Pacers cap season sweep of Bulls

[March 06, 2019]  Bojan Bogdanovic scored 27 points on 9-for-14 shooting, and the Indiana Pacers held on for a 105-96 win over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night in Indianapolis.

Darren Collison added 22 points on 7-for-10 shooting for the Pacers. Myles Turner registered 10 points and 11 rebounds, and he set a career high with seven blocked shots.

Indiana completed a four-game, regular-season series sweep over Chicago for the first time since the 2001-02 campaign.

Zach LaVine scored 27 points to lead the Bulls. Robin Lopez finished with 20 points, and Lauri Markkanen posted his sixth double-double in the past seven games with 14 points and 13 rebounds.

The Bulls trailed throughout the game until a highlight-reel play from LaVine gave them an 86-85 lead with 7:08 to go in the fourth quarter. LaVine took a pass beyond the arc, attacked the paint on a dribble drive and finished with a one-handed dunk.

Indiana responded with a 10-0 run to pull back ahead 95-86 with 3:58 remaining. Bogdanovic and Collision drilled back-to-back 3-pointers during the run, which also included a two-handed dunk by Turner.

Another 3-pointer by Bogdanovic made it 100-92 with 1:33 to play and helped the Pacers hang on to a comfortable lead.

The Pacers were on top 77-75 entering the fourth quarter. The Bulls evened the score six times in the third quarter but could not manage to grab their first lead.

Indiana led 49-42 at the half. Markkanen led the Bulls with 12 points at the break, and Bogdanovic led the Pacers with 10.

Pacers guard Wesley Matthews (2) brings the ball up court against the Chicago Bulls during the first quarter at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

The Pacers were in front by as many as 16 points in the first half. Wesley Matthews knocked down a 3-pointer to kick off a 13-2 run that covered the end of the first quarter and the start of the second quarter. Cory Joseph's pull-up jump shot capped the outburst and increased Indiana's lead to 33-17 with 10:33 to go before the intermission.

The Bulls closed the half on a 13-6 run to slice their deficit to single digits. LaVine threw down a dunk off an alley-oop pass from Otto Porter Jr. during the rally.

--Field Level Media

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