Raptors Inch Closer to 8th Seed With 104-98 Win Over Bulls

The Toronto Raptors took one step closer to the 8th seed in the East on Tuesday night, as they beat the Chicago Bulls 104-98 at the Scotiabank Arena. Toronto has been on a tear as of late, winning 8 of their last 10 games to improve their NBA regular season record to 31-32. 

Pascal Siakam led the scoring for Toronto with 20 on 7-18 shooting to go with eight boards and three assists. O G Anunoby scored 17 and Gary Trent Jr had a crucial 19 off the bench that helped guide the Raps to victory.

Fred VanVleet returned to action after missing the last three games due to the birth of his third child. He shot a miserable 1-11 from the field but was able to contribute as a distributor, dishing out nine dimes.

On the Bulls side of the ball, Nikola Vucevic led Chicago with 23 points and Zach LaVine chipped in 17. DeMar DeRozan had one of his poorer games of the season, managing to score only 13 on 5-11 from the floor.  

Overall Chicago shot much better from the field at 52.1% compared to the 40.4% by the Raps but lost the game on the boards and the turnover column. Toronto only had 11 turnovers compared to the 19 by the Bulls which ultimately decided the game.

The Raptors are now in a great position to at the very least make the play-in tournament. If they are able to keep up the lofty standards from the last couple weeks, they might even be able to steal the 6th seed, from which they are only 4.5 games back.

Who’s Next for the Raptors?

The Raptors will begin a five-game road trip at Washington on Thursday night. The Wizards are currently a game behind the Raps for 10th place in the East, also looking to make a late push for a playoff spot. Washington has gone 5-5 in their last 10 and recently waived veteran Will Barton who has joined Toronto.

After two games in Washington, the Raptors will go on to face the Clippers, Nuggets and Lakers in a difficult trip to the West.

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