CLEVELAND – At least someone not named Alex Caruso was willing to play some defense for the Bulls.

Then again, Billy Donovan didn’t have much of a choice.

After yet another blown fourth-quarter lead in Saturday’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, there was the coach fielding questions about his own team’s softness.

Not usually the comfort zone for a guy that’s considered a players’ coach.

“I would just say, sitting in my chair, my seat, being around these guys, I think when you see the work they do, when they come in, the way they try and figure things out, way they try and get better,” Donovan said, when asked about the toughness of his 26-30 team. “I just see things that to me signify character. To me the experience in certain situations, the taking care of the ball, the experienced IQ plays, sometimes we’re short on those when we have to understand time, score, possession. ‘We just had two bad ones … whoa, whoa, whoa …’ They have to get better in those basketball moments, and in a lot of ways – the word you’re using is soft – I think a lot of it is them learning how to stop bleeding.”

There might not be enough bandages or enough time to apply them all.

With just 26 games left and hanging onto a play-in spot in the Eastern Conference, the Bulls look nothing like the second-round-playoff expectations that executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas put on them at the start of the season, or a roster that should have stood pat at last week’s trade deadline.

The Bulls do have the sixth easiest schedule left in the Eastern Conference, but with as many disappointing finishes as they’ve already had, strength of schedule gets thrown out the window.

The latest evidence of that came Saturday, facing a Cavs team that had played the night before down in New Orleans in a 10 p.m. EST tip, and didn’t arrive back home until 5 a.m. Meanwhile, the Bulls had an off-day in Cleveland, and shouldn’t have been the team that looked worn down in the final stanza.

But there they were, leading most of the night until All-Star Donovan Mitchell hit a three-pointer with 9:54 left in the game, seemingly sending the Bulls into a spiral.

And that’s the issue with this team, even going back to last season. When adversity hits, there’s seldom a counter punch. It’s almost as if they have become so used to the pending meltdown that they think it into existence.

“Me personally, no, but I can’t speak for everyone,” veteran center Nikola Vucevic said, when asked if the players were too easily falling into the “here we go again” mindset. “We’re not detailed enough in our execution. We make too many careless mistakes, and at this level you can’t do that. We talk about it, we just don’t do it. Unless we start doing it, it’s not going to happen for us.

“Teams are too good in this league, and players are too good in this league, and that’s the margin. Every team talent-wise, some teams have more, but it’s not a big gap. Where the really big difference comes in is how good are you at executing on both ends of the floor and end-of-game when it really matters. And that’s where we don’t do a good job, when teams turn it up. We’re so loose and go through the motions a lot, and that’s when it starts to hurt us.”

So is there time to turn this around? Donovan hopes so.

“I think we can,” Donovan said. “Sometimes us trying to make that extra play is where we fall short. When you get so predictable of Zach [LaVine] and DeMar [DeRozan] every time down the floor it becomes a lot easier to guard, and the rest of the group is not involved.”

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Forget all that worry about the top-ranked team. Simeon cemented itself as the No. 1 team by winning the city title. It took five overtimes to dispatch Curie and Kenwood, but the Wolverines got it done.

There were a a lot of losses in the second tier of teams. Hillcrest, Brother Rice, Rolling Meadows, Bolingbrook and Mount Carmel all lost to unranked or lower ranked teams. That’s a group that has a very established track record, so none of them fell too far but it is concerning to see teams with very high playoff aspirations losing games they should be winning this late in the season.

Downers Grove North jumped all the way into the top ten. The Trojans picked up solid wins this week against Waubonsie Valley and Glenbard West, but the major factor in the rise was so many teams losing winnable games while Downers Grove North appears to be improving. The Trojans haven’t lost since a two-point defeat to Hinsdale Central on Jan. 7.

Time to bring the state finals to Chicago?

The Public League’s championship week was an overwhelming success. Fans and coaches raved about the overall setup and the crowds turned out. Chicago Public Schools say that more than 5,000 fans attended the games at UIC on Saturday.

“[CPS] did a great job,” Simeon coach Robert Smith said. “Everything was top notch, even the little things for the teams that everyone doesn’t see.”

Smith has been so impressed with the new CPS administration that he’s taking things another step.

