Luol Deng inspires the Chicago Bulls to victory over the Miami Heat

Miami Heat's 27-match winning run was brought to a shuddering halt by a Luol Deng-inspired Chicago Bulls.

Deng scored 28 points and Carlos Boozer added 21 points and 17 rebounds as the Bulls registered a 101-97 victory.

The Heat, who had been aiming to beat Los Angeles Lakers' 33-game winning run from 1971-72, had staged a late rally but 32 points from LeBron James were not enough.

Andre Miller missed a jump shot on the buzzer as the Denver Nuggets slipped to a 100-99 win over the San Antonio Spurs. Tim Duncan had 23 points and 14 rebounds for the Spurs.

The Oklahoma City Thunder remain one game behind the Spurs in the battle for top spot in the Western Conference with a 103-80 victory over the Washington Wizards.
Helped

Roy Hibbert scored 28 points to lift the Indiana Pacers to a 100-91 win over the Houston Rockets. Hibbert also collected down 13 rebounds, while Lance Stephenson added 21 points.

Kobe Bryant made a smooth transition to small forward, scoring 31 points as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 120-117.

Blake Griffin's 19 points helped the Los Angeles Clippers to a 105-91 victory over the New Orleans Hornets, while JR Smith scored 35 points to help the New York Knicks to a 108-101 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.

Al Horford weighed in with 26 points to lift the Atlanta Hawks to a 107-88 win over the Toronto Raptors, while Kemba Walker and Gerald Henderson registered 34 points apiece as the Charlotte Bobcats overcame the Orlando Magic 114-108.

Reggie Evans scored 22 points and grabbed 26 rebounds to help the Brooklyn Nets beat the Portland Trail Blazers 111-93, while Isiah Thomas scored 31 points in the Sacramento Kings' 105-98 win over the Golden State Warriors.

The Boston Celtics edged out the Cleveland Cavaliers 93-92, the Philadelphia 76ers saw off the Milwaukee Bucks 100-92 and the Utah Jazz beat the Phoenix Suns 103-88.