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Two huge Eastern Conference showdowns in Florida today as the Heat hosted the Boston Celtics and the Magic hosted the Chicago Bulls. Derrick Rose added another bullet to his MVP resume with a dominant 39 point performance in which he hit 13 of 17 shots from the floor and all 10 of his free throws leading the Bulls to a 102-99 victory over their Eastern Conference rivals who were without Dwight Howard who was serving a suspension. Ryan Anderson scored 28 points starting in his place and added 10 rebounds and Jameer Nelson had 17 points and 11 assists, but it wasn't enough to slow down the top team in the Eastern Conference.

Meanwhile, in Miami, the Heat blew out the Celtics 100-77 giving them their first win over Boston this season in four tries. Boston led by 1 after one, but Miami outscored them 79-55 over the final three quarters as they took a one game lead in the chase for the number two seed in the Eastern Conference. Miami, whose bench has struggled all year, had points from all six bench players who got in the game led by Mario Chalmers' 9 points and Joel Anthony chipped in 10 rebounds as the Heat overcame rough shooting nights from Mike Bibby and Dwyane Wade (6/22 combined). Miami outrebounded Boston 42-26 as centers Jermaine O'Neal and Nenad Krstic combined for 1 rebound in 26 minutes. Paul Pierce had 24 points to lead Boston in a losing effort. LeBron James led all scorers with 27.

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