Chicago Sports

Get ready for one of the biggest names in NBA history to worm his way into your collection as FOCO releases their Dennis Rodman Chicago Bulls NBA 75th Anniversary Bobblehead. This bobble represents the Bulls in part of their NBA 75th Anniversary Bobblehead Collection.

This Dennis Rodman Bobblehead depicts him in all his glory, wearing the classic red and black Bulls uniform while he is in an action pose ready for another dunk. He stands atop a diamond themed base with a diamond basketball in hand to show his legendary status as one of the NBA’s very best. 

During his time in the NBA, there was no player more polarizing than Dennis Rodman. Whether it was his play on the court, his unique sense of style, or his outspoken nature, fans of every team considered Rodman and the Bulls of the 90s must see TV.

The bobblehead is limited to just 275 individually-numbered units, which means they won’t last long. Each one retails for $75 and is handcrafted and hand-painted so no details is missed. Head online to order your Dennis Rodman Bobblehead and while you’re there check out the rest of their Chicago Bulls Collection to show you’re the best fan in town! 

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There’s no question Bulls guard Zach LaVine is a gamer. He has shown that through most of his NBA career.

But he’s also a businessman. And with so much at stake for the Bulls this season — and for himself in the offseason — he had to make a business decision.

One day after being named an All-Star reserve, LaVine decided that continuing back spasms — after recently recovering from a sore knee — were enough of a reason for him to sit out Friday against the Pacers in Indianapolis.

”It really wasn’t talking him into anything,” coach Billy Donovan said of LaVine’s decision. ”One, he’s dealing with his back. I think that’s been a problem; it was a problem [Thursday] night [against the Raptors]. I do think with the number of games and him coming off dealing with his knee being sore, it just made sense to have him out [Friday].

”I think he’s physically in agreement with that. It wasn’t a situation where he’s like, ‘I want to play.’ He agreed he needs a day here. He’s dealing with some ailments.”

LaVine and the Bulls also are dealing with a brutal schedule going into the All-Star break.

Saturday will be a day off before back-to-back home games Sunday and Monday against the 76ers and Suns. Then comes another day off Tuesday, a game Wednesday at the Hornets, a day off, then another back-to-back. By the time the break rolls around, the Bulls will have played nine games in 14 days.

LaVine obviously was hampered by the back against the Raptors, shooting 6-for-10 and finishing with 15 points. That included missing a key layup late in overtime. He was in obvious pain in the postgame media session after playing 42 minutes.

”Played the last two games with back spasms, just trying to help us win,” LaVine said afterward. ”Anytime on the court I can spend, if it’s not scoring-wise, I thought I could try and help the team win.”

LaVine wasn’t alone, either.

Guard Coby White, who would have started for LaVine against the Pacers, was out with a sore groin. He received treatment after the game against the Raptors and throughout the day Friday, but a pregame warmup didn’t go well enough for him to take a chance by playing.

”From what I gather, he had been dealing with a little discomfort there, and then it flared up a little bit more [against the Raptors],” Donovan said of White’s injury. ”It’s been something that may be lingering, but I think the pain has gotten a little bit more — I don’t want to say severe, but it’s increased.”

Fits like a ‘Glove’

The Rising Stars teams were announced Friday, and it looks as though Bulls rookie Ayo Dosunmu really can have some fun.

He’ll be playing for coach Gary Payton — nicknamed ”The Glove” because of his defensive ability — so Dosunmu can try to gain some knowledge from him.

Dosunmu’s teammates will be the Hornets’ LaMelo Ball, the Raptors’ Scottie Barnes, the Timberwolves’ Jaden McDaniels, the Pacers’ Chris Duarte, the Kings’ Davion Mitchell and the G League’s Scoot Henderson.

The format for the Rising Stars Game will be different this year, with four teams competing in a mini-tournament. Each of the first-round games will be played to 50 points, and the winning teams will advance to a championship game that will be played to 25.

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The fallout from Rocky Wirtz’s Wednesday meltdown moved into its second phase Friday, with the Blackhawks and NHL starting their attempts to yet again build back the Hawks’ public image.

Most notably, CEO Danny Wirtz announced a few tangible new initiatives intended to ensure the Hawks don’t cover up another sexual assault the way they did Kyle Beach’s in 2010 and also generally improve their workplace culture.

The Hawks have built and staffed a mental health department to provide resources for players and employees, have installed a reporting process designed to ensure “any reports of non-compliance are investigated immediately” and will soon launch “an employee-led committee focused on aspects of culture,” Wirtz said in a statement.

Those initiatives will exist in addition to — and on top of — the league-wide policies and training that the league requires of all 32 teams, something NHL commissioner Gary Bettman emphasized during his All-Star weekend news conference Friday in Las Vegas.

“They’re doing all the things to move forward,” Bettman said. “They’re doing the work. The people who belong gone are gone. New people have been brought in. There’s training. They’re doing things above and beyond what we’re doing at the league level. They’re putting in a wellness department. They had answers for everything.”

The NHL isn’t going to sanction or punish the Hawks or Rocky Wirtz for Wednesday’s outburst, in which the franchise’s chairman said learning from the sexual assault scandal was “old business” that “we’re not going to talk about” during two fiery exchanges with reporters.

And although the league will continue to hold the Hawks “accountable to do the work,” Bettman largely excused Rocky Wirtz’s comments as a rare gaffe, not an indication of an unethical approach.

“[Given] what has happened with that franchise because of Kyle Beach and with Kyle Beach — which we all agree was horrible, and they acknowledge as well — this has been very emotional, frustrating and draining for the Blackhawks, and Rocky in particular,” Bettman said. “As they’re trying to focus on the things they need to do organizationally to move forward, it was an emotional moment which Rocky promptly apologized for.”

Rocky Wirtz himself, meanwhile, followed his first apology issued four hours later Wednesday night with a longer, second apology statement accompanying his son’s statement.

In it, the 69-year-old team owner said he regretted speaking on the subject at all — the question initially was directed at Danny Wirtz, after all — and also regretted what he said when he did speak.

“What I would also say if given another opportunity is that the first step is putting the right people in place,” Rocky Wirtz said in his second statement. “Danny and [business president Jaime Faulkner] have spent the past year understanding how this happened and where it is happening — not just in our locker rooms, but in youth locker rooms, as well. And they are fully empowered to put the right things in place.

