After getting blown out of the water on Monday against the Dallas Mavericks, the Chicago Bulls put together a much better performance last night in Indiana.

Ayo Dosunmu had a solid first half, scoring 14 points, attacking in transition, and getting to the free-throw line. Chicago shot a perfect 8 of 8 from the line in the first quarter, helping them jump out to an early lead.

Indiana’s bench was a problem for the Bulls last night, outscoring them 25-8 in the first half and orchestrating a 15-5 run that gave the Pacers a 62-58 lead at the half. The Bulls found themselves in a tight one down to the final minutes of the fourth quarter when DeMar DeRozan started to do his thing in the final frame as he does so often, hitting a jumper in the final seconds of regulation to force overtime.

The Bulls would come out on top in a back-and-forth overtime thanks primarily to DeRozan who finished with a season-high 45 points on 15 of 24 shooting. Chicago had six players in double figures, including Coby White (who didn’t play in the overtime after leaving the game in the final minute of regulation with an injury).

White left the game after he landed awkwardly after a Pascal Siakam block of his fastbreak opportunity. He limped to the locker room, and head coach Billy Donovan shared an update a

“It looks like his hip right now. I don’t have any more detail than that. I know in Chicago he’s gonna have to get examined what that is. I’m not quite sure whether X-rays or MRI … It’s their hip, they believe. But they don’t know the extent,” Donovan told reporters after the game.

The Bulls play the Clippers tonight, and White will probably miss that one.

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• The Big Ten Tournament is approaching, and Eli has put together a list of NBA Draft prospects to watch.

Brett has some thoughts on the Cubs trying to adjust Shota Imanaga’s rest between starts to mimic what he’s used to in Japan, where starting pitchers usually pitch one per week but much deeper into ballgames.

“The second biggest question with the transition is whether Imanaga can adjust his approach, command, and pitch usage to best attack MLB hitters. In the aggregate, MLB hitters tend to be better overall, hit the ball farther, skew more toward fly balls, are more aggressive up in the zone, and trade contact for power. This is not true for every hitter in Japan versus every hitter in MLB, but it’s enough that adjustments will be required for optimal success. We’ve talked a lot already about the need for Imanaga to elevate his unique four-seamer more often in the States.

“If you had to name a third question with the transition, you would probably land on the way starting pitchers are used in Japan as compared to MLB. Starters in the NPB, Japan’s top league, typically pitch just once per week as part of a six-man rotation. As a trade-off, they also tend to pitch deeper into each game. For example, although Shota Imanaga made just 24 starts total last year in Japan, he averaged nearly 7 innings per start. In MLB, although pitchers make upwards of 30+ in a full, healthy season, very few of those starters average more than about 6 innings per start. The entire pool of starting pitchers in 2023 average just over 5 innings per start.

“So, then, the question – as it has been for all top starting pitchers who come over from the NPB – is how to handle Imanaga’s workload. You’d like to get upwards of 30 starts out of him if he’s healthy, but changing his routine that dramatically may not be realistic, especially if you him to still be humming come late September.”

FULL STORY: Figuring Out How to Optimize Shota Imanaga’s Adjusted Schedule

More Chicago Cubs from Bleacher Nation

• Brett discusses the Cubs bench decisions, David Bote’s situation, Hayden Wesneski’s role, and more in this morning’s Cubs bullets:

More Chicago Sports from Bleacher Nation

Chicago Bears

• The Chicago Bears will not be landing Calvin Ridley Jr. after he signed a massive $92 million deal with the Tennessee Titans on Wednesday.

Chicago Blackhawks

• The Blackhawks have been much more entertaining to watch lately, and much of that has to do with them finally getting healthy and comfortable in their roles.

What’s on deck?

• The Cubs take on the A’s today at 3:05 PM CT. The broadcast will be on Marquee.

• The Bulls will host the Clippers tonight at 7:00 PM CT, and you can watch that one on NBC Sports Chicago.

• The Blackhawks are also in action tonight, hosting the Los Angeles Kings at 7:30 PM CT on NBC Sports Chicago Plus.