVine finished the game with 39 points to lead the Bulls to the next round of the Play-In.
Caruso ended the night with 9 points, but what he did in the fourth quarter of the game is so much more than what you can read on a stat sheet. He brought heart and a sense of belief to the Bulls.
Caruso didn't have a huge game offensively scoring just 9 points but made some big buckets and came up with some key defensive plays.
LaVine had 17 in the the third quarter, and just like DeRozan did for him, he picked up the slack in the second half for his back court partner.
LaVine was much more aggressive in the second half, and that turned into points, which sparked a comeback for the Bulls.
LaVine finally started to get going towards the end of the first half, and that was a sign of things to come from him and the Bulls. He went to half with just 9 points, and was largely uninvolved through the first 24 minutes.
The Bulls took their first lead of the game with this Drummond lay up, but they wouldn't lead again until late in the fourth quarter.
In the absence of LaVine, former Raptor DeMar DeRozan stepped up and kept the Bulls hanging with the Toronto who came out hot from downtown thanks to Fred VanVleet and company.
Zach LaVine knew he was going to be needed in the Play-In game against the Raptors, but apart from this early bucket he didn't find his groove in the first half.
Vucevic gets the rebound off the missed FT and was fouled quickly by Barnes. He goes to the line and hits both FTs!
Caruso left his feet and Siakam pulled up for three and was fouled!!! He goes to the line and hits just one of three with 12 seconds to go.
LaVine was fouled by Anunoby and he goes to the line hitting both FTs with 17.2 to go in the fourth quarter and the Raptors take a timeout.
LaVine was fouled by Anunoby and he goes to the line hitting both FTs with 17.2 to go in the fourth quarter.
Siakim goes straight at the rack and jams it over three Raptors defenders with 19.1 on the clock
Timeout Raptors who have a one point lead.
DeRozan was fouled by Anunoby on the jumper and he hits one of two at the line with 28.7 seconds to go.
Timeout out Raptors.
We are under a minute to go in Toronto and Siakim goes to the FT line after the foul on Beverley. He hits one of two FTs, and if the Raptors lose this game, they will look at the FTs as a big reason why.
The call is overturned but the Bulls will keep the ball after a strange ruling to the foul that wasn't a foul that looked like a jump ball.
VanVleet was called for a foul, and the Raptors are going to challenge the call with 1:34 to go on the game clock.
Barnes at the line after the Vucevic foul and he hits one of two with under 2 minutes to go.
DeRozan getting back into the paint, and he goes right at the defender for the lay up high off the crystal.
LaVine driving to the iron and finger rolls it off the glass out of the timeout!
VanVleet comes out of the timeout and knocks down a three ball to tie up the game!
TO Bulls with 3:10 to go in the fourth quarter.
DeRozan with a thunderous jam after a drive down main street!
Toronto needs a TO with 3:32 to go in the fourth quarter!
Barnes uses the bank to cut the Bulls lead to 1.
LaVine drills the step back jumper and he continues his incredible second half!
Siakam follows up the VanVleet miss with a jam on the offensive rebound!
Beverley in the corner and he drills the three off the kick out from Vucevic! Bulls lead for the first time since early in the second quarter.
Barnes missed the FT, and Caruso gets a steal after TOR got the offensive board. Caruso got the lay up after the turnover and we are tied up here from Canada.
Barnes beating the defense down the floor and gets the baseline lay up and the foul! Bulls call a timeout with 6:17 to go in the fourth quarter!
Caruso drills a three ball from the corner and we are all tied up from Toronto!!!
Siakim drills the mid range jumper to bring some calm to this ScotiaBank Arena.
Caruso going to the rack and gets the lay up to go! It's a one point game with under 7 to go!
DeRozan with a miraculous lay up draped in traffic on the drive from the left side!
Poeltl ends the 9-0 Bulls run with a floater in the lane.
LaVine picks up the loose ball off the TOR turnover, and he goes back to the line after the foul on VanVleet. Both FT's are good and we have a three point game after a 9-0 run.