“Again, I regret the outburst. I suddenly felt incredibly frustrated as I perceived we were looking back instead of looking forward.”

Danny Wirtz, in his statement, included a line stating that “Rocky and I are united that we will learn from the mistakes in this organization’s past and do the things that move our sport forward.”

But he steered well wide of throwing his father under the bus, or even criticizing his behavior at all — providing yet another indication of the significant power disparity between the two Wirtzes, even with 44-year-old Danny now operating as the team’s CEO.

It all sounds much better, much cleaner and much more professional than the out-of-nowhere meltdown on Wednesday. It’s still hard to fathom, though, how Rocky Wirtz could’ve been so unprepared — and allowed himself to be so overcome by emotion — when asked about a subject he surely knew he’d be asked about at an event he’d been given at least a week to prepare for.

The incident quickly became another public-relations nightmare for the Hawks — a franchise plagued with those lately because of how badly things are going on every front — and necessitated two days (and counting) of damage control and image repair.

The team surely hopes Alex DeBrincat’s participation in Saturday’s feel-good All-Star game, plus a steady stream of news regarding the general manager search, will gradually siphon attention away from Rocky Wirtz and calm the firestorm.

They’ll probably be proven correct, too. Their announcement Friday that interim GM Kyle Davidson and Hurricanes assistant GM Eric Tulsky were officially interviewed for the permanent GM role — the first two of numerous candidates — understandably diverted some eyeballs.

But the important questions moving forward are if the Hawks’ new initiatives will provide the necessary resources to improve their culture, if they’ll continue installing new initiatives and making positive change beyond this point and if Rocky Wirtz will involve himself in or impede those initiatives and change.

Friday’s nice-sounding words probably increase the confidence that those answers are “yes,” “yes” and “no,” respectively. But only time will tell definitively.

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A Southwest Side Catholic school fired a longtime history teacher after she said the full N-word in class during a discussion of sports teams with racist names.

Mary DeVoto was teaching Native American culture for her World History class at Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School when a student brought up efforts to find a replacement for Chief Illiniwek at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

DeVoto, a teacher of 41 years, began discussing the former name of the Washington Football Team and why it was offensive to indigenous people. DeVoto told students the term was just as bad as the N-word, using the full word.

A student was recording the lecture for later note-taking and the video was quickly sent through the school. Later that day, the administration moved to suspend DeVoto, and following a meeting Monday, terminated her position.

During meetings with the school administration, DeVoto said she used the N-word again while trying to explain the situation.

In a statement announcing DeVoto’s termination, the administration said the firing was made more necessary “because of a subsequent conversation with the teacher in which the same racial slur was communicated in its entirety several times despite clear and formal directives to stop.

“The N-word is never acceptable in any gathering of, or setting with, the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas,” the school said.

DeVoto told the Sun-Times she was just trying to make things clear to administrators but would never use the word again.

“You can’t just talk about wonderful things in history, we have to talk about the underbelly,” DeVoto said. “But I agree, I did not present that lesson well and it wasn’t conducive to the learning experience for my students. I am mortified and want to fix it.”

She hopes the school will give her an opportunity to apologize to her students, and she wishes she had been allowed to stay and use the mistake as a “learning opportunity.”

DeVoto’s daughters have started a change.org petition drive for their mother, hoping to push the school to reconsider the termination and to collect positive stories from former students.

On social media some expressed dismay at DeVoto’s firing, referring to it as an example of “cancel culture,” while others said the termination was justified because use of the word “is beyond insensitive.”

School officials have not yet commented on calls for reinstatement.

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A security guard wildly fired more than 20 rounds on a busy street without regard for who else could be hurt after he was shot in the leg during a confrontation with another man earlier this week, Cook County prosecutors said in court Friday.

Victor Brown missed his target, but one of the bullets he fired Tuesday afternoon instead struck a 55-year-old grandmother in the chest as she walked to a bank four blocks away, prosecutors said.

Bobbye Johnson, whose family said she “loved God, loved church, loved her grandkids,” later died.

Brown, 34, faces a first-degree murder in her death.

Because Brown was still hospitalized with a gunshot wound to his thigh and did not attend the hearing, Judge Kelly McCarthy said state law did not allow her to hold him without bail.

Instead, the judge said he would have to post $1 million to be released.

McCarthy set another hearing for Brown on Monday for that bail to be reviewed — or revoked, if he’s released from the hospital by then.

An assistant public defender for Brown said his client appeared to be defending himself when he opened fire about 4 p.m. that day on a busy stretch of 35th Street not far from Chicago police headquarters.

Brown had been shot first by a man who was a “known nuisance” and had previously been banned from the store where Brown worked as a security guard, the defense attorney said.

Brown was working as a guard at a liquor store and attached Jamaican jerk chicken restaurant when he saw the man leave the restaurant, Assistant State’s Attorney James Murphy said.

Security video recorded Brown arguing with the man, who then put his fists in the air near his face as they drew closer together, Murphy said. The man then put his hands in his jacket and fired once through the pocket, striking Brown in the leg.

Brown fell to the ground as the man who shot him, known by his nickname “Renegade,” ran off, Murphy said. The man was already a block away when Brown drew and fired a “starter pistol that contained only blank” rounds, Murphy said.

Another security guard with a permit to carry a concealed weapon, pulled his own gun but chose not to fire, “because there were too many bystanders around” and the man who shot Brown was too far away, Murphy said.

Brown then took that guard’s gun and began shooting while lying on the ground, despite the man known as “Renegade” being blocks away by that time, Murphy said.

A nurse waiting at a nearby CTA bus shelter who saw the shooting unfold said she screamed at Brown to stop firing because the man he was targeting “was nowhere to be seen,” Murphy said.

Brown, additionally faces an unlawful use of a weapon charge because, as a convicted felon, he is not allowed to possess a gun, Murphy said.

Brown’s defense attorney argued that he was only in possession of a gun because the circumstances required him to use one.

Cook County court records show Brown has been arrested at least 10 times, including for illegal gun possession, battery, domestic battery and armed robbery.