“This experience was better than last year at state,” Simeon said. “If I was Chicago I would be trying to get the state championship here. Here at UIC or Wintrust you have everything you need. You have the hotels and stuff to do for people comoing to town. Champaign is cool but there is no better place for basketball than Chicago.”

Injury woes

Glenbrook North guard Josh Fridman is out injured and will likely miss the playoffs. Fridman helped the Spartans knock off Rolling Meadows earlier this week but without him they were trounced by New Trier.

Fridman is one of the area’s best point guards and it will be extremely difficult for Glenbrook North to replace him. It’s a devastating injury for the Spartans as they head into the playoffs.

Jeremy Fears Jr. alarmed fans at Joliet West by walking out to accept his McDonald’s All-American jersey on Saturday with his shoulder iced up.

Fears didn’t play in the game against Joliet Central on Friday. His father, Jeremy Fear Sr., said Fears will likely sit out this week but should be good to go for the state playoffs.

The Tigers are the top seed at the Bolingbrook sectional, which has probably been underrated. Joliet West, the host Raiders, Lincoln-Way East and Oswego East are not only ranked but have been some of the area’s most consistent teams this season. There are two major darkhorses as well. Romeoville, the No. 6 seed, has won 20 games and Neuqua Valley, the No. 5 seed, knocked off Bolingbrook last week.

Super 25 for Feb. 12, 2023With record and last week’s ranking

1. Simeon (26-3) 1City champions

2. Benet (27-1) 2Handled Marist

3. Kenwood (23-6) 3Jaden Smith is a factor

4. Joliet West (24-5) 4The top seed at Bolingbrook

5. Curie (19-10) 7Nearly took down Simeon again

6. Young (21-6) 5Still a major threat

7. Hillcrest (25-3) 6Stumbled vs. TF North

8. Hinsdale Central (27-3) 10Hottest team in the area

9. Brother Rice (26-4) 8Lost to Lemont

10. Downers Grove North (25-3) 16Has improved steadily

11. Oswego East (24-5) 13Dominating the Southwest Prairie

12. New Trier (26-4) 14Beat Glenbrook North

13. Rolling Meadows (25-5) 9Lost to Glenbrook North

14. Bolingbrook (22-7) 11Lost to Neuqua Valley

15. Mount Carmel (23-6) 15Still unpredictable

16. St. Rita (19-10) 20Promising signs lately

17. Proviso East (21-6) 17At Leyden Tuesday

18. Lincoln-Way East (23-4) 18Beat Homewood-Flossmoor

19. Marist (23-6) 19So many talented underclassmen

20. Lyons (22-5) 22Fell short vs. Hinsdale Central

21. Hyde Park (22-6) 12Dark horse in Class 3A

22. Marian Catholic (22-7) 23Big test vs. De La Salle Thursday

23. Yorkville (24-5) 25At Lincoln-Way East Tuesday

24. Lemont (24-6) NRCastillo twins back, doing damage

25. Glenbrook North (24-4) 21Must overcome a key injury

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On Friday, the Chicago Blackhawks played an equally as weak Arizona Coyotes team and they barely escaped them with a win in overtime. It also just wasn’t that good of a night for them in terms of the tank either.

They knew that things would be very hard for them on Saturday night when they traveled up north to play the Winnipeg Jets. The Central Division’s only Canadian team is excellent and hard to beat this year.

Chicago lost to them by a final score of 4-1. Blake Wheeler had two for the Jets while Josh Morrissey and Mark Scheifele each had one. The Blackhawks’ only goal was scored by Tyler Johnson.

Again, the Hawks had no business beating a Cup contender like Winnipeg and they didn’t. Also, this was a good Saturday night for the tank as most of the other teams in the Connor Bedard sweepstakes collected at least a point.

The Chicago Blackhawks are going to continue losing games in big ways.

Getting through these games is incredibly hard for Chicago Blackhawks fans. However, it is painfully evident that it will all be worth it when you look at the draft board for this upcoming year. Guys like Connor Bedard, Adam Fantilli, and Leo Carlsson amongst there’s could be stars.

The trade deadline is going to play a big role in all of this. The Hawks lost big to the Winnipeg Jets at almost full strength, just wait until some of their big assets are moved away for picks and prospects.

Jonathan Toews missed another game which is starting to become curious. He hasn’t played in a while because of a non-COVID-related illness. Following his return to the ice, he is one of the big chips that could fall before the trade deadline.

