Bulls use huge 4th quarter to topple playoff-clinching Raptors, sweep season series

The Toronto Raptors will be happy not the see the Chicago Bulls again this season. 

On Wednesday night, the Bulls completed a 4-0 season sweep over the Raptors with a 116-103 win, and in the process stretched their lead for third place in the Eastern Conference to a game-and-a-half. 

The Raptors were playing on the second night of a back-to-back, but it didn't show early on, as they raced to a 13-point first-quarter lead behind a hail of 3-pointers and some tight defensive rotations. 

Things slackened up on the defensive end after that, but their offense remained red-hot. Terrence Ross broke out of a season-long funk to pour in 14 first-half points, while Greivis Vasquez, filling in for the injured Kyle Lowry, knocked down six of his first seven 3-point attempts en route to a team-high 22. 

The Raps led by as many as 11 points in the third quarter, but the Bulls closed the gap to five heading into the fourth, and in the final frame, the Raptors' fatigue really began to show. 

Chicago's offense ran roughshod, shooting 15-of-20 from the field and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc in the quarter.  

The Raps also went cold at the other end, and plays like this certainly didn't help: 

They wasted Vasquez's big night, as well as a solid showing from their starting frontcourt of Jonas Valanciunas and Amir Johnson, who combined for 23 rebounds, and held the Bulls to just two offensive boards. 

Of course, the Bulls didn't have many opportunities to grab those offensive boards because they shot a stupefying 61 percent from the field and 52 percent from deep in the game. 

In his second game back from an elbow injury, Jimmy Butler somehow scored 23 points on just eight shots (he hit seven), while Aaron Brooks - who, like Vasquez, is filling in for an injured starting point guard - knocked down 4-of-8 3-balls. 

Tony Snell scored 17 points in 18 minutes, and Nikola Mirotic continued his late-season Rookie-of-the-Year charge with 15 points and a game-high plus-24 rating. 

It's safe to say the Raptors' defense needs some work. 

It wasn't all bad news for them Wednesday night, though. The Raps clinched their second successive playoff berth (and the seventh in franchise history) despite the loss, thanks to losses by the Boston Celtics and Charlotte Hornets.