MIAMI—There was no protest and just one heckler. The only boos were directed toward the plate umpire, and by the eighth inning Ozzie Guillen’s Miami Marlins had the crowd in such a happy frenzy that the roar shook the clubhouse.Guillen made a victorious return to the dugout Tuesday night, and pitchers Josh Johnson and Heath Bell snapped out of early-season slumps to help beat the Cubs 5-2. Then the dugout emptied and Guillen joined his players on the field for the postgame celebration, there were only cheers from the crowd.

“It was great to perform and hug Ozzie again,” Bell said. “We really want to win for him and try to put all that other stuff behind him.”

Guillen returned from a five-game suspension imposed after his comments praising Fidel Castro caused a backlash in South Florida, especially among Cuban Americans.Johnson allowed two runs in seven innings and Bell earned the save after several rocky outings. Streaking Hanley Ramirez broke a 2-all tie with a three-run homer in the eighth, his third.For Guillen, the win was a relief.

“Thank God this day is over with,” he said.

No demonstrations targeted at Guillen were evident, although a screaming fan in the second deck did call the Marlins manager an insulting name several times midway through the game. There were boos when Guillen ran onto the field to complain about a call in the seventh inning, but they were for the ump.Guillen said what he heard from the crowd was supportive.

“Everything was pretty nice,” he said. “It made my day a little easier. I appreciate the way people were, not just with me but with the team.”

Some fans had pledged to stay away in protest. Announced attendance was 24,544, by far the smallest in five games at the Marlins’ new ballpark.

The game was tied at 2 when Jose Reyes reached on an error by second baseman Darwin Barney to start the Miami eighth.

“It seems like when something like that happens, something bad is going to happen,” Barney said. “It was just not a good way to start that inning. It’s my fault.”

Reyes took second on a passed ball and Emilio Bonifacio walked. Ramirez, who had a game-ending single in the 11th inning Sunday, followed with a homer off Rafael Dolis (0-1).Johnson was in the clubhouse when Ramirez came through.

“This thing was shaking,” he said. “I was like, `Something good must have happened.”‘

Ramirez has gone 8 for 12 with seven RBIs in the past three games to hike his average from .133 to .286.

“That’s what I’m here for – to drive in runs,” Ramirez said.

With the retractable roof open on a 76-degree night, both teams struggled for runs much of the way. The Marlins went 2 for 10 with runners in scoring position, while the Cubs grounded into four double plays. Johnson had a solid outing for the first time in three starts, lowering his ERA from 8.38 to 5.94.

“Two things very nice happened today besides the win,” Guillen said. “One was seeing J.J. throw the ball the way he did. He needs that, and so do we. And the second thing was the opportunity for Heath Bell to go out there and do what he does best.”

Bell, an All-Star closer acquired during the Marlins’ offseason spending binge, pitched a perfect ninth for his first save in three chances.Steve Cishek (1-0) pitched a hitless eighth and has yet to allow run in eight games.The Ryan Dempster remained winless in 12 starts since Aug. 16 even though he lowered his ERA to 1.33. He pitched six innings and gave up two runs, both unearned because of his errant throw to first on a grounder.

“I wish I could have thrown the ball better to first base,” he said. “The results would have probably been different.”

The Cubs, who fell to 3-8, have scored a total of four runs in Dempster’s three starts.

NOTES—Marlon Byrd went 0 for 3 and is off to a 2-for-34 start (.059)…..Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton was dropped to sixth in the order and remains without a homer in 38 at-bats…..The Cubs won’t face former teammate Carlos Zambrano in the series. He’s slated to start Friday at Washington…..Marlins Park is the 119th ballpark in which the Cubs have played.

Kevin Seraphin had 21 points and 13 rebounds, John Wall scored 16 points, and the Washington Wizards beat the short-handed Bulls 87-84 on Monday night. Richard Hamilton scored 22 points to lead the Bulls, who played without Derrick Rose and Luol Deng. Rose was out with a sore right foot as he missed his 24th game of the season, and Deng sat out due to sore right ribs.After two straight games of clutch 3-pointers in the finals seconds to force overtime in wins against Miami and Detroit, the Bulls missed a third chance when Hamilton’s 3-pointer was blocked by James Singleton with 5.9 seconds left and C.J. Watson missed in the final seconds. The Bulls’ lead on Miami in the Eastern Conference dropped to 2½ games with five games remaining. The Heat beat New Jersey earlier Monday night.Rose injured his foot in Sunday’s win at Detroit, when he bounced back from a dismal two-point performance against the Heat on Thursday by scoring 24 points and making a 3 in the final seconds to force overtime. Deng also injured his ribs Sunday.Trailing 68-57 early in the fourth quarter, the Wizards got back in the game with a 13-0 run. Maurice Evans hit a jumper over Hamilton then he made a 3, Brian Cook tied the game at 68 with another 3 and Shelvin Mack’s jumper gave the Wizards a 70-68 lead.Wall found Singleton for a dunk to put Washington up 82-77 with 1:40 left. Watson answered with a jumper and then appeared to have a steal but referee Tony Brothers called a foul on Watson to the dismay of Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau.After Wall made one of two at the line, Watson hit another jumper to get the Bulls to within 83-81. After Mack turned it over, the Bulls failed to take advantage, committing a turnover on the offensive end. Wall then made two free throws to put the Wizards up 85-81, but Watson made a 3 to close the gab back to within one with 16.5 left.Evans finished with 14 points, 10 in the fourth quarter.The Wizards led 43-40 at the half. Seraphin had 10 points and six rebounds in the first two quarters.Boozer and Hamilton each had nine points for the Bulls.

