Zach LaVine scored a season-high 30 points and Nikola Vucevic contributed 15 points and 13 rebounds to boost the host Chicago Bulls to a 111-97 win against the Toronto Raptors on Monday night.
Chicago earned a split of the home-and-home, back-to-back set after losing 113-104 in Toronto on Sunday.
LaVine led the Bulls’ attack, finishing 11-for-20 from the floor while sinking 4 of 8 3-point attempts. Ayo Dosunmu (12 points), Derrick Jones Jr. (12), Goran Dragic (10) and Patrick Williams (10) also scored in double figures in a game Chicago led by as many as 21 points.
Fred VanVleet had 27 points for Toronto, while Gary Trent Jr. (19), O.G. Anunoby (13) and Precious Achiuwa (10) followed. Scottie Barnes chipped in with six rebounds and five assists.
Bulls leading scorer DeMar DeRozan finished with a season-low-tying nine points. DeRozan, who led Chicago with 20 points on Sunday night, had six rebounds and seven assists on Monday.
A DeRozan three-point play put Chicago ahead 56-43 with 2:43 remaining in the second quarter. The Raptors responded to their largest deficit to that point with a 10-0 run that included six points from Trent.
A LaVine basket with 1.4 seconds to go ended the surge and gave the Bulls a 58-53 lead at the break.
Turns out the blip of momentum carried over to the start of the third quarter, which Chicago opened with a 10-2 run.
One night after allowing the Raptors to finish the game on a 20-9 run, the Bulls closed out their foes. Another strong showing from the free-throw line boosted Chicago, which was 18-for-22 from the line, a rate of 81.8 percent.
The Bulls have shot 80 percent or better from the line in 11 straight games, matching a franchise mark set last season.
Toronto committed 15 turnovers while forcing 22.
LaVine returned to the lineup after missing the Sunday game as the team manages his workload following offseason surgery on his left knee.
–Field Level Media
