BOSTON (AP) -- LeBron James and the Miami Heat escaped Boston with their 23rd win in a row. All that's in front of them now is the NBA record for consecutive victories.
Five years to the day after the Celtics snapped Houston's winning streak at 22 games, James scored 37 points and made the go-ahead basket with 10.5 seconds left in Miami's 105-103 victory on Monday night.
After overcoming the largest deficit they've faced during their streak, the only team left for the Heat to catch is the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers, who won 33 in a row.
"It means a lot," James said. "I know the history of the game. To be sitting in second place right now ... for us to be there and doing it the way we want to do it, it means a lot."
Jeff Green scored a career-high 43 points for Boston, which was without Kevin Garnett for the second straight game. Paul Pierce had 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists for the Celtics, but he missed a 3-pointer with 3 seconds left that could have given Boston the win.
Instead, the defending NBA champions won a regular-season game in Boston for the first time in 11 tries.
"This was a passionate game, a lot of history between the two teams," said Miami forward Shane Battier, who played for the Rockets when their 22-game win streak ended on March 18, 2008, and was with the Heat when they knocked Boston out of the playoffs in each of the last two seasons. "Not that it's playoff intensity ... nothing's like the playoffs."
James added 12 assists and Mario Chalmers scored 21 for Miami, which has not lost since Feb. 1.
76ERS 101, TRAIL BLAZERS 100
PHILADELPHIA -- Spencer Hawes had 18 points and 13 rebounds, Jrue Holiday scored 27 points and Philadelphia held off Portland.
The Sixers wasted a 14-point lead and Portland took the lead late in the fourth. Holiday, though, rallied the Sixers and stretched the lead to 101-97 on a pair of free throws.
Damian Lillard hit a 3-pointer to cut it to 101-100. Holiday fell on the inbound pass and the ball sailed into the Sixers' bench, giving Portland the ball with 7.1 seconds left. LaMarcus Aldridge missed the potential winner on a turnaround over Hawes.
NUGGETS 119, BULLS 118, OT
CHICAGO -- Andre Iguodala's 3-pointer with 7.1 seconds left in overtime sent Denver to its 12th consecutive win.
Wilson Chandler led the Nuggets with 35 points, Corey Brewer added 16 and Ty Lawson 13.
Iguodala finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Andre Miller had 13 assists.
Nate Robinson scored 34 points for Chicago, which lost for the seventh time in 11 games. Luol Deng added 21 points, Marco Belinelli scored 18, and Joakim Noah had 12 rebounds and 14 points.
SUNS 99, LAKERS 76
PHOENIX -- Luis Scola scored all 14 of his points, including his second 3-pointer of the season, in the fourth quarter and Phoenix pulled away to beat Los Angeles, which was without Kobe Bryant for the second straight night.
Steve Nash scored 19 against his former team, but was just 6 of 17 as the Lakers shot 33 percent for the game.
The Suns outscored the Lakers 28-10 in the fourth quarter to snap a four-game losing streak.
Dwight Howard had 16 points and 11 rebounds, but was just 6 of 18 from the field for the Lakers, still without injured Pau Gasol.
KNICKS 90, JAZZ 83
SALT LAKE CITY -- J.R. Smith scored 20 points, Raymond Felton had 19 and short-handed New York defeated Utah to snap a four-game losing streak.
The Knicks (39-26) dropped games at Golden State, Denver, Portland and the Los Angeles Clippers by an average margin of 20 points, but salvaged the last game of their trip and stayed a game ahead of the Nets in the Atlantic Division.
New York was without leading scorer Carmelo Anthony, who practiced earlier Monday and indicated his right knee feels better since he had fluid drained. New York also remained without center Tyson Chandler, bothered by a strained neck muscle, and forward Amare Stoudemire, who recently underwent knee surgery.
BOBCATS 119, WIZARDS 114
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Gerald Henderson had 27 points, Kemba Walker came up big late and Charlotte snapped Washington's three-game win streak.
Walker scored nine of his 18 points in the final three minutes to spark a 12-0 run, lifting the Bobcats to only their second win in their last 14 games. Walker shot 8 of 14 from the field and had seven assists.
Henderson, who came in averaging 22.5 points over his previous five games, was 8 of 16 from the field and 10 of 11 on free throws. He also tied a career high with eight assists.
Ben Gordon had 19 points and Josh McRoberts added 17 for Charlotte.
MAVERICKS 127, HAWKS 113
ATLANTA -- Darren Collison scored 24 points and Dallas set season highs for points in a half and a game.
Dallas led 68-55 at halftime and kept adding to the lead in the second half. Dirk Nowitzki, who had 22 points, hit two free throws as the Mavericks reached 100 with their first points of the final period.
Dallas made 57.3 percent of its shots (51 of 89). The Hawks also had a strong night on offense, shooting 56 percent from the field with eight scorers in double figures, but could come no closer than 11 points in the second half.
Collison made 10 of 14 shots from the field, going 2 of 3 from 3-point range.
Jeff Teague scored 19 points, Al Horford had 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Josh Smith added 13 points for Atlanta.
PACERS 111, CAVALIERS 90
CLEVELAND -- Gerald Green scored 20 points and Tyler Hansbrough, starting in place of the injured David West, had 18 points and 11 rebounds to lead Indiana.
West missed the game with a sprained lower back sustained Saturday against Philadelphia, but the Pacers dominated without their second-leading scorer. Green scored 13 points in the second quarter and Hansbrough, making just his second start of the season, led a balanced attack.
C.J. Miles led Cleveland with 21 points, but injuries continued to plague the Cavaliers. Guard Dion Waiters didn't play after the first quarter because of a sore left knee and Cleveland played its fourth straight game without All-Star guard Kyrie Irving, who is out with a sprained left shoulder.
NETS 119, PISTONS 82
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Deron Williams scored 31 points in 28 minutes, and Brooklyn easily won the opener of an eight-game road trip.
Detroit lost its ninth straight and fell to 2-13 since the All-Star break. Pistons coach Lawrence Frank returned after missing six games to be with his seriously ill wife. Frank is planning to return to New Jersey before Detroit plays Friday in Miami.
The Nets, coming off a 12-point loss to Atlanta on Sunday, pulled within a half-game of New York in the Atlantic Division, with the Knicks playing later Monday at Utah.
WARRIORS 93, HORNETS 72
NEW ORLEANS -- Stephen Curry scored 30 points and Golden State won easily for the second straight night.
Curry, who scored 29 points in a 30-point victory at Houston on Sunday, made 10 of his 19 field goal attempts, going 6 of 9 on 3-pointers, hitting one from as far as 29 feet.
David Lee added 20 points and 11 rebounds, and Klay Thompson scored 13 points for the Warriors.
Ryan Anderson had 21 points and nine rebounds for the Hornets, who came in tied for the Western Conference's worst record and have lost four straight. Anthony Davis added 16 points and Greivis Vasquez 14.
GRIZZLIES 92, TIMBERWOLVES 77
MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Mike Conley had 20 points and six assists and Memphis snapped a two-game losing streak.
Conley was 8 of 14 from the field and connected on 3 of 6 from beyond the arc to help Memphis get its 10th straight win in the series. Marc Gasol finished with 16 points and Jerryd Bayless added 15. Zach Randolph had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Tayshaun Prince scored 12 points and grabbed a season-high 14 rebounds.
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