DeMar DeRozan reaches a unique milestone Friday night in San Antonio

Chicago Bulls Guard DeMar DeRozan reached 20,000 career points Friday night against his old team, the San Antonio Spurs, in typical DeRozan fashion.

He becomes the 50th player in NBA history to reach the achievement.

Congratulations to DeMar DeRozan on scoring 20,000 career points in the NBA 👏 pic.twitter.com/ligImEnM4A

— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) October 29, 2022

After hitting the mid-range jump shot, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich called a timeout, leading to congratulations and cheers from his current and former teammates and the fans in attendance.

Congrats DeMar!

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SAN ANTONIO – It will likely never reach the soap-opera status that the Derrick Rose knee drama took on for the Bulls a decade ago.

But the Zach LaVine “left knee management” saga was starting to at least feel like the beginnings of a spin-off.

Listed as questionable leading up to the Spurs game on Friday, coach Billy Donovan made it official in his pre-game presser that LaVine would indeed miss the front-end of the back-to-back games, instead looking to play Saturday night when Philadelphia comes to the United Center.

It was the third game LaVine missed, and likely his norm for the time being when it comes to back-to-backs.

What Donovan did clear up was the Bulls medical team now seems to have a better grasp of the situation and how they want to handle it.

That was not necessarily the case last week, when LaVine missed the two road games to open the season in Miami and Washington, debuting last Saturday against Cleveland.

“I think there’s going to be a combination of the scheduling where [LaVine] may be able to get more rest on the front-end or back-end, what he’s come out of load-wise leading up to that point,” Donovan said. “I think there will be a lot of things that will go into it.

“Like I mentioned when the season started and he missed those two games, it was a lot of the medical guys had to get a grasp of how he was doing. But we just want to make sure that we’re managing him well and not putting him in situations that are preventing him from being on the floor when he can be.”

This weekend was the second of four back-to-backs the Bulls will play through the first three weeks of the regular season, with the next on Tuesday and Wednesday, playing in Brooklyn and then back home for Charlotte.

They do have a back-to-back, home-and-home with Toronto on Nov. 6-7, and then the schedule lightens up.

If the same schedule is kept intact, LaVine would likely continue sitting out the first game – which also happens to be all road games.

The unknown in all of this remained if this would be the way the entire season will be handled or just the first half?

LaVine couldn’t answer that when he was asked last week, and Donovan reiterated what his guard originally said.

The good news was that LaVine did get a light workout in during the Thursday practice, and also made the trip to be around his teammates.

Alex Caruso again started in his place.

Warming up?

It’s been baby steps, but Patrick Williams has shown a bit more life on the offensive end the past few games, and done it his way, which means not pressing the issue.

One thing the former No. 4 overall pick won’t do is shoot just to shoot, even if teammates are telling him to.

“They know I won’t,” Williams said of that idea. “Once I start to see, ‘OK, these are the spots I need to be aggressive,’ then I think it will be OK. Because then the coaching staff knows, and now the players know, ‘Hey, in these moments, Pat will be aggressive. Let’s use his skillset to help us.’ But as long as we keep winning, that’s what matters first and foremost.”

