National Basketball Association
Boston 129, Chicago 112
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, February 22, 2024
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
Officials: #63 Derek Richardson, #83 Andy Nagy, #8 Marc Davis
Attendance: 20313

Derrick White scored 28 points and Jayson Tatum followed with 25 to help the visiting Boston Celtics top the Chicago Bulls 129-112 on Thursday for their season-high seventh straight victory.

In their first game back from the All-Star break, the league-best Celtics shot 54.2 percent, including 48.9 percent from long range.

That compared to 46.8 percent overall and 35.7 percent from deep for the Bulls, who lost for the third time in four games.

Jaylen Brown (21 points) and Kristaps Porzingis (14) also scored in double figures for Boston, and Luke Kornet added 10 off the bench.

Nikola Vucevic logged 22 points and 14 rebounds for the Bulls. After scoring 20 points in the first half to match Brown, Vucevic did not make his first (and only) basket of the second half until 6:34 remained in the game.

Chicago's Coby White scored 20 points and DeMar DeRozan chipped in 19, while Ayo Dosunmu (14), Alex Caruso (12) and Andre Drummond (11) also finished in double figures.

Drummond added eight rebounds and Dosunmu dished a game-high eight assists.

Boston opened the third quarter on a 10-0 run to erase a three-point halftime deficit and never trailed after that. Chicago drew within five points midway through the quarter but was unable to keep pace. Tatum erupted for 15 points in the third quarter after scoring just five in the first half. He also led the team with seven rebounds.

The Celtics swished 23 3-pointers to the Bulls' 10.

After trailing by as many as 16 points in the early going, the Bulls regained their composure in a breakout second quarter. Chicago's 8-0 run to close the first period set the tone while helping offset a monster start for Derrick White, who had 12 points and three blocks in the first 12 minutes.

Chicago outscored Boston 39-28 in the second quarter to take a 62-59 advantage into halftime. The Bulls grabbed their first lead since 2-0 when Vucevic hit a pair of free throws with 1:58 remaining in the second quarter.

Torrey Craig (right knee) and Patrick Williams (left foot) missed the game for the Bulls.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Boston   Chicago
Derrick White 28 Scoring Nikola Vucevic 22
Jrue Holiday 6 Assists Ayo Dosunmu 8
Jayson Tatum 7 Rebounds Nikola Vucevic 14
Derrick White 5 Free Throws Made DeMar DeRozan 4
Jayson Tatum 3 Steals Alex Caruso 2
Kristaps Porzingis 3 Blocks Alex Caruso 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Boston 129 54.2 23-47 16-21 27 36 11 10 14
Chicago 112 46.8 10-28 14-16 30 45 2 6 13
Upcoming Games
  • Chicago will play their next game on the road against New Orleans. The Bulls have a W/L % of .346 after a win and .567 after a loss.
  • Boston will play their next game on the road against New York. The Celtics have a W/L % of .750 after a win and .917 after a loss.