Most of the cases were dropped, but he pleaded guilty to domestic battery in 2015 and armed robbery without a firearm in 2010. He was given 100 days in Cook County Jail on the first case, and six years in the Illinois Department of Corrections on the other.

The man known as “Renegade” was still not in custody as of Friday afternoon, according to police.

During a news conference at the time of the hearing, Police Supt. David Brown said detectives may release surveillance video of the shooting to identify him.

A source familiar with the video described Victor Brown’s actions on the footage as “mind-boggling” in their recklessness and expressed amazement that more people weren’t hurt.

The superintendent said it still wasn’t clear if Victor Brown was employed by a security company at the time of the shooting, but said it instead appeared that he had “a very loose relationship” with the store to provide security.

A person who answered the phone at the restaurant Friday said a manager or owner was not immediately available to answer questions.

Johnson was known for her gospel singing, some of which she had written herself and shared on YouTube, her family said.

“She was so sweet to everyone, even if you did anything wrong she would always have the best to say,” they said in a statement after her death.

Supt. Brown said he hoped the charges would bring a “small measure” of closure to her family.

“You’re in our prayers,” he added. “Mrs. Johnson should be here but for the reckless conduct of the person charged.”

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Please send scores and corrections to [email protected].

Friday, February 4, 2022

BIG NORTHERN

Dixon at Rockford Christian, 7:00

North Boone at Oregon, 7:00

Rock Falls at Stillman Valley, 7:00

Winnebago at Rockford Lutheran, 7:00

CATHOLIC – BLUE

Brother Rice at Leo, 7:00

Fenwick at DePaul, 7:00

Loyola at St. Rita, 7:15

St. Laurence at Mount Carmel, 7:00

CATHOLIC – WHITE

Montini at St. Francis de Sales, 7:00

Providence at De La Salle, 7:00

Providence-St. Mel at St. Ignatius, 7:00

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – NORTH

Highland Park at Deerfield, 7:00

Maine West at Niles North, 7:00

Vernon Hills at Maine East, 7:00

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – SOUTH

Maine South at Glenbrook North, 7:00

New Trier vs. Evanston, at Northwestern U, 7:30

DU KANE

Geneva at Batavia, 7:15

Glenbard North at Lake Park, 7:15

St. Charles East at St. Charles North, 7:15

Wheaton-Warr. South at Wheaton North, 7:15

DU PAGE VALLEY

DeKalb at Waubonsie Valley, 7:00

Metea Valley at Neuqua Valley, 7:00

Naperville Central at Naperville North, 7:30

FOX VALLEY

Burlington Central at Cary-Grove, 7:30

Crystal Lake Central at Prairie Ridge, 7:30

Crystal Lake South at Huntley, 7:30

Dundee-Crown at Jacobs, 7:30

Hampshire at McHenry, 7:30

ILLINOIS CENTRAL EIGHT

Coal City at Herscher, 6:45

Peotone at Lisle, 6:45

Streator at Manteno, PPD

Wilmington at Reed-Custer, 6:45

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Francis Parker at North Shore, 6:00

Lake Forest Acad-Blk at Morgan Park Academy, CN

Latin at Elgin Academy, 6:00

University High at Northridge, 6:00

INTERSTATE EIGHT

Plano at Kaneland, 6:00

Rochelle at Ottawa, 7:00

Sandwich at LaSalle-Peru, 6:00

Sycamore at Morris, 7:00

KISHWAUKEE RIVER

Johnsburg at Richmond-Burton, 7:00

Marengo at Harvard, 7:00

Woodstock North at Woodstock, 5:00

METRO PREP

CPSA at Lycee Francais, 5:30

METRO SUBURBAN – BLUE

Aurora Christian at Wheaton Academy, 7:30

Chicago Christian at Timothy Christian, 7:30

IC Catholic at St. Francis, 6:45

METRO SUBURBAN – RED

Elmwood Park at St. Edward, 7:00

McNamara at Westmont, 7:30

Ridgewood at Aurora Central, 7:30

MID-SUBURBAN – EAST

Buffalo Grove at Hersey, 7:30

Prospect at Rolling Meadows, 7:30

Wheeling at Elk Grove, 7:30

MID-SUBURBAN – WEST

Barrington at Conant, 7:30

Fremd at Schaumburg, 7:30

Palatine at Hoffman Estates, 7:30

NIC – 10

Auburn at Freeport, 7:15

Boylan at Belvidere North, 7:15

Guilford at Hononegah, 7:00

Harlem at Jefferson, 7:00

Rockford East at Belvidere, 7:00

NORTH SUBURBAN

Lake Zurich at Lake Forest, 7:00

Mundelein at Warren, 7:00

Waukegan at Stevenson, 7:00

Zion-Benton at Libertyville, 7:00

NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY

Antioch at Grayslake Central, 7:00

Grant at Round Lake, 7:00

Grayslake North at North Chicago, 7:00

Lakes at Wauconda, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – BLUE

Lemont at Tinley Park, 6:30

Oak Forest at Hillcrest, 6:30

Thornton Fr. North at Thornton Fr. South, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – RED

