Zach LaVine Drops 50 Points, Including 39 in First Half and 25 Straight

Zach LaVine joined NBA royalty on Friday evening by scoring 50 points, including 39 in the first half and 25 consecutive during Chicago's game against the Hawks.

The first-half outburst was the most points scored in a half by any NBA player this season. He trailed Kobe Bryant (who scored 42 in 2003) and Klay Thompson (40 in 2016) for the most points in the first half over the last 25 seasons.

Though Chicago is struggling to secure a play-in spot for the Eastern Conference playoffs in 10th place with its 22–28 record, LaVine earned his first bid to the All-Star Game as he cements himself as a top-10 scorer in the league. 

Prior to Friday's contest, he was averaging 27.1 points per game on 50.7% shooting from the field and 41.5% shooting from three-point range. 

During the first half against Atlanta, the 26-year-old guard tallied a scorching 13-for-19 from the field, 7-for-9 from three-point range and an unblemished 6-for-6 free-throw mark. The Bulls went into halftime with a 66–53 lead thanks to LaVine, but are barely holding onto the lead by the end of the third quarter.