Heat 93, Celtics 86
Goran Dragic scored 17 of his 22 points in the first half and shorthanded Miami held on to top host Boston.
Luol Deng had 15 points and Udonis Haslem added 12 and 12 rebounds for the Heat, who moved two games ahead of Boston for seventh place in the Eastern Conference and to within two games of sixth-place Milwaukee. Tyler Johnson also had 12 points and Henry Walker hit 4-of-8 3-pointers en route to 12 of his own as Miami survived the absence of star Dwyane Wade, who sat with knee soreness.
Jae Crowder led the Celtics with 16 points off the bench while Avery Bradley added 12 and Tyler Zeller chipped in 10 and eight boards. Phil Pressey had 11 points and six assists in 18 minutes off the bench as Boston fell into a tie with Indiana for the eighth spot in the East.
Dragic hit two 3-pointers in under a minute to give Miami a 39-28 lead midway through the second quarter and later had a basket and two assists in a 9-0 burst that put the Heat up 57-38 moments before halftime. Boston trailed by 20 after three quarters before opening the fourth with a 9-2 burst to get within 84-71.
Deng's layup with 5:05 to go kept the margin in double digits at 88-77 before Miami endured nearly three minutes without a point to see its lead reduced to seven. Pressey scored with 1:59 left to get it down to 89-83 before the Celtics went cold and the Heat iced it at the line.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Heat C Hassan Whiteside also sat out the game after suffering a laceration on his hand that required 10 stitches. ... Celtics G Isaiah Thomas had four points on 2-of-7 shooting in 20 minutes after missing the previous eight games with a back injury. ... Dragic and G Mario Chalmers had seven assists apiece to lead Miami.