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Class 8A

#32 Conant (5-4) at #1 Lincoln-Way East (9-0), Fri. 6

#17 Neuqua Valley (7-2) at #16 Lane (7-2), Fri. 6

#25 Stevenson (6-3) at #8 Warren (8-1), Fri. 7

#24 Andrew (6-3) at #9 Huntley (8-1), Fri. 7

#29 Belleville East (5-4) at #4 South Elgin (9-0), Fri. 6

#20 Bolingbrook (6-3) at #13 Maine South (7-2), Fri. 7

#28 Lockport (5-4) at #5 Glenbard West (8-1), Sat. 1

#21 Homewood-Flossmoor (6-3) at #12 Glenbrook South (8-1), Fri. 7:30

#31 Oswego East (5-4) at #2 York (9-0), Fri. 7

#18 Marist (6-3) at #15 Naperville North (7-2), Fri. 7

#26 Downers Grove South (6-3) at #7 Palatine (8-1), Fri. 7

#23 Minooka (6-3) at #10 Glenbard East (8-1), Fri. 7

#30 Rich (5-4) at #3 Plainfield North (9-0), Fri. 6

#19 Naperville Central (6-3) at #14 Lyons (7-2), Fri. 7

#27 Plainfield South (6-3) at #6 Loyola (8-1), Sat. 1

#22 Edwardsville (6-3) at #11 O’Fallon (8-1), Sat. 7

Class 7A

#32 Buffalo Grove (4-5) at #1 Mount Carmel (9-0), Sat. 1

#17 Downers Grove North (6-3) vs. #16 Lincoln Park (7-2) at Lane, Sat. noon

#25 Bradley-Bourbonnais (5-4) at #8 Collinsville (8-1), Fri. 6

#24 Brother Rice (5-4) at #9 Jacobs (8-1), Fri. 7

#29 Maine West (5-4) at #4 St. Charles North (8-1), Fri. 7:30

#20 Hoffman Estates (6-3) at #13 Elk Grove (7-2), Sat. 1

#28 Reavis (5-4) at #5 Prospect (8-1), Fri. 7

#21 Geneva (6-3) at #12 St. Rita (7-2), Fri. 7

#31 Argo (5-4) at #2 Hersey (9-0), Fri. 7

#18 Batavia (6-3) at #15 Guilford (7-2), Fri. 6:30

#26 Libertyville (5-4) at #7 Yorkville (8-1), Fri. 7

#23 DeKalb (6-3) at #10 Moline (8-1), Fri. 7

#30 Plainfield Central (5-4) at #3 Pekin (9-0), Fri. 7

#19 Normal (6-3) at #14 Hononegah (7-2), Fri. 7

#27 Willowbrook (5-4) at #6 Wheaton North (8-1), Fri. 7

#22 Larkin (6-3) at #11 Lake Zurich (8-1), Fri. 7

Class 6A

#16 Schurz (5-4) at #1 Wauconda (8-1), Fri. 7

#9 Antioch (6-3) at #8 Notre Dame (6-3), Fri. 7

#13 Deerfield (6-3) at #4 St. Ignatius (7-2), Fri. 7

#12 Grayslake Central (6-3) at #5 Belvidere North (7-2), Fri. 7

#15 Crystal Lake South (5-4) at #2 Prairie Ridge (8-1), Sat. 1

#10 Riverside-Brookfield (6-3) at #7 Kaneland (6-3), Fri. 7

#14 Senn (5-4) at #3 Grayslake North (8-1), Fri. 7

#11 Harlem (6-3) vs. #6 Amundsen (7-2) at Winnemac, Sat. 2

#16 Eisenhower (5-4) at #1 Lemont (9-0), Fri. 6:30

#9 Quincy (7-2) at #8 Glenwood (7-2), Fri. 7:30

#13 Kenwood (6-3) at #4 Perspectives (8-1), Sat. 1

#12 Washington (6-3) at #5 Bremen (8-1), Fri. 7

#15 Oak Forest (5-4) vs. #2 Simeon (9-0) at Gately, Fri. 7:15

#10 Champaign Centennial (7-2) at #7 Crete-Monee (7-2), Sat. 1

#14 Danville (6-3) at #3 Normal West (8-1), Sat. 1

#11 Richards (6-3) at #6 East St. Louis (7-2), Sat. 3

Class 5A

