On what was an off-shooting night for the Boston Celtics star small forward Jayson Tatum, first-year head coach Billy Donovan and the Chicago Bulls were able to pull off the upset on the road at the TD Garden. It does look as if the Bulls have firmly turned a corner with the way they’ve played in their last two games, but we should be more patient before officially declaring that for this team.
On a night where the Bulls finally looked like a playoff time for the first time in a good while, they were able to extend their winning streak to two. They were also able to snap a six-game winning streak for the previously surging Celtics in the process.
This had to be a frustrating loss for head coach Brad Stevens and the Celtics, as neither star shooting guard/wing Jaylen Brown nor Tatum were able to find consistency on this night against the Bulls. It also looked like the absence of star veteran point guard Kemba Walker played a role in the downfall of the Celtics on this night.
How Coby White and the Chicago Bulls beat the Celtics?
Two players in the Bulls starting five were especially valuable in getting the April 19 road win over the Celtics. Second-year point guard Coby White and star center Nikola Vucevic were the driving forces to the Bulls beating the Celtics by the final score of 102-96 when they came in as firm underdogs.
Vooch had another solid night for the Bulls in the absence of star shooting guard Zach LaVine. He registered a game-high 29 points on 13-of-23 shooting from the field and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. And he racked up an impressive nine rebounds, two assists, two steals, and one block.
It’s hard to say that the Bulls win this game without Vooch’s all-around effort to lead this team in the absence of LaVine for yet another game this week.
Meanwhile, White was good for the Bulls in his third game in a row in the starting five. Even though combo guard Tomas Satoransky was back for his second straight game for Donovan, he came off the bench behind White in the backcourt rotation.
White finished up this game second on the Bulls in points, with 19, on 5-of-14 shooting from the field, 3-of-8 from beyond the arc, and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. He hit some clutch free throws in the dying seconds of the fourth quarter that helped to seal the win.
Along with his 19 points, White registered three rebounds, seven assists, one steal, one block, and just one turnover.
In the last three games, White looked more comfortable in the starting role and did things other than shooting efficiently from the field to help the Bulls win. That’s something that this team will continue to need out of White and/or Sato moving forward.
The Bulls also got a solid effort in this game from veteran shooting guard Garrett Temple, who got just his 15th start of the season, and veteran forward Thaddeus Young. Temple gave the Bulls 13 points and two blocks as he moved to the starting five. And Young also gave the Bulls 13 points as he came off the bench for the first time in a while in this meeting with the Celtics.
Moreover, this was one of the most impressive defensive displays from the Bulls in recent memory. They held the Celtics under 100 points, which was the first time an opposing team of Boston was able to do so since their 106-96 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers back on April 6.
After this win over the Celtics on the road on April 19, the Bulls move their record to 24-33 on the season. Next up for Vooch, White and the Bulls is a meeting with the divisional foe Cavaliers on the road on April 21.