Butler, Bulls blast Blazers
PORTLAND, Ore -- Jimmy Butler scored 27 points as the Chicago Bulls went wire to wire for a 113-88 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night at the Moda Center.
Butler also had a season-high 12 rebounds and five assists for Chicago, which won its third consecutive game. Dwyane Wade contributed 19 points, five rebounds and five assists. Jerian Grant scored a season-high 18 points, and Robin Lopez had 13 points and 11 boards for the Bulls (7-4).
Damian Lillard scored 19 points and CJ McCollum added 17 for the Trail Blazers (7-5). Allen Crabbe had 15 points for Portland, which had won five of its previous six outings.
Chicago shot only 41.8 percent from the field but dominated the boards 67-49 and ruled in points in the paint, 52-36. Portland shot a season-low 35.8 percent from the field, including 9 of 34 (26.5 percent) from 3-point range.
Butler scored 19 points to stake Chicago to a 56-37 lead at intermission. The Bulls shots only 41.2 percent from the field, but the Blazers were much worse, firing at a 30.8 percent clip -- including 2 of 17 from 3-point range.
Chicago increased its advantage to 66-42 early in the third quarter. The Bulls settled for an 83-63 edge going into the final period.
The Bulls led 98-72 early in the fourth quarter. Portland never got closer than 19 points the rest of the way.
Chicago got off to a 10-0 lead as Portland missed its first six shots from the field. The Bulls extended the margin to 30-9 nine minutes into the game. The difference was 35-14 after one quarter, with Butler contributing 13 points and six rebounds and Chicago holding a 22-12 edge on the boards.
The Blazers made a couple of mini-runs but got within only 19 points at the half.
NOTES: Bulls PG Rajon Rondo did not play after spraining an ankle at practice Monday. Coach Fred Hoiberg said Rondo is day-to-day. "It's a long season, and we didn't want to take any chances on it," Hoiberg said. "Hopefully, every day he makes a little bit of progress." Second-year pro Jerian Grant started in Rondo's place. ... Chicago G Jimmy Butler collected 37 points, nine assists, eight rebounds and three steals in a 116-105 victory over Washington on Saturday. Butler is the first Bull to reach those kind of figures since Scottie Pippen had 37, eight and eight in 1995. Butler, a 2016 U.S. Olympian who was averaging 24.3 points entering Tuesday, is the first Bull who has scored at least 20 points with three steals in four straight games since Pippen (1994-95). ... Even with the loss, Portland has a 13-5 record overall against the Bulls since the start of the 2007-08 season.