Vincent, Herro help the Heat remain hot with win over Bulls

Gabe Vincent and Tyler Herro each scored 20 points, and the Miami Heat improved their standing atop the Eastern Conference by topping the Chicago Bulls 112-99 on Monday night.

Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo each had 15 points for Miami, which has won nine of its last 10 games. Max Strus had all 13 of his points in the fourth quarter for the Heat.

Chicago guard DeMar DeRozan's streak of 10 consecutive games with at least 30 points ended; he finished with 18. Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 22 points, while Ayo Dosunmu had 18 and Nikola Vucevic added 14 for Chicago.

It was a big win for the Heat on multiple levels.

They moved two games clear of the second-place Bulls in the Eastern Conference standings, Miami's largest lead yet this season. And the Heat are now 3-0 against Chicago, ensuring Miami would hold a headto-head tiebreaker over the Bulls if one is needed to determine seeding.

The Heat led most of the way, building as much as a 24-point cushion.

RAPTORS 133, NETS 97 >> Scottie Barnes made his first 11 shots and had 28 points and a season-high 16 rebounds, leading the Toronto Raptors to a victory over the Brooklyn Nets night in the opener of a home-and-home series.

Blown out by Charlotte and Atlanta in their first two games after the AllStar break, the Raptors were on the good side of a romp against a Nets team that was missing their best players, their coach and apparently anyone who could guard Barnes.

TIMBERWOLVES 127, CAVALIERS 122 >> Karl-Anthony Towns hit a 3-pointer — on the same floor where he won the 3-point contest during NBA All-Star Weekend — with 11.8 seconds left and the Minnesota Timberwolves survived Cleveland's comeback for a win over the Cavaliers.

Towns' first 3 of the game helped the Timberwolves hang on after blowing a 23-point third-quarter lead. One of the league's best outside shooters, the 7-footer became the first center to win the 3-point contest, defeating seven guards.

D'Angelo Russell scored 25 points and Towns had 17 as Minnesota handed Cleveland its first home loss in nearly two months.

Kevin Love led the Cavaliers with 26.

MAGIC 119, PACERS 103 >> Wendell Carter Jr. had 21 points and 12 rebounds and eight Orlando players scored in double figures as the Magic beat the Indiana Pacers.

Mo Bamba and Franz Wagner had 15 points apiece for Orlando.

The game marked the return of Magic guard Markelle Fultz, who tore his left ACL almost 14 months ago. Fultz had 10 points and six assists in 16 minutes, leaving the game with the Magic up by 16 points in the middle of the fourth quarter.

Tyrese Haliburton had 23 points and seven assists for the Pacers, and Buddy Hield added 18 points.

Indiana forward Jalen Smith was ejected after picking up two technical fouls with 7:04 left in the third quarter. The ejection came in the middle of a 14-2 run by the Magic, and the Pacers never recovered.

KINGS 131, THUNDER 110 >> DeAaron Fox had 29 points and 10 assists, and the Sacramento Kings rolled past the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Oklahoma City's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had his third consecutive game with at least 30 points since returning from a sprained right ankle, scoring 37 points.