Patrick Kane obviously leads the list of players in that mix as well but guys like Max Domi, Andreas Athanasiou, and Jake McCabe are getting some interest as well. This team could look wildly different soon enough.

The Blackhawks now get to enjoy Super Bowl Sunday but the Canadian trip will continue on Tuesday when they take on the Montreal Canadiens. Of course, that will always be a fun Original Six matchup.

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A Chicago Bears target is currently in talks with his current team ahead of free agency

The Chicago Bears have a lot of money to spend in the upcoming free agency period and have a lot of holes to fill on the roster.

Some of the most important holes to fill will be in the trenches. Chicago has needs all over the offensive line and defensive line going into the 2023 offseason and will address them to the best of their ability.

One player that has been connected to the Bears to fill a need is defensive tackle Daron Payne. The current Washington Commanders standout is seeking a big pay day as a free agent and will be a top target of a few teams if he hits the open market.

And that’s a big ‘IF’.

According to a report ahead of Sunday’s Super Bowl, the Commanders are in talks with Payne for a contract extension and that’s not good news for Bears fans. Here is what RotoWorld wrote on the situation:

The Commanders didn’t extend Payne last offseason, letting Payne play out his fifth-year option while drafting DL Phildarian Mathis in the second round. That backfired for Washington, with Payne posting career highs in sacks (11.5) and TFLs (18). Extending Payne at an expected $20 million per year, with DT Jonathan Allen set to count $21 million against the cap, would have Washington at over $40 million for its two starting tackles if they re-sign Payne. Franchising Payne would cost the Commanders $18 million.

The situation for the Chicago Bears

The Bears will have a lot of money to spend in free agency, which could lure a big name like Payne to come in and play defensive tackle in Chicago. But with this news, the Bears may have to look at other options on the market.

Now, there is a chance that Washington and Payne don’t get a deal done. The Commanders do have other needs including defensive back and could be active in that market as well. Plus, they have a decision to make on Chase Young as well.

The Commanders situation with Payne is certainly something to watch in the coming weeks for the Chicago Bears.

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As we inch closer to the 2023 NFL Draft, prospects will continue to rise at key positions. For the Chicago Bears, one of those key positions of need remains at wide receiver.

Going into this next season, we will likely see Darnell Mooney, Chase Claypool, Velus Jones Jr. and Equanimeous St. Brown as the four wideouts with pretty comfortable jobs. Two other spots, though, will be up for grabs. Most notably, the Bears need an alpha wide receiver.

The first round of the 2023 NFL Draft could see a handful of those taken, including TCU’s Quenton Johnston, USC’s Jordan Addison and Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

But, moving past that first round, the Bears could find themselves another great option and pay less draft capital to get him. The Bears will undoubtedly trade the number 1 overall pick, giving them some additional picks in this draft and likely next year’s. With multiple picks in the second or third round probable, Chicago should look at SMU standout receiver Rashee Rice.

He isn’t a first-round name, but Rashee Rice could become the alpha receiver the Chicago Bears have needed.

One thing people may not know about Rice is that he was given multiple Power 5 offers, but chose SMU. It’s not like there was a lack of talent coming out of high school. He’s always been one of “those dudes.”

At 6-foot-3, Rice has the prototypical frame you want to see in a dominant outside receiver. He’s got size, too, weighing around 205lbs.

Rice is an athlete, being able to go up and make tremendous catches at the point of attack. He uses his body well, whether it’s to position himself for his quarterback or to maneuver after the catch and gain extra yardage. The strength is evident within his frame.

Rice has a noted “alpha mentality” according to his draft profiles, and that’s just what the Bears need. They not only need that mentality, but the proof on the field, and Rice could give them just that.

Last year at SMU, Rice caught 96 passes for 1,355 yards and 10 touchdowns.

This is a player who is comfortable running different routes, but hasn’t had the chance to showcase all of what he’s capable of. That’s one reason he might fall a little bit, but his route running is nothing to worry about and should translate well because of his physical tools.

If Rice is there anywhere from the late second to late third round, he is absolutely worth a pick and could allow the Bears to focus on building the trenches with higher capital.

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With a virtual-reality headset over his eyes and noise-cancelling headphones over his ears, Blackhawks prospect Drew Commesso probably looks more like an astronaut than a goalie.

