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The Chicago Bulls picked up their 5th win in a row Sunday afternoon with a 117-110 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. The Bulls have also won six of their last seven games and what might be even more impressive they won back to back games on the road. That’s one of the tougher things to do in the NBA.

Chicago scored six of the games first eight points, but New Orleans quickly came right back to tie the game at six all. The Bulls then went on an 11 to 2 to take a 17-8 lead with 5:50 left in the quarter. The Bulls where never able to push their lead into double digits and when Solomon Hill hit a lay up the Pelicans where within two at 23-21. The Bulls scored the final five points of the quarter to take a 28-21 lead after one quarter of play.

The Bulls started the 2nd quarter by scoring the first seven points and pushing their lead to 14 points 35-21. The closest the Pelicans could was five points at 45-40 with 5:05 left to play. The Bulls then scored 11 straight points to take a 16 point lead at 56-40. New Orleans was unable to cut down the Bulls lead and they needed a 3-pointer by Dante Cunningham just to bring the lead back down to 16 points (63-47) headed into halftime.

The 3rd quarter was the Pelicans best quarter of the game, but the Bulls did get out to a 19 point lead at 74-55 before New Orleans started to cut into it. The Pelicans spent the majority of the quarter trying to get the Bulls lead under 10 points and when former Bull E’Twaun Moore hit two free throws with 3:34 left in the quarter New Orleans was down eight points at 79-71. The Bulls did push their lead back into double digits on two occasions, but DeMarcus Cousins hit two free throws for the last two points of the quarter to make it an eight point game again 87-79 heading into the 4th.

Now Chicago has had issues all season beating teams with under .500 records, but when Bobby Portis hit a 3-pointer to give the Bulls a 19 point lead 100-81 with 8:36 left to play; this didn’t look like one of those games. First New Orleans went on a 10 to 2 run to cut the Bulls lead to 11 at 102-91 with 6:52 left to play. The Bulls built the lead back to 14 points with 4:43 left to play and it was looking like they might cruise to a victory. Not so fast; New Orleans went on a 16 to 7 run to make it a five point game with just :15 seconds left to play. Chicago added a couple of free throws to seal a victory 117-110 that ended up much closer than it looked to be.

Jimmy Butler was the games high scorer with 39 points while Rajon Rondo was the only other Bulls starter to reach double figures with 10 points. Rondo also handed out a game high 9 assists. Luckily for the Bulls Bobby Portis came in off the bench to score 21 points and grab a team high 11 rebounds. Joffrey Lauvergne also scored in double digits off the Bulls bench getting 15 points.

Anthony Davis was the Pelicans top scorer and posted a double-double. Davis had 30 points and 11 rebounds. DeMarcus Cousins also had a double-double for New Orleans with 26 points and a game high 18 rebounds. Jrue Holiday had 17 points and a team high 6 assists while Jordan Crawford came off the New Orleans bench to add 15 points.

With the win the Bulls improve to 38-39. Chicago will get a day off before they play their second of four consecutive roads games. The Bulls travel to New York to take on the 29-48 Knicks on Tuesday night. The Loss drops New Orleans record to 33-44 on the season. The Pelicans will also get a day off before they host the 36-40 Denver Nuggets Tuesday night.

Jimmy Butler scored the final four points of the game including hitting two free throws with just :02 seconds left to give the Chicago Bulls a 106-104 win over the Atlanta Hawks. It was the Bulls 3rd win in a row and 4th in their last 5 games. The win also catapulted the Bulls into 7th place in the Eastern Conference.

Chicago took the lead in the 1st quarter and built a seven point lead at 17-10 on a Rajon Rondo lay up with 6:5 left in the quarter. Atlanta then went on a 9 to 2 run to tie the game at 19 all with 2:44 left to play. The Bulls did score four of the final six points of the quarter to take a 23-21 lead after one quarter.

While the Bulls where able to hold onto the lead for the entire 2nd quarter they cold never really get to big of a lead on Atlanta. The Biggest lead the Bulls could build was eight points at 52-44 very late in the quarter when Rajon Rondo scored with just :26 seconds left. Dwight Howard got a tip in for the Hawks just before the buzzer to make it a 52-46 game going into halftime.

