Cleveland (26-5) had won six straight - and 25 of 27 - going into Tuesday's game at Miami, often dominating opponents behind a motivated superstar and arguably the NBA's best defense. Coach Mike Brown's club, tied with Boston and Los Angeles for fewest losses, is alone atop the NBA with 89.6 points allowed per game.

But the Cavs scored just 34 first-half points and lost to the Heat 104-95. LeBron James scored 38 points on his 24th birthday, including 24 after halftime as Cleveland nearly erased a 16-point deficit.

"They had us pretty good at halftime, but to our credit we got it down to one," said James, the NBA's only player averaging at least 25 points, six rebounds and six assists. "We just couldn't finish it."

No team has been able to finish off the Cavs in Cleveland this season. Since a loss to Washington in the first round of last spring's playoffs, Cleveland has won 19 straight at home, including the first 16 of the 2008-09 campaign.

The Cavs haven't just been winning at home - they've dominated by outscoring their opponents by an average of more than 15 points, allowing just 89.1 points per game as visitors have shot 41.8 percent. In their last home game, they outscored Miami 35-19 in the fourth quarter to come from behind for a 93-86 win.

"You can tell the fans are into it," James said after that game. "They don't want us to lose all season."

Those fans have already seen one win over the Bulls, who lost 107-93 as James scored 41 points on Nov. 25. The Cavs also won 107-96 at Chicago three days later, ensuring more wins against the Bulls than last season, when they lost the season series 3-1.

The Cavs seem likely to earn a third straight win over Chicago, as the Bulls have a 4-14 road record. Coach Vinny Del Negro's team has also lost four of its last five overall, including an ugly 113-94 home defeat to Orlando on Wednesday.

Chicago (14-18) trailed 65-38 at halftime and never recovered, shooting 42.0 percent from the field and allowing at least 100 points for the 10th time in the last 13 games. Star rookie Derrick Rose failed to record an assist for the first time in his NBA career.

"I think we can play a lot better than we're playing right now," said guard Ben Gordon, who scored 18 points.

The Bulls have played the last six games without former Cavs forward Drew Gooden, who averages 12.7 points and 8.8 rebounds. Gooden, who was active against the Magic but didn't play, could return from his sprained ankle on Friday.

Luol Deng, meanwhile, has a similar injury and likely won't be ready to return.

This game will be the third time Chicago's Larry Hughes has played at Cleveland since the guard was traded with Gooden by the Cavaliers in February. Hughes, often criticized for shooting too much during his time with the Cavs, scored 25 points on 11-of-17 shooting in the Bulls' 101-98 win in Cleveland last April 3.