Eisenhower at Oak Lawn, 7:30

Reavis at Evergreen Park, 7:30

Shepard at Richards, 6:30

SOUTHLAND

Bloom at Kankakee, 2-12 PPD

Thornridge at Thornton, 6:00

Thornwood at Rich, 7:00

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – EAST

Joliet Central at Romeoville, 6:30

Plainfield East at Joliet West, 6:30

Plainfield South at Plainfield Central, 6:30

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – WEST

Plainfield North at Minooka, 6:30

West Aurora at Oswego, 6:30

Yorkville at Oswego East, 6:30

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – BLUE

Bolingbrook at Lincoln-Way East, 6:30

Sandburg at Lockport, 6:00

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – RED

Bradley-Bourbonnais at Stagg, 6:30

Lincoln-Way West at Andrew, 6:30

TRI-COUNTY

Henry-Senachwine at Lowpoint-Washburn, 7:30

Marquette at Putnam County, 7:30

Midland at Seneca, 7:00

Roanoke-Benson at Dwight, 7:30

UPSTATE EIGHT

East Aurora at West Chicago, 7:00

Elgin at Larkin, 7:00

Fenton at Streamwood, 7:00

South Elgin at Bartlett, 7:00

WEST SUBURBAN – GOLD

Addison Trail at Proviso East, 6:00

Downers Grove South at Morton, 7:30

Hinsdale South at Leyden, 7:30

WEST SUBURBAN – SILVER

Downers Grove North at Lyons, 6:30

Proviso West at Oak Park-River Forest, 6:30

York at Glenbard West, 7:30

NON CONFERENCE

Home Run Kids at Westlake Christian, 7:00

Intrinsic-Belmont at Northside, 5:00

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC TOURNAMENT

Joliet Catholic at Nazareth, 7:00

LITTLE TEN TOURNAMENT

at Somonauk

Earlville vs. Indian Creek, 5:00

Serena vs. Hinckley-Big Rock, 6:30

Somonauk vs. Newark, 8:00

NOBLE LEAGUE TOURNAMENT

Rauner vs. Pritzker

Hansberry vs. Mansueto

UIC vs. Golder

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS

Phillips at Young, 6:00

North Lawndale at Hyde Park, 6:30

Lincoln Park at Kenwood, 6:00

Brooks at Orr, 6:00

Perspectives-Lead at Simeon, 5:00

Morgan Park at Westinghouse, 6:00

Longwood at Clark, 6:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – CONSOLATION

Sullivan at Collins, 6:00

Catalyst-Maria at Senn, 6:00

Tilden at Harlan, 6:00

Uplift at King, 6:00

Clemente at Foreman, 6:00

Excel-Englewood at Jones, 6:00

Vocational at Raby, 6:00

South Shore at Crane, 6:00

Urban Prep-Englewood at Legal Prep, 6:00

Richards (Chgo) at Fenger, 6:00

Kennedy at Urban Prep-Bronzeville, 6:00

ACE Amandla at Solorio, 6:00

RIVER VALLEY TOURNAMENT

Beecher at Clifton Central, PPD

Gardner-So. Wilmington at Grace Christian, 6:45

Illinois Lutheran at Donovan, 6:30

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NEW YORK — Joe West has made it official, retiring from Major League Baseball after umpiring a record 5,460 regular-season games.

Roberto Ortiz became the first Puerto Rican-born umpire to join the big league staff in a series of retirements and promotions announced Friday by MLB.

“I am honored and blessed to have the privilege of becoming the first Puerto Rican umpire to be hired by MLB,” the 37-year-old Ortiz said. “It fills me with pride to be able to represent my family and my island of Puerto Rico in what I consider the best league in the world.”

Longtime umpires Gerry Davis, Kerwin Danley, Brian Gorman and Fieldin Culbreth also have retired.

Ben May, Ryan Additon, Sean Barber and John Libka joined Ortiz in promotions to the full-time MLB staff.

Laz D?az, Greg Gibson, Marvin Hudson, Ron Kulpa and Bill Welke were elevated to crew chiefs.

The 69-year-old West worked his first big league game on Sept. 14, 1976, at third base in Atlanta when the Braves hosted the Houston Astros. His finale was on Oct. 6, when he worked home plate at Dodger Stadium for the NL wild-card game between Los Angeles and the St. Louis Cardinals.

Known as Country Joe, West set the record for regular-season games last May 25, when he worked the plate when the White Sox hosted the Cardinals. NL umpire Bill Klem had held the record following in a career that spanned 1905-41.

Ortiz had worked 411 major league games since 2016 as a call-up ump. He had been a minor league umpire since 2009 and was assigned to Triple-A last year.

May, 40, called 650 MLB games as a call-up since 2014. He started in the minors in 2007 and was in Triple-A last season.

Additon, 36, worked the plate when Corey Kluber pitched a no-hitter for the Yankees at Texas last May 19. A minor League ump since 2010 and assigned to Triple-A last year, he had called 381 games in the majors.

Barber, 36, had called 690 big league games since 2014. He began in the minors in 2006 and was in Triple-A last season.

Libka, 34, had worked 371 MLB games since 2017. He started in the minors in 2010 and was in Triple-A last year.

Davis worked a combined 5,000 games in the majors, including a record 151 in the postseason to go with 4,849 in the regular season. He had postseason assignments for 24 straight seasons in his 38-year major league career. He turns 69 later this month.

Danley, 60, in 2020 became the first African American crew chief in MLB history and was a big league ump for 25 years. In college, he was an All-American at San Diego State and teammate of Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn.

Gorman, 62, worked three World Series in his 30-year career and represented umps on MLB’s Playing Rules Committee. He is the son of former umpire Tom Gorman.

Culbreth, 58, worked three World Series in his 25-year major league career.

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Jack Gleason updates the schedule every morning on his website.

Friday, February 4, 2022

BIG NORTHERN

Dixon at Rockford Christian, 7:00

North Boone at Oregon, 7:00

Rock Falls at Stillman Valley, 7:00

Winnebago at Rockford Lutheran, 7:00

CATHOLIC – BLUE

Brother Rice at Leo, 7:00

Fenwick at DePaul, 7:00

Loyola at St. Rita, 7:15

St. Laurence at Mount Carmel, 7:00

CATHOLIC – WHITE

Montini at St. Francis de Sales, 7:00

Providence at De La Salle, 7:00

Providence-St. Mel at St. Ignatius, 7:00

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – NORTH

Highland Park at Deerfield, 7:00

Maine West at Niles North, 7:00

Vernon Hills at Maine East, 7:00

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – SOUTH

Maine South at Glenbrook North, 7:00

New Trier vs. Evanston, at Northwestern U, 7:30

DU KANE

Geneva at Batavia, 7:15

Glenbard North at Lake Park, 7:15

St. Charles East at St. Charles North, 7:15

Wheaton-Warr. South at Wheaton North, 7:15

DU PAGE VALLEY

DeKalb at Waubonsie Valley, 7:00

Metea Valley at Neuqua Valley, 7:00

Naperville Central at Naperville North, 7:30

FOX VALLEY

Burlington Central at Cary-Grove, 7:30

Crystal Lake Central at Prairie Ridge, 7:30

Crystal Lake South at Huntley, 7:30

Dundee-Crown at Jacobs, 7:30

Hampshire at McHenry, 7:30

ILLINOIS CENTRAL EIGHT

Coal City at Herscher, 6:45

Peotone at Lisle, 6:45

Streator at Manteno, PPD

Wilmington at Reed-Custer, 6:45

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Francis Parker at North Shore, 6:00