#16 Westinghouse (5-4) at #1 Sycamore (9-0), Sat. 7

#9 Carmel (6-3) vs. #8 Bulls Prep (7-2) at Lane, Sat. 3:30

#13 Pritzker (5-4) at #4 Goode (8-1), Sat. noon

#12 St. Viator (5-4) at #5 Sterling (7-2), Sat. 2

#15 Fenwick (5-4) vs. #2 Morgan Park (8-1) at Gately, Sat. 5

#10 ITW Speer (6-3) vs. #7 Payton (7-2) at Lane, Sat. 7:15

#14 Hillcrest (5-4) at #3 Boylan (8-1), Sat. 1

#11 Nazareth (5-4) at #6 Glenbard South (7-2), Fri. 7

#16 Ottawa (5-4) at #1 Mahomet-Seymour (9-0), Fri. 7

#9 Jacksonville (6-3) at #8 Metamora (6-3), Sat. 2

#13 LaSalle-Peru (5-4) at #4 Morris (7-2), Fri. 7

#12 Centralia (5-4) at #5 Triad (7-2), Sat. 2

#15 Dunlap (5-4) at #2 Highland (8-1), Fri. 7

#10 Marion (6-3) at #7 Mascoutah (6-3), Sat. 1:30

#14 MacArthur (5-4) at #3 Peoria (8-1), Sat. 1

#11 Mt. Vernon (5-4) at #6 Kankakee (7-2), Sat. 3

Class 4A

#16 Ridgewood (5-4) at #1 Richmond-Burton (9-0), Fri. 7

#9 Sullivan (6-3) vs. #8 UP-Bronzeville (6-3) at Hales, Fri. 7:15

#13 Providence (5-4) at #4 Wheaton Academy (8-2), Fri. 7:30

#12 Phillips (5-4) at #5 Joliet Catholic (7-2), Fri. 7

#15 Johnsburg (5-4) vs. #2 Hyde Park (9-0) at Gately, Sat. 1

#10 Dixon (6-3) at #7 Rochelle (7-2), Fri. 1

#14 Marengo (5-4) at #3 St. Francis (8-1), Fri. 7

#11 Comer (6-3) at #6 Evergreen Park (7-2), Fri. 6

#16 Geneseo (5-4) at #1 Carterville (9-0), Sat. 1

#9 East Alton-Wood River (6-3) at #8 Coal City (6-3), Sat. 2

#13 Effingham (5-4) at #4 Rochester (8-1), Sat. 1

#12 Mt. Zion (6-3) at #5 Breese Central (7-2), Sat. 1

#15 Hall (5-4) at #2 Sacred Heart-Griffin (9-0), Fri. 7

#10 Waterloo (6-3) at #7 Richland County (7-2), Sat. 2

#14 Quincy Notre Dame (5-4) at #3 Macomb (9-0), Sat. 7

#11 Columbia (6-3) at #6 Murphysboro, Fri. 7

Class 3A

#16 Peotone (5-4) at #1 Princeton (9-0), Fri. 6

#9 Elmwood-Brimfield (6-3) at #8 Genoa-Kingston (7-2), Sat. 1

#13 King (5-4) at #4 IC Catholic (8-1), Fri. 7

#12 Monmouth-Roseville (5-4) at #5 Stillman Valley (8-1), Fri. 7

#15 Carver (5-3) at #2 Reed-Custer (9-0), Sat. 2

#10 Catalyst Maria (6-3) at #7 Pecatonica (7-2), Sat. 1

#14 Winnebago (5-4) at #3 Seneca (9-0), Fri. 7

#11 Lisle (5-4) at #6 Byron (8-1), Fri. 7

#16 Paxton-Buckley-Loda (5-4) at #1 Prairie Central (9-0), Fri. 7

#9 Roxana (6-3) at #8 Hillsboro (6-3), Sat. 1:30

#13 Harrisburg (5-4) at #4 Tolono Unity (8-1), Sat. 2

#12 Monticello (5-4) at #5 Mt. Carmel, Ill. (8-1), Sat. 2:30

#15 Stanford Olympia (5-4) at #2 Benton (8-1), Sat. 3

#10 Robinson (6-3) at #7 St. Joseph-Ogden (6-3), Sat. 3

#14 Carlinville (5-4) at #3 Williamsville (8-1), Fri. 7

#11 Beardstown (5-4) at #6 Eureka (7-2), Fri. 7:30

Class 2A

#16 North Lawndale (5-4) at #1 Maroa-Forsyth (9-0), Sat. 2

#9 El Paso-GRidley (7-2) at #8 Farmington (7-2), Sat. 3

#13 Newman C.C. (5-4) at #4 Rockridge (8-1), Sat. 1

