Since The Big Three came together with the Miami Heat, the Chicago Bulls have had a lot of success against the Heat during the regular season at the United Center. That success continued Sunday, with the Bulls edging the Heat 95-88 in overtime. It was the Bulls' seventh win in their last eight games at home against the Heat in the regular season.
2014 NBA scores: Bulls, Rockets nab thrilling OT victories
The Bulls erased a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit and beat the Heat in overtime, while James Harden had 41 points in an overtime win for the Rockets over the Blazers.
Jonathan Daniel
It looked like Miami was going to run away in the second half, as they grabbed a 12-point lead early in the fourth quarter. But when LeBron James went to the bench for a brief rest, Chicago made a run to get back into the game. Things remained tight down the stretch, and the Heat went up two in the final minute on a pair of Dwyane Wade free throws.
But Kirk Hinrich responded with a bucket to tie the game back up, and Jimmy Butler stripped LeBron James before the two-time reigning MVP was able to attempt a potential game-winner:
The Bulls then dominated the overtime period, holding the Heat to just two points in the extra frame.
Joakim Noah delivered yet another inspirational performance for the Bulls, putting up 20 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and five blocks. D.J. Augustin added 22 points off the bench, knocking down 4-of-6 from three.
Wade had 25 points to lead Miami. James had 17 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, but Butler pressured him into an 8-of-23 shooting night.
Houston Rockets 118, Portland Trail Blazers 113 (OT)
James Harden hit a three in the final seconds to send the game to overtime, and the Rockets proceeded to pull out a thrilling victory over the Blazers. Harden finished the night with 41 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and six steals.
Houston trailed for much of the night, and they were down 13 points midway through the fourth quarter. That's when Harden came to the rescue, leading a furious charge to get the Rockets back in it. Jeremy Lin finally put Houston ahead with a three with 1:25 left, but a Damian Lillard bucket and two Wesley Matthews free throws put Portland back up three.
Then Harden did this:
Lin had 26 points off the bench, while Dwight Howard added 17 points and 12 rebounds.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 28 points to lead the Blazers, but he shot just 10-of-27 from the field. Matthews had 26 points and Lillard had 21 points.
Dallas Mavericks 105, Indiana Pacers 94
The Mavs sent the Pacers to a fourth straight defeat with an impressive victory in Dallas. Monta Ellis had 20 points and eight rebounds, while Devin Harris had 20 points off the bench.
Dallas led by 10 early in the fourth quarter before Indiana made a run to get within two. But it was the Mavs who finished strong as the Pacers’ offense struggled to close out the game.
Paul George broke out of his slump with 27 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Lance Stephenson added 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting, but he had six of Indiana's 21 turnovers on the night. The Pacers also got next to nothing from the bench, as their reserves totaled just four points.
Golden State Warriors 113, Phoenix Suns 107
The Warriors used a big third quarter to take control of the game before holding on late to beat the Suns. David Lee had 26 points and nine rebounds to lead Golden State.
Golden State trailed by five at halftime, but they outscored Phoenix 38-17 in the third quarter to take a 16-point lead into the fourth. The Suns got within four in the final minute, but that was as close as they got.
Gerald Green had 25 points to lead Phoenix, but he had a key turnover late. The Suns turned it over 20 times on the night.
Los Angeles Lakers 114, Oklahoma City Thunder 110
The Lakers fell behind by 18 points, then went up by 18 before barely holding on late to stun the Thunder. Jodie Meeks had a career game, dropping 42 points on 11-of-18 shooting. Pau Gasol had 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Los Angeles saw their 18-point fourth quarter lead cut to three after a thunderous Russell Westbrook dunk with just under a minute to go, and Oklahoma City had a chance to tie after an empty Lakers possession:
However, Westbrook missed a three and Kent Bazemore helped secure the win with a layup.
Kevin Durant notched a triple-double, putting up 27 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. Westbrook had 20 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, but he also turned the ball over eight times and shot just 7-of-23 from the field.
New Orleans Pelicans 111, Denver Nuggets 107 (OT)
Anthony Davis had 32 points and 17 rebounds to lead the Pelicans to a thrilling overtime win over the Nuggets. Anthony Morrow sent the game to overtime with a buzzer-beater at the end of regulation, and two Davis free throws with 1:22 left proved to be the game-winners:
Kenneth Faried had 22 points and 14 rebounds to lead Denver. The Nuggets got out to a 12-point lead after the first quarter, but a poor second-half allowed New Orleans to get back in the game.
Boston Celtics 118, Detroit Pistons 111
Jeff Green had 27 points to lead five Celtics in double figures in an impressive offensive performance against the Pistons. Rajon Rondo had 11 points and 18 assists, part of a 38-assist effort for Boston:
Detroit got several monster performances, with Josh Smith, Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe all putting up double-doubles. But the defense simply wasn't there, which has been a trend all season.
Brooklyn Nets 104, Sacramento Kings 89
Marcus Thornton torched his former team to the tune of 27 points as the Nets easily handled the Kings. Thornton knocked down 11-of-15 from the field and 5-of-8 from deep off the bench.
DeMarcus Cousins had 28 points and 20 rebounds, while Rudy Gay added 20 points. Unfortunately for Sacramento, those two were the only players who showed up. Isaiah Thomas was the only other King to reach double figures in scoring, and he had 10 points on 3-of-14 shooting.
Toronto Raptors 111, Minnesota Timberwolves 104
Kyle Lowry recorded a triple-double with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to lead the Raptors past the Wolves. DeMar DeRozan had 25 points to lead Toronto in scoring.
Kevin Love nearly notched a triple-double himself, putting up 26 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. But it was just another big Love effort in a loss.
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