Field Level Media
Dec 14, 2019
Zach LaVine made a go-ahead layup with 2.0 seconds remaining and sank a free throw to complete a three-point play, and the Chicago Bulls emerged with a 109-106 win over the visiting Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night.
LaVine finished with 31 points on 11-for-21 shooting, including 4 of 7 from beyond the arc. Thaddeus Young finished with 17 points, Denzel Valentine had 16, and Lauri Markkanen notched 13 points and 17 rebounds.
Montrezl Harrell scored 30 points to lead the Clippers, whose four-game winning streak was snapped. Paul George added 27 points in 31 minutes but missed a shot at the buzzer that could have forced overtime.
Los Angeles played without Kawhi Leonard (left knee soreness), Lou Williams (calf), Patrick Beverley (concussion) and JaMychal Green (tailbone) because of injuries. Landry Shamet returned from an ankle injury for the first time since Nov. 11 and scored 11 points.
A 3-pointer by Valentine evened the score at 106-106 with 48 seconds remaining.
The teams traded leads during a back-and-forth final quarter.
After George hit a pull-up jump shot, Shamet added a basket 28 seconds later to give the Clippers a 95-93 lead with 5:26 to play. But LaVine responded with a 3-pointer on the next possession to put the Bulls ahead 96-95.
George then knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Clippers a 98-96 edge with 4:15 to go. Wendell Carter Jr. quickly evened the score at 98-98 on an alley-oop dunk with 3:58 remaining.
A 29-22 advantage in the third quarter allowed the Bulls to take an 84-79 lead. Chicago led by as many as 14 points when a tip shot by Markkanen made it 75-61 with 5:59 left in the session, but Los Angeles answered with a 12-1 scoring binge.
The Clippers held on to a 57-55 lead at the half.
Los Angeles led by 15 points with 5:09 remaining in the second quarter after Patrick Patterson made a pair of free throws to cap a 12-0 run. But the Bulls responded with a 15-3 run that included two layups by Kris Dunn, a 3-pointer by Markkanen and a dunk by LaVine.
The Bulls trailed 29-24 at the end of the first quarter.
--Field Level Media