NBA Daily Blog: Celtics beat the Heat in South Beach 115-107. Bulls get revenge against the Knicks in Chi-Town 98-86.

Kevin Garnett takes a shot against Udonis Haslem

Photo ©NBA/Celtics.com

The Boston Celtics pick up a huge road victory against the Miami Heat at the American Airlines Arena 115-107. The Celtics improve to 33-24 with the victory and keep their lead in the Atlantic Division while the Heat drop to 40-16 while keeping hold of the 2nd spot in the East.

All Celtics starters finished in double-figures with Paul Pierce leading the way with 27 points and 7 rebounds, Kevin Garnett added 24 rebounds, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks. Rajon Rondo finished with another double-double 18 points and 15 assists which keeps his streak of consecutive 10+ assists games to 18. Brandon Bass had a double-double 12 points and 10 rebounds. Avery Bradley scored 11.

LeBron James led the Heat with a near triple-double 36 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists. Dwayne Wade who returned from injury added 20 points and 5 assists. Mario Chalmers scored 18. Chris Bosh came up with 13 points and 9 rebounds.

C.J. Watson drives over Tyson Chandler

Photo ©NBA/Bulls.com

No Derrick Rose? No problem. As the Chicago Bulls get their revenge against the same New York Knicks team they lost to in New York with a 98-86 victory at the United Center. The Bulls maintain their lead in the East at 44-14 while the Knicks drop to 29-28.

Richard Hamilton led the Bulls with 20 points. Luol Deng finished with a double-double 19 points and 10 rebounds. Kyle Korver added 14 points and 7 rebounds. Carlos Boozer had 10 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals.

Carmelo Anthony once again led the Knicks with 29 points, 5 assists and 4 steals. J.R. Smith scored 14. Iman Shumpert scored 12. Tyson Chandler finished with a double-double 10 points and 15 rebounds.

In Washington, DC, the Washington Wizards came up with a big win over the Orlando Magic at the Verizon Center 93-85. Center Kevin Seraphin led the Wizards with a double-double 24 points, and 13 rebounds. Jordan Crawford scored 21. John Wall added 15 points and 7 assists. Cartier Martin and James Singleton each scored 12. The Magic who were playing without Dwight Howard and Hedo Turkoglu were led by Jameer Nelson with 19 points and 7 assists. J.J. Redick scored 15. Quentin Richardson scored 14. Glen Davis had a double-double 12 points and 10 rebounds. Jason Richardson scored 10.

In Cleveland, the Cleveland Cavaliers pick up the win against the Charlotte Bobcats at the Quicken Loans Arena 103-90. Lester Hudson led the Cavaliers with 25 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists coming off the bench. Anthony Parker scored 19. Antawn Jamison scored 17. Alonzo Gee added 13. Omri Casspi scored 12. Gerald Henderson led the Bobcats with 21 points. Rookie Kemba Walker scored 20. D.J. Augustin had a double-double 16 points and 11 assists. Another rookie Bismack Biyombo had 12 points and 8 rebounds.

In Newark, the Philadelphia 76ers snap a 5 game losing streak as they beat the New Jersey Nets at the Prudential Center 107-88. Lou Williams led the 76ers with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Both Spencer Hawes and Thaddeus Young each had 19 points and 8 rebounds. Jrue Holiday scored 14. Andre Iguodala added 13 points and 7 assists. The Nets with the loss knocked them out of playoff contention were led by Kris Humphries with a double-double 20 points and 10 rebounds. Deron Williams added 14 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Johan Petro scored 12. MarShon Brooks scored 10.

In Dallas, the Dallas Mavericks beat the Sacramento Kings at the American Airlines Center 110-100. 6 Mavericks players finished in double figures with Dirk Nowitzki and Rodrigue Beaubois leading the way with each scoring 15 points. Jason Terry and Delonte West each scored 13. Brendan Haywood scored 11. Shawn Marion had a double-double 10 points and 14 rebounds. Jason Kidd who returned from injury finished with 7 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds. DeMarcus Cousins led the Kings with 25 points and 18 rebounds. Tyreke Evans, Marcus Thornton and Isaiah Thomas each scored 16. Jimmer Fredette scored 13.

STANDINGS AS OF 4/11/12 (12:34 PHT)
WEST: 

1. Thunder (nw) 42-15, 2. Spurs (x) 40-15, 3. Lakers 36-22, 4. Clippers 34-23, 5. Grizzlies 33-23, 6. Rockets 32-25, 7. Mavericks 32-26, 8. Nuggets 31-26, 9. Suns 30-27, 10. Jazz 30-28, 11. Trail Blazers 27-31, 12. Timberwolves 25-33, 13. Warriors 22-34, 14. Kings (o) 19-39, 15. Hornets (o) 15-42

EAST:

1. Bulls (x) 44-14, 2. Heat (x) 40-16, 3. Pacers 35-22, 4. Celtics 33-24, 5. Hawks 34-23, 6. Magic 34-24, 7. 76ers 30-27, 8. Knicks 29-28, 9. Bucks 28-29, 10. Pistons 21-36, 11. Nets (o) 21-38, 12. Cavaliers 19-36, 12. Raptors (o) 20-38, 14. Wizards (o) 14-44, 15. Bobcats (o) 7-49

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