AFP/Chicago

Chicago Bulls forward Taj Gibson swings from the basket after scoring between Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh (L) and Miami Heat center Ronny Turiaf (R) in their NBA game at the United Centre in Chicago on Thursday
With NBA Most Valuable Player Derrick Rose struggling, C.J. Watson and the rest of the Bulls stepped up Thursday to lead Chicago to a 96-86 over-time victory over Eastern Conference rivals Miami.
Chicago clinched the Eastern Conference Central Division title and moved four games ahead of Miami for the top playoff seed in the East.
Rose, still finding his way back after a 12-game injury absence, was just 1-of-13 from the floor in what was statistically his worst NBA performance.
But Watson helped fill the void as he drained a game-tying three-pointer at the end of regulation as part of a 16-point performance.
“I’m not worried about my stats or anything,” Rose said. “I’m just trying to get my timing back before the playoffs start. Could I make up excuses? Yeah. But you know me. I’m not going to.
“My shot wasn’t falling. Shots I usually hit I wasn’t hitting. My teammates had my back. And I’m happy I have them on my team.”
Heat star Dwyane Wade still had a chance to secure the victory at the end of regulation, but was off-target with a jump shot.
In overtime, with Rose on the bench, Luol Deng’s basket gave Chicago an 86-84 lead. A shot from Wade was blocked by Omer Asik and Taj Gibson converted a three-point play on the other end to give the Bulls an 89-84 lead.
The Bulls outscored the Heat 12-2 in over-time, Miami unable to make a basket from the floor. Miami star LeBron James led all scorers with 30 points, six rebounds and five assists. Wade added 21 points and Chris Bosh scored 20, but no other Heat player scored more than four points and the Bulls reserves out-scored Miami’s 47-7.
“It hurts,” James admitted. “As a team, we felt like we played well. We gave ourselves a chance to win ... but they pretty much dominated the overtime.”
Chicago’s reserves also notched 21 rebounds and 13 assists. Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said he wasn’t surprised to see the lesser-known Bulls step up.