Lake Forest Acad-Blk at Morgan Park Academy, CN

Latin at Elgin Academy, 6:00

University High at Northridge, 6:00

INTERSTATE EIGHT

Plano at Kaneland, 6:00

Rochelle at Ottawa, 7:00

Sandwich at LaSalle-Peru, 6:00

Sycamore at Morris, 7:00

KISHWAUKEE RIVER

Johnsburg at Richmond-Burton, 7:00

Marengo at Harvard, 7:00

Woodstock North at Woodstock, 5:00

METRO PREP

CPSA at Lycee Francais, 5:30

METRO SUBURBAN – BLUE

Aurora Christian at Wheaton Academy, 7:30

Chicago Christian at Timothy Christian, 7:30

IC Catholic at St. Francis, 6:45

METRO SUBURBAN – RED

Elmwood Park at St. Edward, 7:00

McNamara at Westmont, 7:30

Ridgewood at Aurora Central, 7:30

MID-SUBURBAN – EAST

Buffalo Grove at Hersey, 7:30

Prospect at Rolling Meadows, 7:30

Wheeling at Elk Grove, 7:30

MID-SUBURBAN – WEST

Barrington at Conant, 7:30

Fremd at Schaumburg, 7:30

Palatine at Hoffman Estates, 7:30

NIC – 10

Auburn at Freeport, 7:15

Boylan at Belvidere North, 7:15

Guilford at Hononegah, 7:00

Harlem at Jefferson, 7:00

Rockford East at Belvidere, 7:00

NORTH SUBURBAN

Lake Zurich at Lake Forest, 7:00

Mundelein at Warren, 7:00

Waukegan at Stevenson, 7:00

Zion-Benton at Libertyville, 7:00

NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY

Antioch at Grayslake Central, 7:00

Grant at Round Lake, 7:00

Grayslake North at North Chicago, 7:00

Lakes at Wauconda, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – BLUE

Lemont at Tinley Park, 6:30

Oak Forest at Hillcrest, 6:30

Thornton Fr. North at Thornton Fr. South, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – RED

Eisenhower at Oak Lawn, 7:30

Reavis at Evergreen Park, 7:30

Shepard at Richards, 6:30

SOUTHLAND

Bloom at Kankakee, 2-12 PPD

Thornridge at Thornton, 6:00

Thornwood at Rich, 7:00

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – EAST

Joliet Central at Romeoville, 6:30

Plainfield East at Joliet West, 6:30

Plainfield South at Plainfield Central, 6:30

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – WEST

Plainfield North at Minooka, 6:30

West Aurora at Oswego, 6:30

Yorkville at Oswego East, 6:30

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – BLUE

Bolingbrook at Lincoln-Way East, 6:30

Sandburg at Lockport, 6:00

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – RED

Bradley-Bourbonnais at Stagg, 6:30

Lincoln-Way West at Andrew, 6:30

TRI-COUNTY

Henry-Senachwine at Lowpoint-Washburn, 7:30

Marquette at Putnam County, 7:30

Midland at Seneca, 7:00

Roanoke-Benson at Dwight, 7:30

UPSTATE EIGHT

East Aurora at West Chicago, 7:00

Elgin at Larkin, 7:00

Fenton at Streamwood, 7:00

South Elgin at Bartlett, 7:00

WEST SUBURBAN – GOLD

Addison Trail at Proviso East, 6:00

Downers Grove South at Morton, 7:30

Hinsdale South at Leyden, 7:30

WEST SUBURBAN – SILVER

Downers Grove North at Lyons, 6:30

Proviso West at Oak Park-River Forest, 6:30

York at Glenbard West, 7:30

NON CONFERENCE

Home Run Kids at Westlake Christian, 7:00

Intrinsic-Belmont at Northside, 5:00

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC TOURNAMENT

Joliet Catholic at Nazareth, 7:00

LITTLE TEN TOURNAMENT

at Somonauk

Earlville vs. Indian Creek, 5:00

Serena vs. Hinckley-Big Rock, 6:30

Somonauk vs. Newark, 8:00

NOBLE LEAGUE TOURNAMENT

Rauner vs. Pritzker

Hansberry vs. Mansueto

UIC vs. Golder

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS

Phillips at Young, 6:00

North Lawndale at Hyde Park, 6:30

Lincoln Park at Kenwood, 6:00

Brooks at Orr, 6:00

Perspectives-Lead at Simeon, 5:00

Morgan Park at Westinghouse, 6:00

Longwood at Clark, 6:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – CONSOLATION

