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Ayo Dosunmu sets Bulls rookie record en route to career night

cody taylor
·3 min read
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Ayo Dosunmu sets Bulls rookie record en route to career night

Chicago Bulls rookie Ayo Dosunmu on Monday registered a new career-high in points and set a franchise rookie record during a 111-110 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Dosunmu finished with 24 points, eight assists, five rebounds and one blocked shot in 35 minutes of work. He went 10-of-14 from the field, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range, as the Bulls narrowly avoided blowing a 28-point second-half lead.

The 38th pick knocked down his first nine shots of the game before finally missing a layup late in the third quarter. His nine consecutive makes to start the game broke the previous team record by a rookie of eight set by Orlando Woolridge during the 1981-82 season.

Dosunmu lost track of how many consecutive makes he had.

I didn’t know what I was. I knew I didn’t miss a shot but I didn’t know the exact percentage. … I was just trying to stay focused. I was trying to stay in the moment and I feel like I was in the zone and, defensively, I just wanted to continue that. I think, at times, when you’re in a zone, and you celebrate too much, you take away from that zone you’re in so I just tried to stay laser-focused.

The performance by Dosunmu followed up a tough outing on Sunday in a loss to the Orlando Magic. He had just seven points and five rebounds in 40 minutes as the Bulls lost by 19 points.

Bulls head coach Billy Donovan thought that outing motivated him.

He has a lot of pride and works really hard and I think he was disappointed with the way he played in Orlando. I think he wanted to come back and play better. I give him credit for the way he responded tonight and the way he played. He was a two-way player tonight: He was good offensively and defensively.

Without Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, the Bulls will continue to rely on Dosunmu in the starting lineup. He has started in each of the last six games and scored in double figures in four of those contests, including a then-career-high 21 points on Jan. 15.

Dosunmu has been praised by his teammates and coaching staff for the energy and effort he brings on a nightly basis. Now that the Bulls are thin in the backcourt, they will need him to continue to bring that and he has proven he can do so.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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