Celtics rout Bulls for 50th win, close in on No. 2 spot in East

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Jaylen Brown scored 25 points, Al Horford added 17 on 7-of-7 shooting and the Boston Celtics routed the Chicago Bulls 117-94 on Wednesday night for their 50th victory.

The Celtics have won three in a row and are 27-6 since Jan. 22. They can wrap up the second spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs Thursday night with a victory at Milwaukee.

"It’s a pretty simple formula," Celtics coach Ime Udoka said. "Play defense at an elite level. Share the ball, be unselfish on offense. And the results are there."

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Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) drives to the basket against Chicago Bulls forward Patrick Williams, left, and center Tristan Thompson during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Chicago, Wednesday, April 6, 2022. The Celtics won 117-94. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Jayson Tatum scored 16 points for Boston. He was 5 of 18 from the field, making only one of eight from 3-point range.

The Bulls have lost two straight. They claimed a playoff berth Tuesday.

DeMar DeRozan scored 16 points for Chicago, and Nikola Vucevic added 13 points. Vucevic had four of the Bulls’ 17 turnovers.

"I think what happens is when you’re winning, you have a false sense of reality of who you are," Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. "And when you’re losing, you have a false sense of reality of who you are."

The Celtics had a 16-4 run midway through the first quarter to take a 31-14 lead. They shot 57.8% in the first half, going 9 of 18 from 3-point range. Reserve guard Payton Pritchard was 3-for-3 from long distance in the second quarter.

Coming off a home loss to Milwaukee on Tuesday night, the Bulls committed 10