Sullivan at Collins, 6:00

Catalyst-Maria at Senn, 6:00

Tilden at Harlan, 6:00

Uplift at King, 6:00

Clemente at Foreman, 6:00

Excel-Englewood at Jones, 6:00

Vocational at Raby, 6:00

South Shore at Crane, 6:00

Urban Prep-Englewood at Legal Prep, 6:00

Richards (Chgo) at Fenger, 6:00

Kennedy at Urban Prep-Bronzeville, 6:00

ACE Amandla at Solorio, 6:00

RIVER VALLEY TOURNAMENT

Beecher at Clifton Central, PPD

Gardner-So. Wilmington at Grace Christian, 6:45

Illinois Lutheran at Donovan, 6:30

Saturday, February 5, 2022

ILLINOIS CENTRAL EIGHT

Reed-Custer at Lisle, 6:45

INTERSTATE EIGHT

LaSalle-Peru at Morris, 7:00

METRO PREP

Hinsdale Adventist at CPSA, 7:00

NORTH SUBURBAN

Zion-Benton at Stevenson, 5:30

NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY

Grayslake North at Grant, 2:30

WEST SUBURBAN – SILVER

Hinsdale Central at York, 5:00

NON CONFERENCE

Addison Trail at Elk Grove, 2:30

Amboy at Christian, Life, 2:30

Barrington at Round Lake, 3:00

Belvidere at Oregon, 7:00

Genoa-Kingston at Marengo, 2:30

Catalyst-Maria at Christ the King, 2:00

Cristo Rey-St. Martin at Elgin Academy, 1:30

Dixon at DeKalb, 4:30

Downers Grove South at Glenbard East, 4:30

Eastland at Winnebago, 7:00

EPIC at Austin, 5:00

Fenton at Leyden, 2:30

Fenwick at Clark, 2:00

Francis Parker at Providence-St. Mel, 12:30

Harvest Christian at Rockford Christian, 1:00

Hinsdale South at Lyons, 5:00

Ida Crown at Rochelle Zell, 9:00

Illinois Lutheran at Iroquois West, 7:30

Intrinsic-Downtown at Geneseo, 1:30

Joliet West at Lincoln Park, 5:15

Lake Forest Acad-Blk at North Chicago (JV), 3:30

Lake Forest Acad-Org at North Chicago, 5:00

Lakeshore (MI) at Coal City, 4:30

Lane at St. Ignatius, 2:00

Lowpoint-Washburn at Blue-Ridge, 2:30

Maine South at Minooka, 1:00

Marmion at St. Francis, 6:45

Metea Valley at Hoffman Estates, 6:00

Morton at Riverside-Brookfield, 4:00

Peotone at Grant Park, 7:00

Perspectives-MSA at Perspectives-Lead, 2:30

Plainfield North at Naperville North, 4:00

Princeton at Byron, 7:00

Richards at Agricultural Science, 12:00

Richmond-Burton at Alden-Hebron, 1:00

Roanoke-Benson at Peoria Christian, 7:00

Romeoville at Willowbrook, 6:00

Sandburg at Argo, 6:00

Sandwich at Somonauk, 7:15

Schaumburg Christian at Conant, 7:00

Seneca at Wilmington, 6:30

South Beloit at Orangeville, 4:30

Steinmetz at Intrinsic-Belmont, 1:00

Streamwood at Geneva, 6:30

Taft at Glenbrook North, 3:30

Universal at Shepard, 12:00

Urban Prep-West at Downers Grove North, 3:00

Vernon Hills at Antioch, 1:00

Von Steuben at Kankakee, 2:30

Walther Christian at Westmont, 12:30

West Chicago at St. Edward, 7:00

Westminster Christian at IC Catholic, 1:30

Woodstock at Kaneland, 7:00

EAST AURORA

Aurora Christian vs. Lindblom, 2:00

West Aurora vs. St. Charles North, 3:35

East Aurora vs. Oswego East, 5:05

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC TOURNAMENT

St. Viator at Benet, 7:00

TBD at Marian Catholic, 7:00

Marist at St. Patrick, 7:00

NILES NORTH

Highland Park vs. Lake Park, 12:30

Hersey vs. Lake Forest, 2:00

Niles North vs. Fremd, 5:00

NOBLE LEAGUE TOURNAMENT

ITW-Spear vs. Muchin

Rowe-Clark vs. TBD

Noble Street vs. TBD

Noble Academy vs. TBD

NORMAL WEST

Washington (IL) vs. Danville, 11:30

Bloomington vs. Boylan, 1:30

Normal vs. Oswego, 3:30

Normal West vs. Sacred Heart-Griffin, 5:30

Notre Dame (Peoria) vs. Yorkville Christian, 7:30

O’FALLON

Mascoutah vs. Chaminade (MO), 3:30

Bolingbrook vs. O’Fallon, 5:00

St. Rita vs. Christian Brothers (MO), 6:30

Young vs. Vashon (MO), 6:30

RACINE PRAIRIE SCHOOL (WI)

Northridge vs. Winnebago Lutheran (WI), 11:00

Prospect vs. Prairie School (WI), 12:30

Buffalo Grove vs. Kimberly (WI), 5:00

Deerfield vs. Westosha Central (WI), 6:30

UIC – CREDIT UNION 1

Kenwood vs. Hillcrest, 5:00

Simeon vs. Coronado (NV), 6:30

Chicago Prep vs. Donda Academy (CA), 9:00

WINTRUST

Curie vs. Glenbrook South, 6:00

Glenbard West vs. Sierra Canyon (CA), 8:00

Sunday, February 6, 2022

CHICAGO PREP

Cristo Rey at Rochelle Zell, 4:30

LAKE SHORE ATHLETIC

ACERO-Cruz at Fasman Yeshiva, 1:30

NON CONFERENCE

Beecher vs. East Dubuque, at United Center, 9:30

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC TOURNAMENT

Carmel at Notre Dame, 7:00

EVERGREEN PARK

Richards vs. Lake Forest Acad-Org, 11:00

Lemont vs. St. Laurence, 12:30

Oak Lawn vs. Mount Carmel, 2:00

Evergreen Park vs. Marist, 3:30

Homewood-Flossmoor vs. Brother Rice, 5:00

Oak Forest vs. Leo, 6:30

Monday, February 7, 2022

CENTRAL SUBURBAN – SOUTH

Evanston at New Trier, 6:30

CHICAGO PREP

Christ the King at Ida Crown, 7:00

EAST SUBURBAN CATHOLIC

Benet at St. Viator, 7:00

LAKE SHORE ATHLETIC

Roycemore at ACERO-Cruz, 6:30

METRO SUBURBAN – BLUE

Aurora Christian at IC Catholic, 7:30

NORTH SUBURBAN

Lake Forest at Mundelein, 7:00

NORTHEASTERN ATHLETIC

Mooseheart at Harvest Christian, 6:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Thornton Fr. South at Reavis, 6:00