#12 Bloomington C.C. (6-3) at #5 Mercer County (7-2), Sat. 2

#15 Westville (5-4) at #2 Bismarck-Henning (9-0), Fri. 7

#10 Unity-Payson (6-3) at #7 Knoxville (7-2), Sat. 1

#14 Chicago Christian (5-4) at #3 Wilmington (8-1), Sat. 6

#11 Clifton Central (6-3) at #6 Tri-Valley (7-2), Sat. 2

#16 Chester (5-4) at #1 St. Teresa (9-0), Sat. 3

#9 Athens (7-2) at #8 Cami White (7-2), Sat. 2

#13 Auburn, Ill. (6-3) at #4 Pana (8-1), Fri. 7

#12 Fairfield (6-3) at #5 North Mac (8-1), Sat. 2

#15 Flora (5-4) at #2 Johnston City (9-0), Sat. 1

#10 Arthur-Lovington (7-2) at #7 Vandalia (7-2), Sat. 2

#14 Althoff (5-4) at #3 Shelbyville (8-1), Sat. 3

#11 Nashville (7-2) at #6 Red Bud (7-2), Sat. 1

Class 1A

#16 Chicago Richards (5-4) at #1 Lena-Winslow (9-0), Sat. 2

#9 Stark County (5-4) at #8 Oneida (5-4), Fri. 7

#13 Aurora Christian at #4 Fulton (7-2), Sat. 2

#12 Rockford Lutheran (5-4) at #5 Annawan-Wethersfield (7-2), Sat. 1

#15 Corliss (5-4) at #2 Hope Academy (9-0), Fri. 7

#10 Forreston (5-4) at #7 St. Bede (7-2), Sat. 2

#14 Morrison (5-4) at #3 Ottawa Marquette (8-1), Sat. 1

#11 Dakota (5-4) at #6 Iroquois West (7-2), Sat. 1:30

#16 Madison (5-3) #1 Ridgeview-Lexington (9-0), Fri. 7

#9 Salt Fork (6-3) at #8 Red Hill (7-2), Sat. 2

#13 Brown County (5-4) at #4 Tuscola (7-2), Sat. 2

#12 Villa Grove (6-3) at #5 Routt (7-2), Sat. 1

#15 Dupo (5-4) at #2 Camp Point Central (9-0), Sat. 1

#10 Central A&M (6-3) at #7 Sesser-Valier (7-2), Sat. 2

#14 Calhoun (5-4) at #3 Greenfield-NW (8-1), Sat. 2

#11 Rushville (6-3) at #6 Cumberland (7-2), Sat. 2

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There are plenty of good matchups during week 9 of the college football season as we inch closer to conference championships and the playoffs.

The primetime games on Saturday are exciting and here are the best bets for the 12pm window

Ohio State vs. Penn State on FOX

100% the game of the day but we have to watch it at noon instead of having a “White Out” at Beaver Stadium. Ohio State won by 44 points last week and the spread was -30. It’s pretty impressive to win a game like that and by that much and have everybody say you played a bad game. I stated in the recap of last weeks best bets that it did feel weird they won by that much because Ohio State absolutely did not look sharp. They’re a dominant team though. When you get a chance just look at their offensive lineman they are monsters. The o-line has been good all year but to be fair to them they struggled to run the ball last week for the first time all year. Penn State has been slipping a little bit more in their run defense that started off so hot. To me Ohio State needs run the ball like they used to if they want to cover.