LaVine pulls the trigger on the break and drills the three ball! He's got 22 in the half and the Raptors need a timeout after seeing their lead dwindle to 5!
Vucevic cuts the lead back to single digits with a floater after the Caruso offensive rebound.
LaVine to the line after the foul on Siakam and he hits both FTs.
Achiuwa picks up another offensive board, and this time gets sent to the line by DeRozan. He hits both FTs and extends the lead to 12.
Siakam got blocked by Williams, but Achiuwa was there for the rebound and the put back.
Williams drills a three ball to cut the lead to 8 early in the quarter!
Siakam pulls the trigger from the FT line to start the fourth quarter!
WE ARE HEADED TO THE FOURTH QUARTER AND THE BULLS ARE BACK IN THIS GAME AFTER A BIG QUARTER FROM ZACH LAVINE.
LaVine puts his head down and gets the bucket and the foul! FT is good and he's got 17 in the quarter!
VanVleet gets to the the line and hits one of two after the foul on Caruso.
VanVleet steps back and drills the three over the defender to end the Bulls run and get the fans back into this game at ScotiaBank
LaVine strings a three ball from the top of the key and he's got 8 straight points, and 14 in the quarter!
LaVine hits a long deuce and he's got 5 quick points!
Another foul on VanVleet, and LaVine splits the two at the line.
LaVine at the line and he hits both FTs after the VanVleet foul.
Timeout Raptors with 2:45 to go in the third quarter.
VanVleet to the line where he goes one of two after the foul on DeRozan.
Vucevic with the mid range jumper and the Bulls will be looking to cut into this lead in the final 4 minutes of the third quarter.
Anunoby driving and getting the roll on the runner from the left side.
Siakim pulls up from the lane and he hits short jumper. He's got 22 on the night.
Barnes at the line after the foul on DeRozan and he hits one of two.
Williams just posterized Poeltl down low with a big jam off the White assist.
Barnes goes over the top of DeRozan from the block
LaVine drives baseline going right at the defenders and he gets the bucket and the foul! FT is good to complete the three point play.
DeRozan taking on defenders in the pain and he goes up and under for the lay up.
VanVleet to the line where he hits one of two FTs after the foul on White.
DeRozen cuts through the teeth of the defense and gets the lay up to go off the glass
Poeltl gets the lay up under the basket off the dish from VanVleet.
LaVine gets the bucket and the foul on the drive and lay up. FT is good to complete the three point play.
VanVleet strings a three ball and the lead is the largest of the night at 19!
Anunoby at the line after the foul on LaVine, and he hits one of two.
Anunoby gets the jam off the interior pass fro Poeltl.
Poeltl gets the lay up to extend the Raptors lead to 13 early in the third.
WE ARE BACK IN PLAY FOR THE FINAL 24 MINUTES FROM TORONTO!
VanVleet ended the half with this buzzer beater from mid court to send the Raptors to the break up by 11
Zach LaVine has nine points but was not very involved in that first half. He needs to be more impactful in the second half if the Bulls are going to win.
DeRozan is back in Toronto and he looked right at home in the first half. He's got 12 points, but cooled down in the final minutes of the half.
Siakam and VanVleet came out firing out of the gate to put the Raptors up and keep them up for most of the first 24 minutes.
The Bulls actually took the lead for a moment as DeRozan continued his hot start, but as he went quiet so did the Bulls. Siakam stepped up and scored 20 in the first half. VanVleet had 11 after the first quarter and didn't score again until the last second in the half, and what a shot it was... Highlights to come.
VAN VLEET WITH THE BUZZER BEATER ON THE DOUBLE CLUTCH SHOT FRO HALF COURT TO SEND THE RAPTORS INTO HALFTIME WITH AN 11 POINT LEAD!!!
Poeltl at the line after the foul on Williams and he hits one of two.
LaVine running the break after the steal by Williams, and he's having a slow night but let's see if that gets him going in the second half.
Siakam at the line and he hits one of two after the foul on White.
Barnes at the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on White with under 2 to go in the half.
