CHICAGO: Zach LaVine had 39 points and Coby White scored 21 of his 23 points in the second half to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 118-108 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday night.
Jalen Brunson, starting in place of injured Luka Doncic, had 31 points for the Mavericks.
Otto Porter Jr. added 15 for the Bulls, who were starter Lauri Markkanen and reservists Tomas Satoransky, Chandler Hutchison and Ryan Arcidiacano.
Doncic was absent due to a contusion to his left quadriceps. He was injured Friday night in the second quarter of a home win over the Miami Heat. He continued to play and finished with a season-high 27 points and 15 rebounds. He is listed as day to day, with his status uncertain Monday night in Houston.
Well see how he’s doing tomorrow, said Dallas coach Rick Carlisle. We don’t think it’s a long-term thing.
The 21-year-old Slovenian star is having a relatively slow start to the season. Hes averaging 24.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 6.4 assists, shooting 43.2% overall and 16.1% on 3 points in five games.
Dallas led 60-59 at halftime despite scoring 29 for LaVine. LaVine was 9-for-13 in the field while the rest of the Bulls were 10-for-27.
Brunson had 18 points in the first half on a 7 for 8 shot for the Mavericks.
Chicago scored the last seven points of the third quarter to take an 86-81 lead in the fourth.
The Bulls extended the lead to 100-91 with just over 8 minutes on a pair of free throws from White, the biggest lead at this point by either team at this point.
The Mavericks shot 103-98 on a Josh Richardson basket with just under 5 minutes to go. Porter Jr. responded at the end with a 3-point play on an offensive rebound to reduce the lead to 106-98.
Dallas responded with six straight runs (four by Brunson) to go 106-104 with 3 1/2 minutes left.
LaVine then suffered a foul on the other end and hit two free throws. After a defensive save, LaVine fed Porter Jr. for a layup to make it 110-104 with 2:50 left.
White hit a 3 runner with 1:33 left for a 113-105 lead.
TIP-INS
Mavericks: F Kristaps Porzingis (right knee surgery) has been cleared for full contact, but there is no timeline for his return. He is expected to participate in the team’s next practice session on Wednesday. There is nothing imminent with him playing (in a game), Carlisle said. But we are much closer than we were.
Bulls: Markkanen, Satoransky, Hutchison and Arcidiacono each missed their third straight game under NBA health and safety protocols. Satoransky and Hutchison have tested positive for COVID-19[feminine[feminine. None of the four are expected to return until at least the end of the next four-game trip to the West Coast.
NEXT
Mavericks: In Houston Monday night.
Bulls: In Portland on Tuesday night to start a four-game trip to the West Coast.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
–
