TSN’s In-Season Tournament group play features the Raptors and Bulls.
On Friday night at Scotiabank Arena, Scottie Barnes and the Toronto Raptors play against DeMar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls in NBA In-Season Tournament group play.
With a loss, both teams—who have 0–2 records in tournament play—will be eliminated from the running for the knockout round. They remain the only unbeaten teams in East Group C.
Watch the Raptors vs. Bulls LIVE at 7:30 p.m. ET/ 4:30 PT on TSN/4, the TSN App, and TSN.ca.
The Raptors (7-8) are coming off a thrilling victory on Wednesday night, defeating the Indiana Pacers 132-131. In addition to Barnes’ 20 points, 10 rebounds, and game-winning dunk with 27 seconds remaining, Pascal Siakam finished with 36 points and 10 rebounds.
Following the victory, Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic remarked, “Pascal was amazing.” “He acted in such an aggressive manner. He was a versatile player who drove to the rim and scored points in the paint.
In the final 1:22 of regulation time during the back-and-forth shootout, there were five lead changes. Pacers forward Buddy Hield also missed a game-winning three-pointer with 1.2 seconds remaining.
Rajakovic stated, “We knew they were going to be a team that was going to try to run and score a lot.” “We performed well in transition in the first half, in my opinion. Their transition score was only five points. We persisted in our sermons, telling them to slow down and play as a half-court team. We discussed not allowing them to fire shots before the shot clock has expired.
After a sluggish start to the season, Siakam has improved over the last eight games to reach All-NBA status. Since defeating the Dallas Mavericks on November 8, the 29-year-old is averaging 24.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 5.4 assists on 56% of the field.
The third-year sensation Barnes hopes to build on his stellar season, which has put him in a virtual tie for the NBA’s Most Improved Player Award with Tyrese Maxey of the Philadelphia 76ers. The 2021–22 Rookie of the Year is averaging 19.7 points, 9.1 rebounds, 5.7 assists, and 1.9 three-pointers per game, all of which are career highs.
The Raptors and Bulls will meet for the second time this season on Friday. Chicago won the first meeting, 104-103 in overtime, on October 28. With 33 points, DeRozan led the way for the Bulls.
Chicago (5-11) has had a difficult season, having dropped five of its last six games, including four straight away from home. Zach Lavine, a guard for the Bulls, will probably miss his second straight game because of a foot injury.
