Two play-in games were held tonight (between Wednesday and Thursday) in the NBA, in preparation for the continuation of the tournament that will determine who will be the last teams to advance to the playoffs.
In the first of them, Chicago beat Toronto on the way to the game against Miami.
Night games
Toronto (9) - Chicago (10) 109:105
New Orleans (9) - Oklahoma (10)
know this hall well.
DeRozan (Photo: GettyImages, Andrew Lahodynskyj)
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Zach LaVine passes OG Anonovi during the Chicago Bulls' victory in Canada over Toronto (Photo: GettyImages, Andrew Lahodynskyj)
Toronto (9) - Chicago (10) 109:105
Zach LaVine scored 39 points, DeMar DeRozan scored 23 against his former team, and Chicago managed to erase a 19-point deficit and record a comeback on the way to a sweet victory in Canada, which kept its season alive.
Now the Bulls are preparing for a crucial game in Miami on Friday night, with the winner playing against first-seeded Milwaukee in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Nikola Vucevic scored 14 and grabbed 13 rebounds for Chicago, which already trailed 66:47 during the third quarter.
The Bulls narrowed the gap to only 9 at the end of the quarter, and in the last quarter they already won 24:37 to ensure the victory and qualification to the next stage.
The Bulls, who shot just 3-of-19 from three in the first three quarters, got into a rhythm in the final 12 minutes, as LaVine hit the first two from beyond the arc, en route to a team-high 4-for-7 in the quarter.
Fred VanVleet scored 26 for the Raptors, Pascal Siakam scored 32, but Toronto disappointingly ended a season in which at no point did it get into too much positive momentum, with a streak of more than three wins.
Tonight the host team finished the game with only 18 of 36 from the free throw line, en route to elimination.
On the other hand, Chicago will come optimistically to the series against Miami, after beating it in all three meetings between the teams this season.
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Toronto Raptors
Chicago Bulls
Oklahoma City Thunder
New Orleans Pelicans
