Coby White and DeMar DeRozan each scored 33 points as the Chicago Bulls rallied from a 23-point hole to defeat Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves 129-123 in overtime on Tuesday night.
Nikola Vucevic scored 24 points for Chicago, while Andre Drummond added 16 points, 16 rebounds, and four blocked shots. The Bulls were coming off a 123-115 loss to Sacramento, in which they nearly overcame a 30-point deficit.
Minnesota had won three of four games, with Edwards scoring 38 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. Karl-Anthony Towns scored 33 points to begin a four-game trip.
The Timberwolves led by 22 points at halftime, and Edwards’ 3-pointer made the score 74-51 with 10:32 left in the third quarter. But White spearheaded the Bulls’ comeback, scoring 30 points after the break.
Towns’ three tied it at 115 with 50.5 seconds remaining, and DeRozan missed a turnaround jumper as time expired in regulation.
DeRozan redeemed himself by scoring the Bulls’ first six points in overtime, taking him over 30 points for the seventh time this season. DeRozan also had five assists and four steals to help the Bulls win despite the absences of Patrick Williams and Zach LaVine, who are both slated to have season-ending surgery on their right feet this week.
Edwards was 5 for 9 from three, but he was called for a costly charging foul with 1:06 left in overtime, and he split a pair of free throws on the next trip down the floor as the Timberwolves attempted to tie the game on a single possession.
Towns made seven three-pointers, while Rudy Gobert had 12 points and a team-high 16 rebounds. The Timberwolves, who entered Tuesday with the NBA’s stingiest scoring defense and matched for the Western Conference’s top record, stormed off to a big lead as the Bulls missed their first nine 3-pointers. But Minnesota shot only 36.6% (15 for 41) in the second half.
