Short-handed Bulls send Wizards to 5th straight defeat

AP Published 7:55 p.m. ET Dec. 31, 2020

WASHINGTON (AP) — Otto Porter scored 28 points, Zach LaVine added 22 and the Chicago Bulls, playing without four players who were in the NBA health and safety protocol, beat the winless Washington Wizards 133-130 on Thursday.

The Bulls played without Lauri Markkanen, their second-leading scorer and top rebounder, as well as forward Chandler Hutchison and guards Ryan Arcidiacano and Tomas Satoransky.

Russell Westbrook had his fourth straight triple-double in his four games with Washington, finishing with 22 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists. Thomas Bryant and Bradley Beal each had 28 points for Washington (0-5).

The Bulls, who lost their first three games and beat the Wizards twice in three days, took the lead on Coby White’s two free throws with 1:01 to play.

Chicago had seven players in double figures for the second straight game. White and Wendell Carter had 16, Daniel Gafford and Thaddeus Young added 15 and Patrick Williams had 10.

TIP-INS

Bulls: Coach Billy Donovan said he didn’t expect his missing players back for Friday’s game at Milwaukee. “My guess is yes, it’s going to go on here for a period of time,” he said. “How long, I’m really unsure of that. I think daily testing helps bring some clarity where guys are at. I don’t know how long it will be, but I think it will be some time.”

Wizards: Westbrook will sit out Friday’s game at Minnesota, the second half of a back-to-back. He also missed Sunday’s game, also the second half of a back-to-back…. F Rui Hachimura was activated after missing the season’s first four games with an eye injury. He started and played 25 minutes, scoring 17 points. “It’s been tough,” Hachimura said of being idle. “They didn’t beat us. We beat ourselves. We still have (67) games left.”

UP NEXT

Bulls: Visit the Bucks on Friday.

Wizards: Begin a four-game road trip at Minnesota on Friday.

___

More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

No home court advantage