But with that VR headset, he’s using an app called Sense Arena that simulates hockey situations to improve reaction time. With those headphones, he’s pumping in crowd noise at full volume to desensitize himself to the distraction.

And with that extremely cutting-edge approach to his craft, he believes he’s only getting better.

“I’ll just do drills where it focuses on a one-on-one situation where a player will come down [the ice], situations where the crowd will be louder,” Commesso said. “That helps prepare me for the game [so] the crowd noise doesn’t really affect me. I can just focus on stopping pucks. It’s a new era of training, but it’s definitely helped me a ton this year. I have absolutely noticed a difference.”

Commesso is one of two elite Hawks prospects at Boston University, which is 20-7-0 and ranked No. 3 in the NCAA. Freshman forward Ryan Greene has been a big surprise as a major offensive contributor, as well.

BU goalie coach Brian Daccord introduced Commesso to Sense Arena. He now spends 20 minutes on it per day (in addition to normal team practice), perfecting his tracking through traffic and quickening his reaction speed without physically exhausting himself. He sharpens his mind with non-hockey-specific cognitive function exercises, too.

Commesso has also worked with Daccord this season to improve his skating ability, considering that another strength of his.

“I want to beat pucks before they get to the passer, instead of meeting them there, and part of that is staying low and at a steady level,” Commesso said.

He’s 15-5-0 with a .910 save percentage and 2.65 goals-against average this season.

Those numbers are a bit worse than his .914 and 2.52 last season, but not worryingly so. BU’s aggressive offensive system also leads to him facing a fair number of high-danger counterattacks, which don’t help his stats but probably do help him prepare for the NHL. And since Christmas, he has been stellar by any measure, going 9-2-0 with a .919 save percentage and 2.38 GAA.

“Goaltending is so mental, [and with] the little mental things I’ve been doing…I’ve noticed such an improvement in my readiness and my mindset,” Commesso said. “This year from last year, I’ve made such a big jump. I’m really happy where my game is. But I know there’s a ton of room for growth.”

Hawks assistant general manager Mark Eaton, who oversees prospect development, likes how “self-aware” Commesso is of “what he needs to do.”

Eaton is hoping BU can make a deep postseason run, though, to get Commesso more experience in terms of games played. He has made only 60 appearances in his college career so far, having missed time due to the pandemic and his impressive showing in the 2022 Olympics.

Fortunately for Eaton’s interests, a deep postseason run seems rather likely. Commesso, a Massachusetts native, called this the best BU team in years.

He’s likely to sign a pro contract with the Hawks at season’s end, joining Arvid Soderblom and Jaxson Stauber as the three prospects competing to be the Hawks’ future star in net. But he’s understandably concentrating on this college season and the “buzz around campus” right now.

“It’s pretty natural to think about [signing], but…Chicago has been great with me about letting me focus here at BU,” he said. “I’m sure we’ll talk once everything is over.”

Greene pastures

Eaton’s trips to Boston have also allowed him to watch Ryan Greene, a Hawks second-round pick last summer whose stock has risen even higher in the time since.

Greene, a center from Newfoundland, has experienced no difficulties translating his USHL junior-hockey production from last season (51 points in 59 games for Green Bay) to the NCAA level this season,tallying 22 points in 25 games for BU so far.

“He thinks the game well [and he’s] good on both sides of the puck, which is so important as a center,” Eaton said. “That transition from USHL to college isn’t always an easy one, but he has made that transition well. That’s due to his hockey sense and his ability to get up and down the ice.”

He models his game after Flames center Elias Lindholm, having been told that comparison so many times that he eventually embraced it, and the Hawks would surely be thrilled if he evolves into anything close to a Lindholm-like player.

“He’s a big player and he’s a strong, fast, and super smart,” Greene said. “A lot of the same attributes that drive my game drive his as well.”

Greene impressed at Team Canada’s training camp ahead of the world junior championships, but he was surprisingly cut from the final roster. As a 19-year-old, he won’t get another chance next year to participate.

He felt he was “deserving” of a spot — a sentiment shared by many in the hockey world — and has used the snub as fuel.

“Honestly, it was upsetting,” he said. “The first few days, you’re a little bit down on yourself. Once you get those first few days over with, you realize you can just use it as motivation. At least I did, personally. It still motivates me every day, and I’m sure it will for a while.”

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The Blackhawks’ long-term domination of the Ducks finally ended earlier this week.

