Rondo helps Celtics trounce Heat

Rajon Rondo had a triple-double and the host Boston Celtics handed visiting Miami its biggest loss of the season, pulling away for a 91-72 win over the Heat Sunday.

"We told Rondo that we needed him to be a scorer. Not a playmaker, a scorer," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "He set the tone at the beginning of the game by doing that and I thought that loosened it up for everybody."

The Celtics outscored the Heat 31-12 in the third quarter, turning a 49-44 halftime lead into an 80-56 advantage. They stayed ahead by at least 19 the rest of the way.

Rondo finished with 16 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds, reaching the triple-double mark with 81/2 minutes to play. It was his fifth triple-double of the season.

The Celtics increased their Atlantic Division lead to one game over idle Philadelphia and lead the Knicks by 31/2.

The Heat, playing their third game in four days, were led by LeBron James with 23 points but he had no assists.

Thunder 92, Bulls 78:Russell Westbrook scored 27 points, Kevin Durant had 26 points and 10 rebounds and host Oklahoma City (49-12) moved within a game of the Bulls in the race for the NBA's best record. The Thunder (40-12) pulled away by outscoring Chicago 31-12 in the third quarter and clinched a playoff berth. The Bulls (42-12) played without Derrick Rose for the 10th straight game.

Nuggets 104, Magic 101: Ty Lawson scored 12 of his 25 points in the second half and Arron Afflalo added 22 points as visiting Denver beat short-handed Orlando. The Magic played without center Dwight Howard, who missed his first game of the season with back spasms.

Lakers 120, Warriors 112: Kobe Bryant scored 40 points and Pau Gasol 26 as host Los Angeles rallied. David Lee led six Warriors in double figures with 27 points.

Pacers 104, Rockets 102: Danny Granger had 32 points and seven rebounds as visiting Indiana won in overtime.

-- AP