Boston Celtics defeat Chicago Bulls 124-97 to complete their group stage performance in the In-Season Tournament.
The Boston Celtics’ chances of competing in the NBA’s first-ever In-Season Tournament depended on their ability to defeat the Chicago Bulls handily on Tuesday night, which was also their last group stage match. This came after last week’s disappointing loss to the Orlando Magic. The objective? If the Brooklyn Nets defeat the Toronto Raptors, they would have a victory of at least 23 points, which would put them in a position to win their group. The Celtics did just that, defeating the Bulls by a score of 27 points and handing the tournament decision to the Nets.
Jaylen Brown scored an efficient thirty points on twelve of twenty-three field goals to lead the game in scoring for the evening. In addition, Jayson Tatum scored 21 points, and the reserves of the Celtics scored a scorching 29 points in total, possibly inspired by the $500,000 tournament prize. DeMar DeRozan and Coby White each scored 29 points for Chicago, but Zach LaVine was a poor shooter, scoring just two points on 1-of-9 attempts.
Early in the game, the Celtics had the advantage of a fast-paced, energetic tempo that allowed them to move the ball, run in transition, and create open three-point shots. A first-quarter standoff gave way to an almost easy-looking 17-3 Boston run, and the team scorched the nets, making 8 of 16 shots from beyond the arc in the first quarter. At the half, they were ahead 31–20 over the Bulls, with nine points from Brown.
As the second quarter got underway, the Celtics were propelled forward by a well-rounded offensive assault. Their bench players had a particularly good start for them; Luke Kornet, Dalano Banton, Al Horford, and Payton Pritchard all put forth chirpy performances that gave the impression they would prefer to be playing in Las Vegas the following week. With just over three minutes left in the half, Horford made his second three-pointer of the game to extend the lead to over twenty points, bringing them ever closer to the crucial +23 point differential. They were well on pace after their second straight quarter of thirty or more points, leading Chicago by nineteen at the half, 69-50.
The Bulls had a near-accident early in the third quarter when DeRozan appeared to twist his ankle after landing on Holiday’s foot during a drive to the basket. After the injury, DeRozan continued to play in the game, but he seemed to be struggling a little on the subsequent possessions. He even limping a little bit after fouling White and making two free throws.
Chicago did not appear to be a team that belonged in the same area code as Boston tonight, even with DeRozan still on the field. As the quarter went on, the Celtics kept expanding their lead, going over the crucial 23-point threshold and getting closer to 30-point territory. Leading the charge was Brown, who overcame a string of unimpressive games to lead the Boston attack for the evening. He had scored 26 points through three quarters, matching his best scoring effort over the previous seven games. The Celtics led by 29 points heading into the fourth quarter, 97-68.
Even with a sizable lead, Joe Mazzulla decided to play the starters through the fourth quarter with the IST result still up in the air. With a three from Banton, the Celtics reached 100 points, but the drama came from the lead’s narrowing margin—it dropped to 25 points after a few early Chicago baskets. To be sure, it was an unusual sight for a blowout in November.
As the clock ran out, it would only get stranger. With just under eight minutes left in regulation, Mazzulla decided to start deliberately fouling Bulls center Andre Drummond, putting the 48% lifetime free throw shooter on the line in an attempt to raise their IST ranking. Mazzulla’s team was ahead by 29 points at that point. The move paid off, as Drummond made just one of six free throws and the Celtics extended their lead back over the 30-point mark with a few minutes remaining in the game. However, they were unable to connect enough stops to proceed very far, so the final total