SOUTHLAND

Rich at Kankakee, 7:00

TRI-COUNTY

Woodland at Dwight, 7:15

NON CONFERENCE

Agricultural Science at Payton, 7:00

Alden-Hebron at Westlake Christian, 7:30

Bloom at Marian Catholic, 6:30

Catalyst-Maria at Raby, 7:00

Christian Heritage at Beacon, 7:00

Cornerstone (Bloomington) at Midland, 7:00

Elgin Academy at South Beloit, 7:00

Francis Parker at Northtown, 6:00

Hirsch at Steinmetz, 6:00

Intrinsic-Belmont at Julian, 5:00

Kelly at Little Village, 6:00

Lincoln-Way West at Shepard, 6:30

Niles North at Schurz, 5:00

Providence at Eisenhower, 6:00

Sandburg at Holy Trinity, 6:30

St. Laurence at Wheeling, 7:30

Stark County at Henry-Senachwine, 7:00

Thornton Fr. South at Lincoln-Way Central, CNL

Urban Prep-West at Urban Prep-Englewood, 6:30

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS

Lane at Curie, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – CONSOLATION

Second Round

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – BLUE

Goode at Ogden, 6:00

Kelly at Little Village, 6:00

Bowen at Julian, 6:00

Hancock at Englewood STEM, 6:00

North Grand at Amundsen, 6:00

Chicago Academy at Phoenix, 6:00

Gage Park at UC-Woodlawn, 6:00

Hirsch at Steinmetz, 6:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE TOURNAMENT – BLUE 8

Instituto Heath at Roosevelt, 6:00

Chicago Military at EPIC, 6:00

Horizon-Southwest at Kelvyn Park, 6:00

Marine at Rickover, 6:00

Tuesday, February 8, 2022

BIG NORTHERN

Byron at Rock Falls, 7:00

Genoa-Kingston at Dixon, 7:00

Rockford Christian at Oregon, 7:00

Rockford Lutheran at North Boone, 7:00

CATHOLIC – BLUE

DePaul at Brother Rice, 7:00

Leo at St. Rita, 7:15

Mount Carmel at Loyola, 7:00

St. Laurence at Fenwick, 7:00

CATHOLIC – WHITE

Montini at Marmion, 7:00

St. Francis de Sales at Providence, 7:00

St. Ignatius at De La Salle, 7:00

DU KANE

Geneva at St. Charles East, 7:15

Lake Park at St. Charles North, 7:15

FOX VALLEY

Burlington Central at Jacobs, 7:00

Cary-Grove at Crystal Lake South, 7:00

Crystal Lake Central at Hampshire, 7:00

Huntley at McHenry, 7:00

Prairie Ridge at Dundee-Crown, 7:00

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Elgin Academy at University High, 6:00

Francis Parker at Lake Forest Acad-Blk, 6:00

Morgan Park Academy at Northridge, 6:00

North Shore at Latin, 6:00

INTERSTATE EIGHT

LaSalle-Peru at Kaneland, 7:00

KISHWAUKEE RIVER

Marengo at Richmond-Burton, 7:00

Woodstock at Harvard, 7:00

Woodstock North at Johnsburg, 7:30

LAKE SHORE ATHLETIC

Wolcott at Lycee Francais, 6:30

LITTLE TEN

IMSA at LaMoille, 7:00

METRO SUBURBAN – BLUE

Timothy Christian at St. Francis, 7:00

Wheaton Academy at Riverside-Brookfield, 7:00

NIC – 10

Freeport at Boylan, 7:00

NORTH SUBURBAN

Libertyville at Warren, 7:00

Stevenson at Lake Zurich, 7:00

Zion-Benton at Waukegan, 5:30

NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY

Antioch at Round Lake, 7:00

Grayslake Central at Lakes, 7:00

North Chicago at Grant, 7:00

Wauconda at Grayslake North, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – BLUE

Tinley Park at Thornton Fr. South, 7:00

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – BLUE

Homewood-Flossmoor at Sandburg, 6:00

Lockport at Lincoln-Way East, 6:30

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – RED

Andrew at Stagg, 6:00

Lincoln-Way Central at Bradley-Bourbonnais, 7:00

UPSTATE EIGHT

Bartlett at East Aurora, 6:30

Glenbard East at Fenton, 7:00

Larkin at Glenbard South, 7:00

South Elgin at Elgin, 7:00

Streamwood at West Chicago, 7:00

NON CONFERENCE

Argo at Leyden, 6:00

Beecher at Reed-Custer, 6:45

Bremen at Agricultural Science, TBA

Christian Life at Westlake Christian, 7:30

Clifton Central at South Newton, 7:00

Cristo Rey at Intrinsic-Downtown, 6:30

Cristo Rey-St. Martin at Lake County Baptist, 7:15

Dakota at Stillman Valley, 7:00

Dwight at Peotone, 7:00

Elk Grove at Maine West, 6:00

Gardner-So. Wilmington at Wilmington, 6:45

Glenbrook North at Prospect, 7:00

Glenbrook South at Rolling Meadows, 7:00

Hansberry at Oak Lawn, 6:30

Henry-Senachwine at DePue, 7:30

Hoffman Estates at Hersey, 7:30

Holy Trinity at Jones, 6:30

Indian Creek at Plano, 7:00

Lindblom at Marist, 7:00

Lisle at Westmont, 7:00

Longwood at Thornwood, 6:30

Maine South at Proviso West, 7:00

Marquette at Serena, 7:00

Minooka at Shepard, 6:30

Naperville Central at Oswego, 6:30

Nazareth at Plainfield North, 7:00

Neuqua Valley at Bolingbrook, 6:30

Niles West at Addison Trail, 7:00

Oswego East at Waubonsie Valley, 7:00

Palatine at Buffalo Grove, 6:30

Plainfield South at Oak Forest, 6:00

Putnam County at Fieldcrest, 7:00

Roanoke-Benson at Tri-Valley, 7:00

Rochelle Zell at Elmwood Park 7:00

St. Anne at Manteno, 7:00

Streator at Seneca, 7:00

Tri-Point at Cissna Park, 7:00

Westminster Christian at Hinckley-Big Rock, 7:00

Yorkville at Evergreen Park, 6:30

NOBLE LEAGUE TOURNAMENT

Butler vs. TBD

Johnson vs. TBD

Comer vs. TBD

Bulls vs. TBD

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

Wednesday, February 9, 2022

CATHOLIC – WHITE

St. Francis de Sales at St. Ignatius, 7:00

CATHOLIC – CROSSOVER

St. Rita at Providence-St. Mel, 7:00

CHICAGO PREP

Christ the King at Northtown, 7:00

DU KANE

Batavia at Wheaton-Warr. South, 7:15

Glenbard North at Wheaton North, 7:15

FOX VALLEY

Crystal Lake Central at Cary-Grove, 7:00

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Northridge at Francis Parker, 6:00

