Chicago Bulls: 2 studs, 1 dud from commanding win over the Blazers

Just when it looked like the Chicago Bulls might find themselves in a difficult spot once again amid this bad wave of recent injuries, the team was able to pull out a key win to round out the weekend. Second-year head coach Billy Donovan and the Bulls just matched their win total from all of last season with a commanding double-digit triumph over new head coach Chauncey Billups and the Portland Trail Blazers.

On paper, it looked like the Bulls could be a clear favorite over the Trail Blazers in a game like this at the friendly confines of the United Center in Chicago. But the Blazers are actually one of the scrappier teams in the Western Conference of late.

Another strong outing from Nikola Vucevic helps lift the Chicago Bulls over the Blazers in decisive fashion

As they’re trying to fight to keep their postseason hopes alive in the West, the Blazers played decently well in the midst of the absence of superstar point guard Damian Lillard in the last few weeks. And the hope for this afternoon’s cross-conference meeting between the Bulls and Blazers was that Chicago wouldn’t relapse and lose a winnable game.

That is exactly what the Bulls didn’t let happen in this meeting with the Blazers. An early jump for the Blazers didn’t rattle the Bulls in the final three quarters. This was a strong close-out for the Bulls to get the convincing win over the Blazers by the final score of 130-116. The Bulls now carry a record of 31-18 after having won three of their last four games.

Here’s a look into two studs and one dud from this commanding win for the Bulls at home over the Blazers on Jan. 30.