1998 Chicago Bulls at San Antonio Spurs, March 14, 1998, Jordan Welcomes Duncan To the NBA

1998 Chicago Bulls at San Antonio Spurs, March 14, 1998, Jordan Welcomes Duncan To the NBA

CHI 96, SAS 86 – On March 14, 1998, the Chicago Bulls defeated the San Antonio Spurs in their regular season matchup, completing a sweep of the series. Michael Jordan scored 17 points in the second half to clinch the victory for the Bulls.

Player of the game:
Michael Jordan: 30 PTS, 12-22 FGM, 55 FG%, 6-7 FTM, 5 REB, 3 AST, 2 STL, 1 BLK

Notable performance:
David Robinson: 35 PTS, 13-23 FGM, 57 FG%, 9-13 FTM, 8 REB, 3 AST, 3 STL, 3 BLK

In their second encounter, Tim Duncan faced off against the Chicago Bulls, and this time Dennis Rodman was ready. In their first matchup, the game went to double overtime, with the Bulls narrowly winning 87-83 due to intense defense that limited scoring. For this game, the Bulls had most of their roster back, though Luc Longley was still absent.

David Robinson exploited Longley’s absence by scoring 35 points against Toni Kukoc. Rodman managed to hold Duncan to just 14 points while grabbing his usual 16 rebounds. Scottie Pippen, back in the lineup, had a subpar performance, shooting 5-for-17 from the field.

Michael Jordan and Kukoc led the Bulls’ offense, with Jordan scoring 30 points and Kukoc adding 21, both shooting over 50%.

Despite enduring multiple injuries and changing their starting lineup 18 times during the 1997-98 season, the Bulls still achieved a league-leading 62 wins, tying the Utah Jazz for the record.