The Bulls where able to push their lead to double digits twice in the 3rd quarter the last time was 9:17 left to play at 61-51. The Hawks then came back with a 21 to 10 run to take the lead at 72-71 with 2:47 lead in the quarter. There where five lead changes and three ties down the stretch of the 3rd quarter before Atlanta was able to take a five point lead 84-79 heading into the 4th quarter.

Atlanta scored the first five points of the 4th quarter to make their lead 10 points at 89-79. It took the Bulls almost the rest of the quarter to cut into the Atlanta lead and then when  Jimmy Butler hit a 3-pointer with 1:59 left to play the game was tied at 102. Dennis Schroder gave the Hawks the lead back at 104-102 when he hit a short jumper, but Butler evened the game again when he scored on a lay up with :32 seconds left. After an Atlanta time out Schroder lost the basketball out of bounds with :25 seconds left. As the Bulls where looking for the last shot Kent Bazemore fouled Butler with just :02 seconds left to play. Butler went to the line and made both free throw giving the Bulls a 106-104 lead and when Tim Hardaway Jr’s 3-point attempt missed the Bulls as time expired the Bulls had their 3rd win in a row and where back in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Jimmy Butler was the games high scorer with 33 points. Butler also handed out more assists than anyone else with 8. Rajon Rondo had 25 points and a team high 11 rebounds. Paul Zipser added 10 points while Denzel Valentine came off the Chicago bench to score 13 points.

Dennis Schroder was Atlanta’s top scorer with 29 points and he also handed out a team high 6 assists. Tim Hardaway Jr had 20 points while Dwight Howard and Ersan Ilyasova had had 13 points. Howard also grabbed a game high 12 rebounds.

Chicago improved to 37-39 on the season with the win and they’ll turn right around and try to keep their winning streak going as they head to New Orleans to face the 33-43 Pelicans at 5:00 p.m. c.s.t. Sunday. Atlanta is 39-37 after the loss and this was the first of back to back games for Atlanta as well. The Hawks travel to Brooklyn to face the team with the worst record in the NBA the 17-59 Nets Sunday afternoon.

The Chicago Bulls kept their winning streak when they play a nationally televised game on TNT going with a 99-93 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. This is the 20th straight game that the Bulls have won when they’ve been shown on TNT.

As for the Cavaliers I’m sure they just want this month to end. The Cavaliers are 6-10 in the month of March. This was also the Cavaliers 3rd loss in a row and they are 4-6 in their last 10 games.

The Bulls got off to a quick start taking a six point lead by scoring eight of the games first 10 points. Chicago added a point to the lead at 11-4 before Cleveland went on a 12 to 3 run to take a 16-14 lead. From there the teams traded the lead five times and the game was tied twice before the Cavaliers where able to the final six points of the quarter to take a 28-22 lead after one quarter.

Kevin Love gave the Cavaliers a double digit lead at 34-24 early in the 2nd quarter when he hit a jumper with 10:52 left to play. Chicago was ale to cut the lead back into single digits, but the closest they could get in the quarter was four points at 38-34 with 6:46 left to play. Cleveland added five points to their lead before halftime and they went into the half ahead 50-41.

Cleveland got their double digit lead back when Kyrie Irving hit a 3-pointer with 9:57 left in the 3rd quarter to put the Cavaliers up 55-45. Chicago then went on a 12 to 2 run to tie the game at 57 all. The score was tied one more time and the teams traded the lead three times before Cleveland built a six point lead with 4:13 left in the quarter. The Bulls finished the quarter on an 18 to 5 run to take a 78-71 lead going into the final quarter.

The Cavaliers where able to cut the Bulls lead to two points early in the 4th quarter, but the Bulls where able to push the lead back to 10 points at 88-78 with 6:48 left to play when Jimmy Butler hit a 3-pointer. The Cavaliers did cut the lead to five points with 1:02 left in the game, but that was as close as they could get as the Bulls where able to retain their lead and pick up a 99-93 victory.

Nikola Mirotic was the games top scorer with 28 points. Mirotic also grabbed 10 rebounds. Jimmy Butler added 25 points while Robin Lopez scored 10 points and grabbed a game high 11 rebounds. Denzel Valentine was the only Bulls bench player to reach double figures with 12 points. Rajon Rondo also handed out a game high 15 assists for the Bulls.

LeBron James posted a double-double as he scored 26 points; tied for his teams lead in rebounds with 10 and also handed out a team high 8 assists. Kyrie Irving added 20 points while Tristan Thompson (15 points) and J.R. Smith (12 points) both reached double figures. Kevin Love grabbed 10 rebounds to tie for the team lead.

