The Toronto Raptors were plagued by inconsistency throughout the season, and it ultimately cost them their postseason aspirations.
The Chicago Bulls rallied in the second half to defeat the Toronto Raptors 109-105 in a single elimination play-in game on Wednesday. After halftime, LaVine tallied 30 of his 39 points to help Chicago overcome a 19-point deficit.
The Raptors only made 50% of their 36 free throw attempts, including two crucial errors by Pascal Siakam with 12 seconds remaining that would have tied the game.
Siakam, who finished with 32 points and nine rebounds, stated, “The fourth quarter was not our best in terms of playing the way we should play, and we were unable to stop them from scoring.”
“I missed some free throws, particularly those two at the end, which were crucial, but I simply missed them.”
BOXSCORE: Bulls 109, Raptors 105
Scream it out: Former Raptor DeRozan’s daughter goes viral following Toronto’s loss in the play-in round
For Toronto, Fred VanVleet recorded a double-double with 26 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists, in addition to seven three-pointers. He estimated that it would take him at least two weeks to comprehend the loss.
“No matter how you look at it, a loss in the play-in will be frustrating,” he said. “Whether you win or lose, especially if you lose, you try to make sense of why you lost by identifying the underlying cause.”
After finishing the regular season with a 41-41 record, sufficient for ninth in the East, the Raptors hosted the game. In the standings, this put them just clear of the 40-42 Bulls.
Siakam stated, “We’ve had some good stretches, but we’ve also had stretches where we weren’t good at all.” “I believe that we will need to improve, considering the season’s many ups and downs.”
Former Toronto guard DeMar DeRozan tallied 23 points for the Bulls and grabbed seven rebounds. Nikola Vucevic, a center, recorded a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
DeRozan visited the Raptors locker room after the game and engaged VanVleet in an extended conversation.
“That’s just my brother, man,” VanVleet said, adding that he and DeRozan had not spoken in weeks in anticipation of their play-in matchup.
“It’s nice to see him, but I’m not particularly pleased with him at the moment.”
Friday, the Bulls will face the Heat in the second round of the play-in tournament in Miami. The victor will be the No. 8 seed in the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs and will face the No. 1 Milwaukee Bucks in the opening round.
Before halftime, VanVleet sank a buzzer-beating three-pointer, putting the Raptors up 58-47 and bringing 19,800 spectators at Scotiabank Arena to their feet. Starting the third quarter on a 10-3 surge, the Raptors opened up an 18-point lead.
In the final three minutes of the third quarter, LaVine scored 11 points, including eight in a row, to reduce Toronto’s lead to 81-72.
Nick Nurse, head coach of the Raptors, remarked, “LaVine was on fire in the third.” “They were really spreading the floor against us, getting by our first line of defense, and driving the ball deep to the basket frequently.”
An 8-0 run by the Bulls, six of which were scored by Zach LaVine, trimmed Toronto’s lead to three early in the fourth quarter.
Alex Caruso silenced the sold-out audience with a three-pointer that tied the game at 91-91 with 6:26 remaining. Toronto’s Scottie Barnes immediately responded with a layup, prompting Chicago to call timeout. On the subsequent possession, Caruso swiped the ball and scored a layup without opposition.
On the next possession, Patrick Beverly made a three-pointer to give the Bulls their first lead of the contest. Fans were revived by Siakam’s dunk, but LaVine’s floater maintained a three-point lead before Barnes and DeRozan traded field goals.
VanVleet missed a long three-pointer, but Toronto guard Gary Trent Jr. grabbed the rebound and passed it back to VanVleet for another attempt to level the game. VanVleet made his second attempt, tying the game at 100-100 with 3:10 remaining.
With less than two minutes remaining, LaVine responded with a two-pointer, and then DeRozan recovered a defensive rebound and scored on the other end to give the Bulls a four-point lead.
On the following Raptors possession, Barnes made a free throw. Beverley fouled Siakam with fifty seconds remaining, and Siakam made one of his two free throws to reduce Chicago’s lead to two.
Then, with 28.7 seconds remaining, DeRozan made a free throw, prompting a Toronto timeout. On the subsequent possession, Siakam drove to the basket for a two-handed layup, resulting in a one-point deficit for the Raptors.
After Caruso passed the ball to LaVine, he was penalized, sending him to the free-throw line. Both of LaVine’s baskets were successful, giving the Raptors 17.9 seconds to tie the game.
Caruso immediately charged the Toronto all-star forward Siakam after he received the inbound pass and passed the ball to Siakam. Siakam was awarded three free throws.
Siakam made his first shot, but missed his second and his third, allowing Chicago to maintain a two-point advantage.
On his offensive rebound of Siakam’s final free throw, Vucevic was fouled, and he made both of his free throws for the game’s final tallies.
Gilgeous-Alexander propels Thunder to victory over Pelicans.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander capped his 32-point performance with a go-ahead baseline jumper and four crucial free throws with 29 seconds remaining, and Oklahoma City defeated New Orleans to advance in the Western Conference play-in tournament.
Twenty of Brandon Ingram’s thirty points came in the second half, including a 3-pointer with 4.3 seconds remaining that gave the Pelicans a slim opportunity to rally.
After Gilgeous-Alexander made two free throws, however, Herbert Jones threw an inbound pass away, effectively securing New Orleans’s fate.
