CHICAGO — Jakob Poeltl tied a career high with 20 points and set one with 16 rebounds, and the San Antonio Spurs used a huge fourth quarter to beat the Chicago Bulls 106-99 on Wednesday night.
The Spurs trailed by 23 in the second quarter and were down 58-40 after their lowest-scoring first half of the season. But they dominated Chicago 39-19 in the fourth to come away with their second straight win after losing three of four.
Derrick White scored 17 points — nine in the final quarter. Dejounte Murray, Keldon Johnson and Patty Mills each scored 14, and the Spurs came out on top even though they made just 8 of 31 3-pointers.
Zach LaVine led Chicago with 29 points after scoring 40 the previous night in a win over Oklahoma City. Thaddeus Young, playing his 1,000th game, scored 16. And Patrick Williams grabbed 14 rebounds.
The Bulls led 80—67 through three quarters, only to have San Antonio open the fourth on a 12-0 run. Chicago responded with a 9-2 spurt. But the Spurs reeled off 17 in a row.
Dejounte Murray gave them a 90-89 lead with a floater in transition and capped the run with a 14-footer to make it 98-89 with 2:44 remaining.
TIP-INS
Spurs: The Spurs’ previous low for points in the first half was 45, and they matched one by scoring 16 in the opening quarter. … The Spurs hope to have F DeMar DeRozan (personal reasons) back when they visit Cleveland on Friday, though coach Gregg Popovich said it’s “not in stone, yet.” DeRozan missed his fourth consecutive game, while F Keita Bates-Diop (strained right hamstring) sat out his second in a row. … Murray had a suggestion for LaVine after the All-Star went off for 40 points in Tuesday’s romp over Oklahoma City. He wrote “SIT OUT TOMORROW AND GET SOME REST!!!” in response to LaVine’s Instagram post following the game. LaVine responded with laughing emojis.
Bulls: The 16 points allowed in the first quarter matched a season low for Chicago. … Coach Billy Donovan had plenty of praise for Young, a 14-year veteran. “Great guy. All the about team,” Donovan said. “Appreciate the investment he’s made in a lot of the younger guys because that takes energy to do that. He’s been really patient with those guys. I think think he’s a great role model in a lot of ways.”
UP NEXT
Spurs: At Cleveland on Friday night.
Bulls: At Denver on Friday night.
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