Vucevic with the short jump hook in the lane and he's been scoring from all over the floor.
Anunoby hits the second FT out of the timeout.
Anunoby to the line after the foul on Vucevic and he misses the first before the Bulls take a timeout with 3:07 to go in the first half.
DeRozan gets back on the board after a few quiet minutes and he has 12 on his return to Toronto.
Siamkam with another bucket with a mid range jumper on the fader. He's got a quick six straight.
White goes back to the rack and he hits the lay up. He's having a nice night off the bench.
Siakam pulls up from the mid range and he's starting to heat up in this second quarter.
Siakam at the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Caruso.
White with the floater off the interior assist from Vucevic.
Barnes puts hits head down and gets to the bucket for the lay up.
White answers back with a three ball off the kick out from Caruso.
Siakam out of the timeout and he drills the three ball in the corner!
Vucevic looking down low and LaVine gets the defense to jump with the pump fake and the reverse lay up drops.
Timeout Raptors with 6:19 to go in the second quarter.
Trent Jr. pulls up from the top of the key and that's his first FG of the night.
Achiuwa dashing to the rack and he catches and lay it up in the blink of an eye.
LaVine goes to the line after the foul on Barnes and he hits one of two.
Anunoby drills the three ball and the Raptors three point tally continues to climb.
DeRozan at the line after the foul on Achiuwa and he hits both FTs.
Barnes slicing through the defense and he gets the reverse to go off the glass!
Siakam hits another step back fro the top of the key and he's got 10 already.
Lob up from White to Drummond who brought it down, and went up quickly for the lay in.
White goes up and under with the finger roll in the paint.
DeRozan pulls up from the mid range and hits the jumper to make it 8 points on the night.
The Raptors jumped out to the lead with an early three and they have lead since then.
The Raptors are 5/8 from DT and VanVleet had 11 first quarter points, and Siakam has 8. The Raptors starts are showing up so far.
DeRozan and Vucevic have 6, and Williams has 5 off the bench.
Williams answers back with a three ball of his own and that's how the first quarter will end here from Toronto!
VanVleet drills the three ball and he's got 11 in the first quarter!
DeMar missed the FT out of the timeout but got his own rebound and hit the put back.
DeRozan driving to the iron, he got fouled and got the roll! He'll be going to the line after the timeout break with under a minute to go in the first quarter.
VanVleet this time taking it off the deck, crossing over, takes the contact and hits the double clutch lay up off the glass!
Kick out from Siakam who was double teamed, and VanVleet punishes the Bulls with another three!!!
Vucevic backing down in the lane and he hits the little push shot in the paint.
Siakam on the pull up and he drills the long range two.
VanVleet drops the three ball for his first points of the night! If the Raptors start making threes, the Bulls are going to have a tough time winning this ball game.
Vucecic puts it on the deck, spins and finishes around the bucket.
Williams with the steal and the slam after coming off the bench!
Caruso comes out of the timeout, streaks down the lane and gets the lay up off the glass.
Barnes was left wide open in the corner and he drills the three ball!!
Chicago will take a timeout with 6:18 to go in the first quarter.
Siakam on the lay up down low and he's got a quick six.
DeRozan streaking down the lane and he throws it down over the entire Toronto defense!
Anunoby heading to the line after the foul on Caruso and he hits one of two from the line.
LaVine going right at the rack, hanging in the air and gets it to go from high off the glass.
Siakam backing down into the lane and then turns around and hits the fader
LeVine pulls up from the mid range and he is on the board for the first time tonight. He needs to come up big for the Bulls in Toronto tonight.
Barnes on a baby hook in the lane and he gets it to fall.
Siakam with the board and he goes coast to coast for the lay up.
Vucevic with the mid range jumper and he will try to stretch the Raptors front court out to the perimeter.
Anunoby gets the Raptors started with a corner three ball!
WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM TORONTO!!!
Billy Donovan is going with P Bev at point, Caruso, LaVine and DeRozan and Vucevic down low against a Raptors team that is going to want to get out and run all night long.
