Raptors Cage

Post Game Report Card: Raptors Fall Short Against Bulls

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on pinterest
Share on google
Share on email

Tonight was another game of catch-up in Toronto. In spite of a late fourth-quarter push by the Toronto Raptorstheir Eastern Conference rival Chicago Bulls pulled through for a 94-92 win in the last regular season meeting between both teams. The home team fell behind early and never fully recovered. DeMar DeRozan poured in 32 points on 11-25 shooting, while Kyle Lowry produced 16 points and 7 assists in the losing effort.

demar-derozan bulls

Offense: B-

Despite a monster performance from DeRozan and continued production from Lowry, the Raptors could not find an offensive rhythm as one unit. As they fell into a hole early on, they tried for another late comeback (which have become all too familiar in recent times). Their scoring picked up in the closing moments of the game, but Chicago retained the lead throughout. Toronto shot a mere 42.2% from the field, and this is proof of their lackluster offensive energy.

DeRozan sputtered again down the stretch, and the re-occurring problem simply can’t continue to happen. Dwane Casey definitely deserves some blame as his inability to call a play is putting DeRozan in a situation where he’s bound to fail. There were 3 shots DeMar missed in the last minute – none of them touched the rim.

Defense: C+

Toronto came off to a sluggish start, and found themselves down by 10 points after the first quarter of action. By the end of the first half, the Bulls were shooting a blistering 63.6% from the field. Chicago saw easy scoring opportunities on every possession and the Raptors lacked interior defense. Jonas Valanciunas did not provide the defensive intensity expected of a starting centre. The visiting team had an answer for every shot fired by the Raptors in the second half- they were simply outplayed.

Rebounding: B

Toronto lost the rebounding battle 38-33. This may be attributed to the struggle of Valanciunas and the combined performance of Joakim Noah, Mike Dunleavy and Carlos Boozer. Tyler Hansbrough contributed 7 rebounds (5 on the offensive end). It was a matchup of young and veteran big men, and the veterans came out on top. This should be a point of emphasis for the Raptors, especially since their next opponent, the Cleveland Cavaliers, rank 11th in the league in rebounds per game.

Game Ball: Carlos Boozer

Boozer has never truly justified the stardom imposed on him since joining Chicago in 2010. Tonight, he came through for his team, with a team-best 20 points and 8 rebounds. The seasoned vet stepped up and led the Bulls to a close and respectable win.

Authors

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on pinterest
Share on google
Share on email

1 thought on “Post Game Report Card: Raptors Fall Short Against Bulls”

Leave a Comment