MIAMI - Cross another item off Miami's to-do list. The Heat have wrapped up home-court advantage for the Eastern Conference playoffs.
Dwyane Wade matched a career-high with 39 points, easily enough to help offset the absence of Shaquille O'Neal and lift the Heat to a 104-86 win over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night - a win that assured Miami the No. 1 seed for the East playoffs.
Miami's franchise-record home winning streak is now 18 games; the Heat have held double-digit leads in all but one of those. Tuesday's largest lead was 23 - against a Bulls team that came in with a nine-game winning streak.
Miami led by 14 after one quarter and 20 at the half, even though their 7-foot-1, 327-pound center was home, fending off a stomach ailment.
Udonis Haslem added 16 points and 15 rebounds before being ejected late for Miami, which now has the league's longest home win streak since Sacramento's 18-game run three seasons ago. Damon Jones added 17 points and Eddie Jones scored 15 for Miami. Chicago got 14 points from Andres Nocioni and Ben Gordon.
Mavs oust Magic for 50th win
DALLAS - Erick Dampier scored 16 in his first start since returning from a long stay on the injured list, helping Dallas beat Orlando 114-105 and secure its fifth straight 50-win season. The Magic were without Grant Hill (sore left shin) for a second straight game. Although DeShawn Stevenson made up for it by scoring a career-high 29 points, Orlando fell 11/2 games behind Philadelphia for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and a half-game behind New Jersey. Orlando had little luck making this game close. Even when the Magic opened the second half by hitting 14 of their first 16 shots, the Mavs countered by making 12 of 14. Seven Mavs scored in double figures, with Jerry Stackhouse adding 17 points. Steve Francis had 16 points and 11 assists for Orlando.
CELTICS 116, WIZARDS 108: Boston blew a 16-point lead but closed with a 21-12 run to beat Washington behind 25 points from Paul Pierce and 21 from Raef LaFrentz. After watching the Wizards spend practically all game at the free-throw line, the Celtics won by making all 17 of their free throws in the fourth quarter.
CLIPPERS 104, BOBCATS 102: Shaun Livingston made a 14-foot jumper with 1 second to play to give Los Angeles consecutive road victories for just the second time this season. The Clippers seemed to have the game in hand over the final 2 minutes, with Charlotte having to foul them every possession. But Brevin Knight made a pair of free throws, scored on a driving layup, then hit a 3-pointer with 7 seconds to play to tie the game at 102.
HORNETS 96, HAWKS 86: Lee Nailon scored 19 points and visiting New Orleans extended Atlanta's losing streak to 13 games. The Hornets won despite not having a starter score in double figures. P.J. Brown added 13 points and Chris Andersen had 12 to help New Orleans snap a five-game skid on the road.
JAZZ 90, TRAIL BLAZERS 79: Matt Harpring had 17 points and seven rebounds and Utah ended a three-game losing streak. Reserves Ben Handlogten and Kris Humphries scored 11 each, and the Jazz held off the short-handed Blazers, who brought just nine players because of injuries.
NETS 111, CAVS 80: Vince Carter scored 27 and New Jersey continued its push for a playoff berth while LeBron James scored 24, but could not keep Cleveland from its eighth loss in 12 games.
NUGGETS 94, GRIZZLIES 91: Carmelo Anthony scored 24 points and Kenyon Martin added 20 for Denver. The Grizzlies got off one final shot at the buzzer but Brian Cardinal's 3-point attempt was wide right and missed the rim.
PACERS 97, KNICKS 79: Stephen Jackson scored 33 points to lead Indiana's fourth win in a row. Reggie Miller, in his last appearance at Madison Square Garden, went just 3-for-15 from the floor and finished with 13 points. Stephon Marbury had 19 points for New York.
SUNS 125, LAKERS 99: Quentin Richardson led Phoenix's record-setting 3-point barrage with seven, and Phoenix knocked the defending Western Conference champion Lakers out of the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. The Lakers, who lost for the 12th time in 13 games, were without injured Kobe Bryant. Richardson had 25 points and 10 rebounds. Marion and Leandro Barbosa, who scored 14 points, made four 3-pointers each as Phoenix set a franchise record with 17.
MAVERICKS: Coach Avery Johnson has agreed to an estimated $2.5-million contract that keeps him in charge the next four seasons.