Everything that has happened up until this point in the season doesn't matter. Both teams are starting at 0-0 and they have 48 minutes to keep their season alive. Nick Nurse is going with Van Vleet, Barnes, Anunoby, Siakam and Poeltl to start the must win match up.
Hawks advance
The Atlanta Hawks have defeated the Miami Heat 116-105 away from their home court to clinch the seven seed in the Eastern Conference. They out rebounded the Heat 63-39 in the opening Play-In game of the Tournament, with Clint Capela grabbing a third of them to guarantee a spot in the the Playoffs.
Head to head
These two teams have met three times this year, with Toronto winning the rubber match in Canada at the beginning in March thanks to Siakam’s 20 points and Gary Trent Jr.’s 19 off the bench. Toronto and Chicago played a back to back home and away series in early November and the home teams won each game on their own hardwood. Recent history would suggest that Toronto, who will be playing at home will have the advantage but we will have to wait until Wednesday to find out
How the East looks after 82 games
Taking a look at the Eastern Conference standings we see the Bulls rounding out the Top 10 with a record of 40-42. They finished the season five games above the Pacers, so their spot in the Play-In was secure since the month of April began. The Raptors were even with the Atlanta Hawks after the final Sunday before the postseason but a head-to-head tie break sank them into the 9 seed and the Hawks got to play the win and in game against Miami which they won to secure the 7 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Whoever wins tonight will face off against the Heat in Miami on Friday night.
Bulls Big Two have to show up
With Lonzo Ball sidelined all season, it’s been Zach LaVine who has had to step up and take on the top scoring responsibilities. The former slam dunk champion is averaging almost 25 points a game while DeMar DeRozan is sitting snug behind him at 24.5 ppg. These two know if they have an off night in Toronto, it could mean the end of their season.
Toronto at home for at least one more
The Raptors have struggled to score the ball all year long, which is strange because they are a team that loves to play up tempo basketball. If they are slowed down in the half court, scoring becomes much harder so it will be up to Fred VanVleet to keep the Raptors running through all four quarters against a Chicago team that will be wanting to slow them down.
Bulls beat down Pistons in Play-In warm up
After defeating the Dallas Mavericks and ending their postseason hopes, the Bulls played the Detroit Pistons in the final game before the Play-In. Chicago already had their spot in the postseason tournament guaranteed but Billy Donovan still started all of his stars, although limited their minutes. Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 17 points in a low scoring affair that say Chicago hold Detroit to just 35 points in the second half. They would finish the season two games below .500 but they have made the playoffs and have a chance to extend their season tonight.
Raptors end season with a win
The Raptors had a brutal end to their regular season having to play the Celtics twice and the Bucks in their final game before the Play-In. Luckily there wasn’t much pressure from below and they had a comfortable cushion and a place in the Play-In locked in, but two losses against the Celtics meant they would have to settle for the 9 seed and now need to win two games to make the playoffs. Their final game was against a Milwaukee team that sat all their starters in preparations for the post season. Gary Trent Jr. helped the Raptors jump out to an early lead in the first quarter which they kept until the finish line. Trent Jr. had 23 points to lead the Raptors to victory in the final game of the season.
We are live from ScotiaBank
Hello everyone and welcome to Canada where the Raptors and the Bulls are both two wins away from the playoffs, but they must get through tonight to keep their season going. These two teams qualified for the playoffs last year, but things haven’t quite gone to plan for Toronto or Chicago in this campaign. The Raptors finished the season with the same record as the 8 seed Atlanta Hawks, but due to a head to head tie breaker they got the 9 seed and now have to win two games to make the Play-In Tournament. The Bulls had high expectations coming into this season, but Lonzo Ball’s season long injury left the team without a true point guard and they were lucky to make the postseason after a disappointing campaign.
Bulls vs. Raptors
The second round of Play-In games tip off tonight from Toronto as the Raptors host the Chicago Bulls from the Air Canada Center. The Raptors come into the postseason as the 9 seed in the East and the Bulls got the last spot in Conference despite finishing the season under .500. AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s must win game from north of the border.