The Bulls improved to 36-39 with the win, but are still a game out of the 8th and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Chicago has won three of their last four games and have won the last two in a row. The Bulls get a day off before they host the 39-36 Atlanta Hawks on Saturday afternoon. The loss keeps the Cavaliers 1/2 game out of the top spot in the Eastern Conference. Believe it or not the Cavaliers bad month isn’t over as they have to face the 28-47 Philadelphia 76ers tonight in Cleveland.

On a side note the Bulls are 4-0 against the Cavaliers this season.

Coming into Sunday afternoons game against the Chicago Bulls the Milwaukee Bucks where two games over .500 on the season and four games over .500 at home. Of course with the way the Bulls season has went they should be favorite against any team over .500. Now the Bulls did get down 12 points early in the game to the Bucks, but they came all the way back to pick up a 15 point victory 109-94.

There where nine lead changes as well as nine ties in the 1st quarter. Milwaukee had the biggest lead of the quarter at four points. The biggest scoring run either team go on was when the Buck scored 5 of the first seven points in the game. As I’m sure you’ve guessed it was a very even 1st quarter that ended with Milwaukee ahead 31-29.

Milwaukee started the 2nd quarter on a 12 to 2 run that saw them take a 12 point lead 43-31 with 9:00 minutes left in the quarter. The Bulls struggled to get the Bucks lead under 10 points. With 4:35 left in the quarter Milwaukee still had a 10 point lead at 49-39. The Bulls finished the quarter on a 17 to 6 run to go into halftime with a one point lead 56-55.

Milwaukee went right back to the lead at the start of the 3rd quarter and while they where never able to extend that lead to more than three points they held it until Rajon Rondo put the Bulls back ahead 62-61 with 9:35 left in the quarter. Milwaukee was able to tie the game one more time, but never got the lead back. The Bulls slowly built their lead and with 2:35 left in the quarter they took their first double digit lead of the game at 87-76. Chicago added one more point to that lead and they headed into the 4th quarter ahead 91-79.

Both teams had offensive struggles in the 4th quarter as they combined to score 33 points in the quarter. The Bucks never reduced the Bulls lead to under 11 points and when Joffrey Lauvergne put back an offensive rebound the Bulls had a 20 point lead 104-84 with 6:58 left in the game. Milwaukee did manage to outscore the Bulls 10 to 5 from that point on, but all that did was make it a 15 point victory for the Bulls 109-94.

All five of the Bulls starters scored in double figures led by Nikola Mirotic who was the games high scorer with 28 points. Jimmy Butler had a double-double with 20 points and a game high 14 assists. Rajon Rondo and Robin Lopez each scored 18 points and Rondo grabbed a game high 9 rebounds. Paul Zipser was the other Bulls starter in double figures with 10 points.

Milwaukee was led by Giannis Antetokounmpo with 20 points; he also grabbed a team high 8 rebounds. Greg Monroe came off the Bucks bench to score 16 points while Khris Middleton and Malcom Brogdon each had 14 points. Antetokounmpo, Brogdon and Matthew Dellavedova all tied for the team lead in assists with 4 each.

The Bulls improve to 35-39 with the win and keep their slim playoff hopes alive. The Bulls will now get three days off before they host the Eastern Conference leading 47-25 Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night. Milwaukee drops to 37-36 with the loss and will get a day off before they travel to Charlotte to face the 33-40 Hornets on Tuesday night.

Even though the Philadelphia 76ers where playing without Joel Embiid and Jahlil Okafor they still managed a double digit victory 117-107 over the Chicago Bulls. This was just another in a line of confusing losses to teams under .500 by the Bulls this season. Luckily for the Bulls the loss didn’t cost them anything in the standings as the Detroit Pistons also lost Friday night.

The Bulls where able to jump out to a double digit lead 16-6 lead early in the 1st quarter. The 76ers cut the lead to four before the Bulls where able to rebuild it to eight at 26-18 with 2:12 left in the quarter. Philadelphia scored six of the last eight points in the quarter to cut the Bulls lead to four points at 28-24 after one quarter.

