Windy City Wrap Up: The Struggle Continues

If you’re a Chicago sports fan, last week made you consider moving. Two Cubs victories were a desperately needed ray of light shining through the clouds of across-the-board losses.

The Blackhawks came home March 31 for another defeat after four away games leaving them with four straight losses. Before Tuesday night, the last Blackhawks victory was March 24 over the New York Islanders, 4-3. Since then, they’ve lost 5-1 against the Philadelphia Flyers, 6-1 against the New York Rangers and 5-3 against the New Jersey Devils.

With Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, the Blackhawks closed out March with 5 games won out of 16 games played. They’ve been ranked last in the Central Division since their loss to the Nashville Predators last week with a total win/loss of 27-34.

Chicago made 21 shots on goal to 24 from the Jets, and two of the Blackhawks’ three goals came from left winger Tyler Bertuzzi. Winnipeg ended the game with a goal from fellow left winger Kyle Connor just over four minutes into overtime.

The Blackhawks will be on the road to Canada to take on the Edmonton Oilers April 2. 

The Bulls fared no better, going on a four-game losing streak after their March 23 bout with the Houston Rockets ended with a final score of 132-124. Since then, they’ve fallen to the Philadelphia 76ers 157-137, the Oklahoma City Thunder 131-113, the Memphis Grizzlies 125-124 and the San Antonio Spurs 129-114.

Against San Antonio, the Bulls were outscored every quarter except the fourth, scoring 32 to the Spurs’ 27. Chicago guard Tre Jones scored 23 points, and San Antonio center Victor Wembanyama scored 41.

The Bulls are back in Chicago April 1, the first home game since their last victory. The Bulls managed to win five games out of the 15 games played this month and currently hold the 12th spot in the Eastern Conference. Their next game is against the Indiana Pacers, who are ranked last in the Eastern Conference.

The Bulls take on the Pacers April 1 at 7:30 p.m. in Chicago before going to New York to play the Knicks April 3.

The Cubs began the regular season at home March 26 with a 10-4 loss to the Washington Nationals, but returned two days later for a 10-2 victory over the Nationals. Washington hit back March 28, handing the Cubs a 6-3 loss before heading home. 

The Cubs won 7-2 March 30, in their first regular season game against the Los Angeles Angels, and Tuesday night they flipped back to losing and fell to the Angels 2-0.

The only scores of the night came from a single by Angels’ catcher Logan O’Hoppe during the sixth inning, which sent outfielder Jorge Soler and third baseman Jeimer Candelario to home. Chicago ended with four hits to the Angels’ five.

The Cubs are currently middle of the pack, ranking at eighth in the National League and are 2-3 as of Wednesday. The Cubs play next April 1 against the Los Angeles Angels and then head to Cleveland April 3 for their first away game with the Guardians. 

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign advanced to the Final Four after defeating the University of Iowa March 28. They take on the University of Connecticut April 4. This is the Fighting Illini’s first time back to the Final Four in 21 years after they were knocked out of the Sweet Sixteen by the Huskies two years ago.