But the Jets’ long-term domination of the Hawks only continued Saturday.

A three-goal second period powered Winnipeg to a 4-1 home win, completing their season-series sweep.

The Hawks were outscored by a 18-4 margin over the four-game series, in which Jets star goalie Connor Hellebuyck conceded almost nothing and Jets star defenseman Josh Morrissey looked almost unstoppable.

Morrissey fittingly scored the first goal Saturday by intercepting a weak pass from Jason Dickinson, beating Dickinson off the wall and into the slot and then ripping a backhand shot past a screened Petr Mrazek.

Morrissey then added an assist on Blake Wheeler’s power-play tip-in goal that made it 2-0 — which turned out to be the official game-winner — and thus finished with nine points against the Hawks this season.

Tyler Johnson scored the Hawks’ lone goal by depositing a rebound during a third-period push. He recorded 11 shot attempts and five on goal; Philipp Kurashev was also very active with seven attempts and five on goal. The Hawks could dent Hellebuyck (31 saves) no further, though, and eventually conceded an empty-net goal to seal the loss.

The Hawks have now lost 14 of their last 17 meetings against the Jets (dating back to April 2018), including eight of the last nine (dating back to February 2020).

Defenseman Jarred Tinordi provided a bright spot by returning to the lineup after missing nearly two months recovering from face surgery, logging 11:28 of ice time on the third pairing with Caleb Jones. He daringly fought Winnipeg’s Adam Lowry in the third period but emerged unscathed.

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CLEVELAND — DeMar DeRozan knows it’s not a two-man game.

But as far as the veteran forward was concerned, the fortunes of the Bulls the rest of the season is a two-man responsibility.

After another embarrassing night in a 97-89 loss Saturday to the lethargic-looking Cavaliers, DeRozan said that he and Zach LaVine need to find a rhythm — especially late in games — and get back to what they were doing more often in their first season together.

“We’ve just got to do a better job of understanding possessions in a game,” DeRozan said, when discussing the issues the two have had together on the court far too often this year. “I wouldn’t put it on teams having us figured out. I’d say 85% of it is picking and choosing on understanding the possession and not feeling so rushed into trying to hit a home run every possession.

“That’s on us and we’ve got to do a better job managing that, understanding that. And a lot of times it comes down to not even scoring. It’s not about us coming down and feeling we’ve got to be Superman and score 20 points in the fourth quarter. It’s about us playing the game the right way, understanding what needs to be done, how we can play off one another, how we can use each other to help everyone else on the team to be in better position to make plays for us as well. It’s on us more than anything.”

The game against Cleveland should have been a good first Step 1.

The schedule gave the Bulls (26-30) a great assist, considering the Cavs had to play Friday night in New Orleans, and because it was a nationally televised game, they were in a doubleheader and didn’t tip-off until 10 p.m. Eastern time. That meant they didn’t get back into town until almost 5 a.m., while the Bulls took Friday off in Cleveland, fully rested.

It played out like that early on.

Despite some serious turnover issues, the Bulls took a 49-40 lead into halftime. A dismal 16-for-44 (36.4%) from the field and 5-for-18 (27.8%) from three-point range was the effort from the home team. What continued to give Cleveland life? More Bulls turnovers.

Thanks to seven more in the third, the comfortable-looking lead was just five going into the final quarter.

The comeback was complete with 9:54 left in the fourth, when Donovan Mitchell hit a three-pointer to put Cleveland up 76-74. It only continued to slip from there, as the Bulls were outscored 20-4 to start that final period.

As for LaVine and DeRozan closing the game out? Didn’t happen. LaVine went just 2-for-3 in the fourth, while DeRozan was 0-for-3.

“We show it throughout the game, but the fourth quarter is always a new game,” DeRozan said. “There’s going to be nights we can’t control the shots we make or miss, but we control everything else we do. That’s making the next right read, trusting our teammates, play off of them as well. But we’ve got to find that rhythm first.”

Bigger concern is they might not have enough time to do that. On a night they were outscored 28-15 in the fourth and committed a season-high 22 turnovers, it was tough to see light at the end of the tunnel.

“It’s been [56 games] and we still haven’t figured it out,” veteran center Nikola Vucevic said. “It’s obviously a concern. If we keep dropping games like that we might drop out of the play-in, too, so there’s a lot at stake.”

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