Bulls Drop Contest to Celtics, Split Two-Game Series

Portland, Maine – The Windy City Bulls, presented by BMO, the NBA G League affiliate of the Chicago Bulls, suffered a tough loss to the Maine Celtics 97-122 Sunday afternoon. Despite the loss, Windy City forward Keyshawn Bryant logged 25 points, shooting 61% from the field to lead all scorers. 

Facing the Celtics for a second time this weekend, the Bulls struggled without any two-way players available for the matchup. The Bulls opened the contest shooting just 34.8% from the field compared to 60.9% from the Celtics, putting them in a 15-point deficit at the outset. The second quarter saw weak ballhandling from each team with seven turnovers for Windy City and eight for Maine. Outrebounding the Bulls 16-6 in the frame, the Celtics were able to gain a 36-point lead by halftime. Pushing the pace in the third, the Bulls found improved shooting, capitalizing on fast break points and connecting 50% from the field. Regardless, the Celtics extended the margin to 45 before ending the frame up by 37. In a fourth quarter final push, 14 points by Bryant helped the Bulls chip away at the lead, but the rally wasn’t enough, resulting in a Celtics victory.

Alongside Bryant, Bulls guard Lucas Williamson tallied a season-high of 18 points, knocking down four threes. Windy City forward/center Giorgi Bezhanishvili put up 16 points, shooting 88% from the field. Bulls forward Mouhamadou Gueye came off the bench to round out the double-digit scoring with 12 points and grabbed nine rebounds.

Every available player got on the board for the Celtics this afternoon. Celtics guard Keon Johnson led the effort with a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds. Maine forward Hason Ward also came off the bench to record 16 points, shooting 89% from the field, also grabbing seven rebounds. Celtics forward Jalen Bridges tallied 14 points and Boston Celtics two-way guard John Tonje recorded 13 points and seven rebounds. With the loss the Bulls drop to 12-12 while the Celtics improve to 13-15. Windy City will travel back to the Midwest to take on the Cleveland Charge on Tuesday, March 3. Tip-off is 10am CST and the game will be broadcast on NBAGLeague.com, CHSN, the NBA app and NBA docomo.