Penn State is home back to back weeks and the crowd is going to favor them heavily in this game at least for a little while. They looked good last week on both sides of the ball. Sean Clifford made some solid throws and their two headed rushing attack was brilliant. Michigan has a good defense and Penn State did not fair well against them.

They were away which is a fair argument but you can argue Ohio State has a better defense than Michigan led by Jim Knowles and Tommy Eichenberg. Sean Clifford like I’ve already said just isn’t that good of a college football QB and I think he’ll have some flashes in this game where he throws a couple single coverage sideline deep balls but consistently I don’t think he keeps them on the field. If Penn State can run the ball well then I think they cover easily to be honest. If the pressure can stay off Clifford and he’s not forced to throw often on 3rd down Penn State is in business.

The Bet: Stroud needs to bounce back after looking sluggish, Ohio State defense is legit and I don’t trust Sean Clifford. Ohio State -15.

TCU vs. West Virginia on ESPN

TCU comes into this game looking like a real contender. At least to everybody else. I was against TCU last week with Kansas State +3.5 and TCU yet again injured a QB and came back and won the game. Let’s look at the list of QB’s that have been hurt against them. Dillon Gabriel for OU, Jalon Daniels for Kansas, Spencer Sander for OK. St (he stayed in the game but he was not ok) and finally Adrian Martinez for Kansas State as well as the backup Will Howard. Now I like Max Duggan the TCU QB because he is tough as nails but he’s not a great QB.

I’ve seen plenty of his games to know he’s not very accurate and he doesn’t mind forcing passes over the middle. What I’m trying to say is TCU should not be undefeated. They have caught some breaks these past weeks and I while I think they are a good team I just feel like they will run out of gas soon enough.

West Virginia is in the type of year that a lot of Big 12 teams will find themselves in. They play well one week against a Big 12 opponent and then they get beat by another Big 12 opponent and so on. Just like the Pac-12, the Big 12 just beats each other up. Even when Oklahoma was dominant in college football they always had one random loss to someone in the Big 12 that’s just what the conference is. While they sit at 3-4 and their transfer QB JT Daniels has not been as advertised they play at home this week and the simple fact of it is that West Virginia at home vs. a ranked opponent is scary. If they can keep the ball on the ground with Tony Mathis and not force JT Daniels to throw too much West Virginia is in business.

The Bet: West Virginia at home is scary, TCU I feel is running out of gas. West Virginia +7.5.

Notre Dame vs. Syracuse on ABC

Notre Dame stinks this year there’s no other way to put it. I don’t understand how they didn’t go and try to find a better college football QB than Tyler Buchner to start the year. He is obviously hurt now but he is not the answer there. They currently have Drew Pyne as the QB and he’s been ok in his role. He certainly throws a lot to the best tight end in the country Michael Mayer as he should the guy is a beast. The defense hasn’t been stellar this year even with a defensive head coach and plenty of top recruits. It will be interesting to see how they attack the offense Syracuse runs with Shrader and Tucker both keen to run the ball.

Syracuse had a tough game to swallow last week when they lost to Clemson. It is fair to say though that the defense for Syracuse is good. They certainly will need to be good again as the one thing that Notre Dame has going for them is their size. We saw Syracuse fair well against a bigger team in Clemson as they have some monsters on the o-line and d-line.

Notre Dame is the same, as watching them this year when they play a team like BYU who just does not have the size on the line they got bullied. Shrader will need to be a little smarter this week and find ways to have consistent drives in the second half. Pressure was an issue late last week where I believed he could have taken off earlier, as he likes to run, instead of sticking in the pocket. Finally Syracuse needs to give the ball to Sean Tucker more as he barely touched it against Clemson and when he did he was very very good.

The Bet: Notre Dame’s size scares me as well as trusting Syracuse head coach Dino Babers but Syracuse is home and they have a shot to beat Notre Dame in college football which is massive for them. Syracuse -2.5.

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College football continues during the 3:30 window with plenty of exciting matchups.

Here are the best bets for the 3:30 games on 10/29.