University High at Morgan Park Academy, 6:00

LAKE SHORE ATHLETIC

ACERO-Cruz at Beacon, 5:30

LITTLE TEN

LaMoille at DePue, 7:00

METRO PREP

Lycee Francais at Hinsdale Adventist, 12:00

METRO SUBURBAN – BLUE

Wheaton Academy at Aurora Christian, 7:30

NIC – 10

Auburn at Rockford East, 7:00

Belvidere at Boylan, 7:00

Harlem at Guilford, 7:00

Hononegah at Freeport, 7:00

Jefferson at Belvidere North, 7:00

SOUTHWEST PRAIRIE – EAST

Joliet Central at Plainfield East, 6:30

WEST SUBURBAN – GOLD

Morton at Downers Grove South, 6:00

NON CONFERENCE

Carmel at Round Lake, 7:00

Dunlap at Ottawa, 6:00

Foreman at Wells, 5:00

Grayslake North at Vernon Hills, 7:00

Hiawatha at Alden-Hebron, 7:00

Kaneland at Northside, 6:30

Kennedy at Argo, 6:30

Lake Forest Acad-Blk at St. Viator (JV), 5:30

Lake Forest Acad-Org at St. Viator, 7:00

Plano at Streator, 6:45

Sandwich at Newark, 6:45

Senn at Intrinsic-Downtown, 6:30

Serena at Woodland, 7:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – CONSOLATION

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – BLUE

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

Quarter-Final

PUBLIC LEAGUE TOURNAMENT – BLUE 8

Semi-Final, 6:00

Semi-Final, 6:00

RIVER VALLEY TOURNAMENT

Grant Park at Momence, 7:00

Thursday, February 10, 2022

BIG NORTHERN

Rockford Lutheran at Byron, 7:00

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL

Elgin Academy at Francis Parker, 6:00

North Shore at Morgan Park Academy, 5:00

KISHWAUKEE RIVER

Johnsburg at Marengo, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – BLUE

Thornton Fr. North at Oak Forest, 6:30

SOUTHWEST SUBURBAN – RED

Stagg at Lincoln-Way Central, 6:15

WEST SUBURBAN – SILVER

Glenbard West at Hinsdale Central, 7:00

NON CONFERENCE

ACERO-Soto at Little Village, 5:00

Agricultural Science at Eisenhower, 6:30

Carmel at Latin, 6:00

Cornerstone (Bloomington) at Tri-Point, 7:00

EPIC at Perspectives-Lead, 5:30

Flanagan-Cornell at Roanoke-Benson, 7:00

Genoa-Kingston at Harvard, 7:00

Golder at Back of the Yards, 5:00

Horizon-McKinley at Goode, 4:30

Intrinsic-Downtown at Kennedy, 6:30

Milwaukee Tech (WI) at Solorio, 5:00

Thornridge at Sandburg, 7:00

Urban Prep-West at Douglass, 5:00

Westlake Christian at Marian Central, 7:00

NOBLE LEAGUE TOURNAMENT

Semi-Final

Semi-Final

PUBLIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS

at UIC – Credit Union 1

Semi-Final, 5:00

Semi-Final, 7:00

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It’s not time to be reactionary.

As tempting as the 127-120 overtime loss to Toronto on Thursday was for Arturas Karnisovas to start hitting redial on his cell phone with the trade deadline less than a week away, perspective needed to rule the day.

No matter how the numbers looked.

Toronto grabbing 22 offensive rebounds, scoring 22 points off 17 Bulls turnovers, and putting up 60 points in the paint.

All of it screamed the obvious yet again: The Bulls need to get bigger and more physical in the frontcourt.

“We got outrebounded and they out-physical-ed us throughout the whole game,” newly-named All-Star Zach LaVine said after. “It shouldn’t have been that close of a game to start.”

However, that doesn’t mean Karnisovas is going to take that leap.

That was the message from the executive vice president of basketball operations in Karnisovas last month, and according to coach Billy Donovan, that hasn’t changed. Of course the Bulls (32-19) would like to add talent at the deadline, but not at the expense of chemistry.

“I would say that I would lean toward the chemistry piece,” Donovan said, when asked about talent versus chemistry.

What the Bulls really wanted to weigh between now and deadline time was the idea that LaVine, Lonzo Ball, DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic had only 17 games together.

When the “Big Four” have played together, the results have been very good.

That can’t be overlooked, even with the obvious lack of size at the starting power forward spot.

“We like our group a lot, we like the chemistry a lot, we want to make sure that continues,” Donovan said. “Chemistry in the locker room is critical, it’s important. Certainly Arturas is always going to look for ways to improve the group, but you don’t want to say, ‘OK, we’ve improved our talent, but we’re not as cohesive and the chemistry is not as good.’ So all those decisions are definitely factored in and they’re certainly a priority.”

The good news for Donovan and his locker room?

As the anxiety of the deadline starts to grow – like it does in every locker room – the Bulls are well built in handling it. Veterans like DeRozan, Vucevic, Ball, and LaVine have all been traded, and Karnisovas has an open-door policy where he tries to be as honest as he can be with his players.

“This time of year there’s always going to be, especially for younger players that haven’t been through this business side of it, but I think the front office, Arturas and [general manager] Marc [Eversley], have done a really, really good job where if players have questions then they have the freedom to go up there and speak to them about different things,” Donovan said.

A policy that could be tested next week.

The only test on Thursday, however, was the Raptors (27-23).

As LaVine pointed out, the Bulls had very little business even being in the game but they were. DeRozan tied the game in regulation with 47.8 seconds left, and Vucevic, who finished with 30 points and 18 rebounds, gave his team the lead with 8.6 seconds left. Scottie Barnes, however, played hero for the home team, getting the tip-in to send it to overtime.

An overtime that the Bulls seemed to finally hit the wall in.

With the game tied and 1:44 left, Barnes hit the tough 4-footer, followed by a huge Gary Trent Jr. three with 16.5 seconds left on a blown defensive switch by LaVine and Vucevic.

LaVine had been dealing with back spasms the last two games, but didn’t offer that up as an excuse in the slightest.

“They ran a stack action, and we didn’t defend it right,” LaVine said of Trent’s dagger. “It’s just bad communication at the wrong point of the game.”

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