DeMar DeRozan drops 50 points on Clippers, leads Bulls to OT win after missed free throw
DeMar DeRozan more than made up for his miss at the end of regulation on Thursday night.
The Chicago Bulls star, despite missing a game-winning free throw in the final seconds of the fourth quarter, led them to a huge 135-130 overtime win against the Los Angeles Clippers. DeRozan put up 50 points in the win, and scored or assisted on 13 of their 17 points in the extra period.
DeRozan is the 14th player across the league to have a 50-point game this season, which is the most in NBA history. Half of those players did so in the last month. DeRozan is the sixth Bulls player in history to have a 50-point game.
"DeMar is unbelievable," Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. "After the game he said to me, 'I'm sorry for missing the free throw.'
"I'm like, 'DeMar, we wouldn't have been in overtime if it wasn't for the things you did.' He was great."
DeMar DeRozan misses critical free throw
Though he got them there eventually, the game didn’t need to go into overtime in the first place.
DeRozan was fouled by Paul George while shooting a 3-pointer with just 3.5 seconds left in the fourth quarter. The Bulls were down by two, meaning all he had to do was sink his free throws and the game was essentially theirs.
An 87.2-percent foul shooter, DeRozan hit the first two easily, but then his third was just off the mark.
oh dear. pic.twitter.com/7F1m8weDYf
— Giannis Wobtetokounmpo (@WorldWideWob) April 1, 2022
That was the only free throw he missed all night.
In the end, it doesn’t matter. The Bulls pulled out the win in overtime, and ended that period on a 9-6 run in the final minute. DeRozan scored six of those nine points for Chicago, and assisted on the other three.
"He holds himself to such a high standard, and I think that's what makes him a great player," Donovan said. "Whether it's missing a free throw at the end there to put us up by one ... he really holds himself to a high standard.
"I think that's part of the reason why he's such a great great player, because his expectation of how he expects himself to perform every single night, he holds himself to that standard individually and personally."
Reggie Jackson led the Clippers with 34 points and seven assists while shooting 6-of-9 from behind the arc. George — who put up 34 points in his return from an elbow injury on Tuesday — added 22 points, and Marcus Morris finished with 20 points.
DeRozan shot 17-of-26 from the field and had six assists and five rebounds to go with his 50 points. Nikola Vucevic added 22 points and 14 rebounds, and Zach LaVine added 21 points and five assists. The Bulls have now won three of their last four games.
