National Basketball Association
Chicago 115, Toronto 113
When: 3:30 PM ET, Sunday, January 3, 2016
Where: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario
Officials:
#3 Nick Buchert, #10 Ron Garretson, #50 Gediminas Petraitis
Attendance:
19800
By The Sports Xchange
TORONTO - Jimmy Butler went where no other Chicago Bulls player had been before on Sunday, not even Michael Jordan.
The shooting guard scored 40 of his 42 points in the second half - including the go-ahead jumper with 30.6 seconds remaining - and the Bulls came back to defeat the Toronto Raptors 115-113 in a game they had trailed by 15.
The 40 points were a Bulls' club record for a half. Jordan set the record with 39 points in the second half against the Milwaukee Bucks on Feb. 16, 1989.
"I'm just happy we won, to tell the truth," Butler said. "I don't want to be compared to (Jordan) because you see what he's done for this game. ... I had no idea (about the record) until somebody told me after the game. I guess somebody will beat it one of these days coming soon."
"It was an unbelievable performance by Jimmy," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. "I'll say this, it's the best performance I've seen coaching."
Raptors coach Dwane Casey wasn't as overjoyed.
"We tried everything and couldn't get him stopped," Casey said. "It still felt like he had control of the game."
Not even an elbow in the face late in the first half from Raptors forward DeMarre Carroll could stop him.
"I was mad, but I just came out and was aggressive after that," Butler said.
Center Pau Gasol added 19 points and 13 rebounds for the Bulls (20-12) with forward Nikola Mirotic scoring 17 points.
"Dominant," Gasol said of Butler's performance. "Outstanding. It was an incredible second half that he had. I guess that elbow in the mouth really ticked him off. ... He carried the load offensively, he made a lot of big shots, big plays. Obviously, scoring 40 in the half, it's something you don't see every day, so I'm just proud of him."
Guard DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors with 24 points but missed his shot at the final buzzer.
Butler also did a good job guarding DeRozan, who scored only seven points in the second half, including two in the fourth quarter.
"(Butler) did it at both ends," Gasol said. "To me that's even more impressive that you're not guarding a non-threat offensively."
Said DeRozan: "It was amazing, you have to give him credit. He got hot and we tried to contain him. Once you're scoring and get hot, it doesn't matter what you do from there."
Forward Luis Scola and point guard Kyle Lowry each scored 22 points for Toronto (21-14). Lowry added 10 assists.
Guard Cory Joseph added 13 points and forward Carroll had 10 for the Raptors.
With the game tied at 109, Lowry hit a turn-around jumper with 40.9 seconds left to give Toronto the lead.
Butler came back with his 3-pointer and the Bulls led 112-111.
"He hit a tough shot," Lowry said. "He's not known just to make 3s. I thought he was going to drive baseline but he ended up pulling. He's a good player and he hit a bit shot."
Lowry missed a driving layup and Carroll was called for a foul that sent Gasol to the line, where he made one of two free throws to give the Bulls a two-point lead with 23.8 seconds remaining.
After DeRozan was stopped, Bulls forward Taj Gibson made one of two free throws and Chicago led by three. Center Jonas Valanciunas cut the lead to one with 5.7 seconds left.
Butler made one of two free throws with 4.6 seconds to go and DeRozan missed a 3-point attempt at the buzzer.
The game was tied at 16 after the first quarter and the Raptors opened a 14-point lead late in the second and were ahead 60-48 lead at the intermission.
The Raptors worked their lead up to 15 during the third quarter. The Bulls trimmed the lead to four with 3:06 left in the quarter when Butler made two free throws.
Consecutive 3-pointers by forwards Patrick Patterson and Terrence Ross gave the Raptors a 10-point lead. Toronto led 87-81 after the third quarter, in which Butler scored 21 points.
The Raptors led by 11 after Lowry made a layup with 8:29 to play in the fourth quarter after a Bulls' turnover. Scola's 3-pointer from the corner put the Raptors ahead by 12.
The Bulls chipped away and Butler's 3-pointer with 2:38 left cut Toronto's lead to two points.
Valanciunas hit two free throws with 1:54 left for a four-point lead before Butler and guard E'Twaun Moore scored to tie the game at 109 with 58 seconds remaining.
"Time after time and it just wasn't one way," Hoiberg said of Butler. "He took what the defense gave him. If they went under, he pulled up and shot it. I thought he did a really good job drawing contact."
NOTES: Bulls PG Derrick Rose (right hamstring tendinitis) missed his third straight game Sunday. He will have an MRI exam on Monday. ... Bulls F/C Joakim Noah (left shoulder) did not play Sunday and will be re-evaluated Monday. ... Raptors PG Kyle Lowry was limping after the win over Charlotte on Friday but practiced Saturday and played Sunday. ... Toronto recalled C Lucas Nogueira, G Delon Wright and F Bruno Caboclo from Raptors 905 of the NBA D-League. Caboclo and F Anthony Bennett (sore back) did not play Sunday. ... The Bulls won the first meeting between the teams Monday 104-97 at the United Center. ... Chicago's next game is Tuesday against the Milwaukee Bucks at home. ... The Raptors travel to Cleveland to play the Cavaliers on Monday, the first of five straight road games, including a trip to London to play the Orlando Magic on Jan 14.
Top Game Performances
Chicago |
|
Toronto |
Jimmy Butler 42 |
Scoring |
DeMar DeRozan 24 |
Pau Gasol 6 |
Assists |
Kyle Lowry 10 |
Pau Gasol 13 |
Rebounds |
Jonas Valanciunas 9 |
Jimmy Butler 10 |
Free Throws Made |
DeMar DeRozan 7 |
Jimmy Butler 1 |
Steals |
Terrence Ross 2 |
Pau Gasol 4 |
Blocks |
Jonas Valanciunas 3 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Chicago
|
115 |
51.2 |
9-21 |
22-25 |
23 |
42 |
8 |
4 |
11 |
Toronto
|
113 |
45.7 |
13-31 |
16-19 |
21 |
37 |
8 |
6 |
9 |
Upcoming Games
-
Toronto will play their next game on the road against Cleveland. The Raptors have a W/L % of .636 after a win and .538 after a loss.
-
Chicago will play their next game at home against Milwaukee. The Bulls have a W/L % of .600 after a win and .667 after a loss.