Minneapolis, April 11 (BUS): Patrick Williams scored 35 points in his football career while Ayo Dosunmo scored 26 points in 45 minutes, the highest level of the season, as the Chicago Bulls scored a 124-120 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night. With both teams at regular rest in preparation for postseason.
Troy Brown Jr. added 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Bulls, who played without four starting players and halted their four-game losing streak. They nearly blew up a 28-point lead in the second quarter after a solid rise from deep reserves for the Timberwolves, who didn’t use any starters in the second half, the AP reports.
The Bulls have already secured the #6 seed in the Eastern Conference secured segment. They will face No. 3 ranked Milwaukee in the first round, thanks to their worry of slipping along the stretch. Chicago, who returned to the playoffs after a four-year absence, shared a best East record with Miami in the All-Star Break.
Wolverhampton, who finished seventh in the Western Conference earlier in the week, will host the Los Angeles Clippers in their playoff game Tuesday night.
Nathan Knight had 17 points and eight rebounds, and Jaylene Noel added 15 for Wolves, who outplayed the Bulls 40-27 in the third quarter and pulled within 116-115 in a contested three-point corner kick by little fan favorite Jake Lyman. With 1:42 to go.
Dosunmu, the only player to have played for the Bulls, fell into a layup on the other end. The rookie from Illinois hit 3 indicators on the next possession.
Williams, the fourth overall pick in the 2020 edition and missed 65 games earlier this season, ruptured his wrist ligaments and required surgery, 10 to 21 games on the ground.
missing men
The Bulls only had 10 players, with four novice players sidelined. DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic took the night off, Zach LaVine was shelved to give his troublesome knee an extra break, and Coby White was outside with a sprained toe. The Bulls have also been without points guard Lonzo Ball for the past three months due to a knee injury that will not allow him to return to the playoffs.
Timberwolves all-star Karl-Anthony Towns and point guard D’Angelo Russell, who was officially listed with illness but watched from the bench in a turtleneck, rested. The third player out of their three stars, Anthony Edwards, scored eight points in 18 minutes and didn’t play in the second half. Nor did rookie Jared Vanderbilt.
This is one way to do it
Timberwolves brawler Patrick Beverly joined Towns and Russell in the rest list after being sent off in the second quarter for technical fouls by 15 seconds. Beverly’s motive was a lack of foul call defending him on the short jump, and he directed his complaint to referee David Guthrie. When Beverly was running off the field, referee Michael Smith gave a pat on the back
Always training
Despite the Bulls leading by 23 points in the first half, coach Billy Donovan called a two-time timeout in the first two minutes of the third quarter to warn his young players for some troubling sequences.
for the record
The Bulls, who have gone 7-14 in their last 21 games, finished 46-36 for the best mark since 50-32 in 2014-15. This was also the last time they swept the two-game season series from Wolves.
The Timberwolves have finished with six defeats in their last 10 games, landing at 46-36, their second best record in the last 18 years. They were 47-35 in 2017-18, the only time they’ve made it to the playoffs since reaching the 2004 Western Conference finals.
Hint
Bulls: Reserve guard Alex Caruso (bruised lower back) sat for the third game in a row. Donovan said he’s not in danger of losing time in the playoffs.
Timberwolves: Backup center Greg Monroe, who signed three days ago to get more depth and experience at the post for the playoffs, scored nine points and five assists in 18 minutes.
next one
The Bulls: The series will begin against the defending NBA Bucks in Milwaukee next weekend. The Bulls went 1-14 against the top four teams in the Eastern Conference this season, including 0-4 against the Bucks. They lost by four, six, 28 and 21 points in those games.
Timberwolves: If they beat the Clippers, they will be the No. 7 Western seed and face Memphis in the first round starting next weekend. If Wolves lose on Tuesday, they will stay at home and play the winner in San Antonio and New Orleans on Friday for the No. 8 seed.