Florida vs. Georgia on CBS

Florida comes into this game off a bye which is helpful as this is the team in college football you would like to have an extra week to prepare for. Unfortunately Georgia is off a bye too. Anthony Richardson has been poor to be frank. Watching him this year the one thing that has been noticeable is his touch when he throws. He doesn’t really have it because every throw he makes is as hard as he can throw it whether it a two yard screen or 60 yard bomb its the same arm speed.

When it comes to this Florida team he’s the story at the end of the day they revolve around his play. The Tennessee game nobody thought Florida had a shot going to Tennessee but Anthony played his best game all season and only lost by 5. If Anthony Richardson can play a little bit like he did against Tennessee then this could be interesting and potentially shake up college football.

Georgia comes off a bye as well after two impressive game beating Vandy 55-0 and beating Auburn 42-10. The week prior to that was when they struggled against Missouri and only took the lead with 4 minutes left in the game. The biggest question mark for everyone is Stetson Bennett and how he has been playing. On the year he only has 7 touchdowns throwing and they put up 42 points per game. On the contrary to Anthony Richardson, Georgia does not need Stetson Bennett to be amazing because of their defense and how well they do to turnover the ball or put the offense in plus territory.

The Bet: This is technically a neutral site game at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville and its hard to take a big spread for Georgia after seeing what Richardson can do at Tennessee. I’m going to take the over instead 56.5.

Oklahoma State vs. Kansas State on FOX

I discussed Oklahoma State last week and I talked about Spencer Sanders mostly. Oklahoma State is 6-1 and if you’ve watched their games you’re wondering “how” just like me. Spencer Sanders is the QB and I’m just not sure how this team is successful in college football. He is a tough kid but his throws are very bad and he just takes off half the time and runs.

They won the Texas game because Quinn Ewers and Texas is awful. Spencer and Oklahoma State didn’t play well at all Texas had a billion chances to win but were miserable. Oklahoma State has to go into Bill Snyder Family Stadium and they won’t have the crowd to keep them in it this time.

Kansas State lost a tough one last week to TCU when their starting QB Adrian Martinez and even their backup Will Howard went down. Adrian Martinez is not sure if he will play this week but Will Howard the backup who looked solid is said to be available. If either one play I do feel that they will be ok against this Oklahoma State defense. Kansas State has a solid defense this year and hopefully they will be able to expose Spencer Sanders and close them out which no one has been able to do.

TCU had to come back two scores in the 4th quarter to beat Ok. St a couple weeks back. Hopefully Kansas State stays on the gas pedal.

The Bet: Oklahoma State can’t keep getting away with these wins. Take Kansas State -1.5.

Illinois vs. Nebraska on ABC

Illinois is rolling with Bret Bielama this year. I previewed the game coming up earlier this week but its safe to say Illini fans are excited and ready for Illinois to run the table. Tommy DeVito and Chase Brown have been good with Chase Brown being exceptional. Chase is over 1,000 yards already and he is the guy Illinois has to rely on offensively. Defensively they are statistically playing unbelievable in all of college football giving up 8.9 points per game and under 80 rush yards per game. Illinois is off a bye so they have had time to prepare which is good because Nebraska is sneaky now as they’ve flown under the radar since the Frost firing.

Nebraska has been out of the news for a while which is best case scenario for them as they have been able to focus on football. Nebraska is also off a bye but it won’t matter much if Casey Thompson can’t stay out of trouble and make the right passes.

Illinois defense is on of the best in college football and Casey will have to try and play this game safe to make sure Nebraska has a chance throughout this game. The defense is obviously the weakest point as they let up about 500 yards total a game. As long as Illinois play their game with balance then Nebraska may struggle to contain Illinois. The home field will be helpful for Nebraska as the fans always shout in Lincoln no matter what.

The Bet: Illinois has a great chance to win the Big Ten West and coming off the bye for the later half of the season this game is important to start it strong. Illinois -7.5.

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