The Bulls where able to hold onto their four point lead for the first couple minutes of the 2nd quarter. With the Bulls ahead 32-28 Philadelphia went on a 10 to 0 run to take a 38-32 lead. The Bulls never got closer than that four point deficit as their offense managed just 18 points in the 2nd quarter, The 76ers where able to take their first double digit lead of the game (35-25) with 3:05 left in the 2nd quarter. The 76ers where able to build that lead to 13 points going into halftime ahead 59-46.

Philadelphia started out the 3rd quarter on a 8 to 1 run and found themselves ahead by 20 points at 67-47 early in the 3rd quarter. The biggest lead the 76ers had in the 3rd quarter was 26 points and they did that twice. The Bulls where never able to get the 76ers lead under the 20 point margin. Philadelphia took a 93-71 lead heading into the final quarter.

With a 22 point lead the outcome of the game was pretty much decided, but the Bulls offense did have a better performance in the 4th quarter scoring 36 points. While the Bulls did manage to cut 12 points off of the 76ers lead it was just a case of two little too late. Denzel Valentine hit a 3-pointer for Chicago with :03 seconds left to make the final score 117-107 Philadelphia.

Dario Saric led the 76ers with 32 points. Saric also had a team high 10 rebounds. T.J. Connell was the other Philadelphia starter to score in double figures with 10 points and a team high 8 assists. Shawn Long, Gerald Henderson and Sergio Rodriguez all scored in double figures off the Philadelphia bench. Long had 18 points, Henderson had 14 points while Rodriguez added 12 points.

Jimmy Butler was the games leading scorer with 36 points and also handed out a game high 11 assists. Nikola Mirotic had 15 points. Bobby Portis came off the Bulls bench to post a double-double. Portis had 17 points and a game high 11 rebounds. Anthony Morrow also added 10 points off the Bulls bench.

With the win Philadelphia improves to 27-45 on the season. The 76ers will get a day off before they head to Indiana to face the 36-36 Pacers Saturday night. Chicago falls to 34-39 with the loss. The Bulls will head to Milwaukee for  game Saturday night against the 37-35 Bucks.

The Chicago Bulls kept their playoff hopes alive Wednesday night as they sent the Detroit Pistons to their 5th loss in there last 6 games with a 117-95 victory. The win by the Bulls also evens their record with the Pistons at 34-38. The Bulls and the Pistons are tied for 10th place in the Eastern Conference and are 1 1/2 games behind the Miami Heat for that final playoff spot.

The Bulls got off to a quick start scoring six of the games first eight points to take a 6-2 lead. Detroit then scored five straight points to take a 7-6 lead. The teams traded the lead four more times before the Bulls took the lead for good at 14-13 with 5:31 left in the quarter. The Bulls went on a 13-0 run to take their first double digit lead of the game at 25-13. The Pistons got to within four points 25-21 with 1:24 left in the quarter, but the Bulls finished the quarter on a 7-2 run to take a 32-23 lead after one quarter.

The Bulls got their double digit lead back early in the 2nd quarter and built that lead to 13 points. Detroit was able to cut the lead to eight points, but the Bulls quickly pushed it back to a 12 point lead at 43-31. Detroit went on a 10 to 2 run to get the lead down to four points at 45-41 with 4:18 left in the quarter. Detroit was able to get the lead won to just two points when Ish Smith made a lay up with 1:01 left in the quarter. The Bulls where able to score the final four points of the quarter to take a 59-53 lead at halftime.

The Bulls where really able to put some distance between themselves and the Pistons inn the 3rd quarter. Chicago took their double digit lead back when Nikola Mirotic hit a 3-pointer with 10;41 left in the quarter to put the Bulls up 65-55. Detroit was unable to cut the Bulls lead under double digits and had a difficult time keeping the lead under 20 points. The Pistons themselves managed just 20 points in the 3rd quarter and the Bulls puled away to a 18 point lead at 91-73 heading into the 4th quarter.

The 4th quarter didn’t go much better for the Pistons offensively as they managed just 22 points in the quarter. Detroit never got closer than 15 points in the 4th quarter. Marcus Morris completed a three point play to cut the Bulls lead to 15 points at 98-83 with 5:20 left in the game. The Bulls then went on a 16 to 1 run to extend the lead to 25 points at 114-89. The Pistons did knock a couple of points off the Bulls lead, but the outcome of the game was determined by then with the Bulls taking a 117-95 victory.

