Luis Scola and the fast-paced Phoenix Suns heaved a collective sigh of relief after snapping a 12-game road losing streak with a rousing 97-81 win over the Chicago Bulls.
Argentine forward Scola scored 22 points and bench player Michael Beasley weighed in with 20 as the Suns stunned the Bulls at the United Center to improve to 13-26 for the season.
Phoenix outshot Chicago by 49 per cent to 36 from the field and out-rebounded their opponents 46-42 with a welcome return to form after being beaten in their five previous games.
"It was a much, much, much-needed win for us," Suns head coach Alvin Gentry told reporters after his team recorded a 2,000th victory for the franchise in their 3,599th game.
"And it was against a quality team, so that made it even better. For the first time in a long time, I thought we played well for four quarters, where we executed."
Forward Carlos Boozer led the way with 15 points on six-of-14 shooting for the Bulls, who slipped to 20-15 just three days after a 104-96 upset by the lowly Milwaukee Bucks.
"I have to get more out of our team," Chicago head coach Tom Thibodeau said. "Everyone has to do it, starting with me. It's my job to have them ready. Right now we're not doing as well as we should.
"We have to play with more intensity, more of an edge. We are not doing that. We have to correct it."
Mario Chalmers tied a Miami club record with 10 three-pointers in the Heat's 128-99 NBA rout of the Sacramento Kings.
Chalmers, whose 34 points were a career-high, connected on 10 of his 13 long-range attempts to tie the mark set by Brian Shaw on April 8, 1993.
LeBron James added 20 points, seven assists and five rebounds for reigning NBA champions Miami, who had lost their previous two games.
Isaiah Thomas finished with a career-best 34 points and five assists for the Kings, who have lost four straight games amid reports that the team could be sold to a group that would relocate them to Seattle.
Miami led by at least 18 points and by as many as 38 during the third quarter and took a 103-72 lead into the fourth period.
Chalmers was the only Miami starter to remain in the game in the final frame, making two more three-pointers to tie Shaw's franchise record. He said he asked coach Erik Spoelstra to give him the chance.
"I had asked Spo to put me back in," Chalmers said. "I knew what the record was and I just wanted to go in there and try and beat the record."
The Indiana Pacers picked up their fourth consecutive win after they beat the Charlotte Bobcats 96-88.
George Hill top-scored with 19, while D.J. Augustin added a season-high 18 for the Pacers who were missing leading scorer Paul George through illness.
Jrue Holiday led the way with 30 points, while Thaddeus Young had 18 points and 12 rebounds
Jason Richardson scored 16 points for the Sixers, who will be consoled that 12 of their next 13 matches are at home after eight straight on the road.
Utah Jazz fought off a late Detroit Pistons comeback to win 90-87. The Jazz had looked comfortable 13 points ahead with three minutes, 26 seconds left but a late rally put them within three and the Pistons could have taken the game to overtime had Brandon Knight sunk a three-pointer with seconds remaining.
The Dallas completed a one-sided 104-83 win over Memphis Grizzlies as the Mavericks won consecutive games for the first time in a month.
Shawn Marion finished with a season-high 20 points, Dirk Nowitzki added 17 as all five starters scored in double figures with Chris Kaman scoring eight straight points in the third quarter and finishing with 14. O.J. Mayo had 11 and Darren Collison 10.
Elsewhere, the Washington Wizards beat the Atlanta Hawks 93-83 while the Philadelphia 76ers ended a five-game winless streak with a 107-100 win over the Houston Rockets.
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