Nikola Mirotic got a rare start for the Bulls and responded by being the games top scorer with 28 points. Joffrey Lauvergne was also in the starting line up for the suspended Robin Lopez and scored 17 points and a team high 7 rebounds. Jimmy Butler had a double-double with 16 points and a game high 12 assists. Paul Zipser added 15 points while Bobby Portis came off the Bulls bench to add 12 points.

Marcus Morris and Tobias Harris led the Pistons in scoring as they each had 14 points. Jon Leuer (off the bench) had 13 points while Stanley Johnson (off the bench) added 12 points. Ish Smith was the teams leader in assists with 7 while Andre Drummond grabbed a game high 17 rebounds.

After back to back games the Bulls get a night off before they host the 26-45 Philadelphia 76ers Friday night. The Pistons stay on the road as they’ll try to break their two game losing streak Friday night against the 26-46 Orlando Magic.

It took overtime, but the Toronto Raptors finally ended their 11 game losing streak against the Chicago Bulls 122-120 on Tuesday night. The Bulls had a double digit lead as late as the 3rd quarter before the Raptors went on a run. In the end it was Toronto who picked up the victory and at this point in their season you have to wonder if the Bulls are better off missing out on the playoffs and going into the draft lottery.

The Bulls took a very quick five point lead at 7-2 with Rajon Rondo scoring five of the Bulls first seven points. Jimmy Butler gave the Bulls a nine point lead at 15-6 with 7:16 left in the quarter. Chicago kept the lead at or around nine points until the Raptors went on an 8 to 2 run to make the score 27-25 with 1:46 left in the quarter. The teams traded baskets before Jimmy Butler hit two free throws to give the Bulls a 31-27 lead after one quarter.

Chicago was able to push it’s lead to 10 points 39-29 when Denzel Valentine hit a 3-pointer with 10:03 left in the quarter. A Paul Zipser 3-pointer gave the Bulls their biggest lead of the quarter at 49-33 with 6:50 left in the quarter. Toronto scored seven straight points to get the Bulls lead under double digits at 49-40. The Bulls where able to held onto their lead going into halftime, but DeMar DeRozen hit a 3-pointer with :02 seconds left to cut the lead to five at 59-54 going into halftime.

The 3rd quarter looked like it was going to be a very even quarter as the teams just seemed to be trading baskets. Rajon Rondo then hit a 3-pointer with 5:47 left in the quarter and that started a run of 13 to 2 to take a 16 point lead at 88-72. With 3:58 left in the quarter Serge Ibaka of the Raptors and Robin Lopez of the Bulls got into it after Lopez knocked the ball out of Ibaka’s hands. Unlike most NBA fights both men threw punches and where ejected from the game with 3:58 left in the quarter. There was a long review of the altercations before the ejections where made. After both players where tossed from the game Toronto was able to knock one more point off the Bulls lead. Chicago took a 94-79 lead heading into the final quarter.

The 4th quarter started off looking like the Bulls would pick up another victory over the Raptors. With 6:39 left in the game Paul Zipser hit a 3-pointer to give the Bulls a 15 point lead at 109-94. In stead of cruising to a victory the Bulls saw the Raptors go on a 15 to 0 run and tie the game at 109 all. The Bulls then scored four points in a row only to see the Raptors come back and tie the game again to send it into overtime at 113 all.

The Bulls scored first in overtime, but Toronto then scored the next eight points in a row to take a 121-115 lead. While Jimmy Butler did hit the final basket of the game with just :02 seconds left it wasn’t enough as the Raptors broke their 11 game losing streak to the Bulls 122-120.

DeMar DeRozen was the Raptors and the games high scorer with 42 points. DeRozen also had 8 assists which tied for the game high in that category. Corey Joseph had 19 points while Serge Ibaka had 16 points before being ejected. P.J. Tucker grabbed a game high 12 rebounds for Toronto.

Jimmy Butler was the Bulls leading scorer with 37 points. Butler also grabbed a team high 10 rebounds for Chicago. Rajon Rondo added 24 points and tied for the games top assists honors with 8. Paul Zipser and Robin Lopez (before his ejection) each scored 12 points for the Bulls.

With the win the Raptors improve to 42-29. The loss drops the Bulls record to 33-38. This was the first of back to back games for both teams. Toronto will head to Miami to face the 35-36 Heat tonight. Chicago will head home to face the 34-37 Detroit Pistons tonight.