AUBURN HILLS—Derrick Rose brought the ball up the court, his team down by three. With no timeouts remaining, the Bulls wouldn’t have a chance to stop and set up a play, but the Bulls’ battered point guard didn’t need any time to plan his next move. Rose dribbled around a high screen and pulled up just to the right of the top of the arc, where he sank a tying 3-pointer with 6.4 seconds left.

“Freelancing,” Rose said. “Pick-and-roll, see what we could get in transition, they backed up and I shot the ball.”

The Bulls went on to beat Detroit for the 15th straight time, 100-94 in overtime Sunday night. Rose finished with 24 points despite a bad right ankle, and by the end of the night he was wearing a small bandage at the top of the bridge of his nose following a fourth-quarter foul by Detroit’s Charlie Villanueva.Rodney Stuckey scored 32 points for the Pistons, but he missed two crucial free throws late in the fourth quarter. Rose’s 3-pointer tied the game at 86 and sent it to the extra session.Joakim Noah had 20 points and 17 rebounds for the Bulls, who are 3 ½ games ahead of Miami in the race for the top seed in the Eastern Conference. The Bulls are an NBA-best 46-14. Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City is two games behind.They trailed by three in the final minute of the fourth quarter when Carlos Boozer made a shot from the baseline to pull to 84-83 with 56.4 seconds remaining. Tayshaun Prince missed on a drive at the other end, but Boozer couldn’t convert inside.Stuckey made one of two free throws with 16.1 seconds remaining, and the Bulls called a timeout, but Luol Deng was called for a five-second violation before inbounding. Stuckey again could make only one of two free throws with 14.2 seconds left, and Rose was able to work his way free for a 3 from near the top of the arc to tie it.Stuckey’s shot from near the free throw line missed, and the game went to overtime.

“We know we have to play better, but at this point of the year, every win is important,” Noah said. “When Derrick hit that 3, it just gave our team new life, and we just handled our business in overtime.”

The Bulls led by one when Kyle Korver made an open 3 from the right wing to make it 95-91. Greg Monroe missed a layup at the other end, and the Bulls held on. Rose has been bothered by an injured right ankle, and he shot 1 of 13 in Thursday’s overtime win over Miami. He was aggressive early against the Pistons, driving smoothly to the basket for a layup to open the scoring and then sinking a perimeter jumper moments later.Rose and Noah scored 12 points apiece in the first half, but the Pistons received an unexpected lift from Villanueva.After playing only 40 minutes previously during an injury-plagued season, Villanueva came off the bench to score 11 points in the first half, giving Detroit a much-needed boost against a tough defense.The Bulls still led 49-41 at halftime and took a 60-46 advantage on a 3-pointer by former Detroit star Richard Hamilton. Then it was the Pistons’ turn to clamp down. Detroit held the visitors to only four points the rest of the quarter and took a 66-64 lead into the fourth after a basket by Monroe inside.Villanueva opened the fourth with a layup and Damien Wilkins added a dunk to give the Pistons a six-point lead, but the Central Division Champs got some momentum back when Villanueva was whistled for a flagrant foul after he appeared to catch Rose in the face when the star point guard tried to finish a fast break.After that exchange, the Bulls took a 77-76 lead on a free throw by C.J. Watson.

“I was mad. I’m sick and tired of people trying to take cheap shots at me,” Rose said. “He didn’t even aim for the ball.”

NOTES—There were a number of Bulls fans in the crowd of 17,450, and they started a chant of “MVP” in the third quarter when Rose was shooting free throws….Detroit’s last win over the Bulls was Dec. 23, 2008….This was the second overtime game during the streak…..Noah had 13 offensive rebounds.

Not only did Rick Porcello help the Tigers avoid a sweep with a solid outing, he became the first Detroit starter to earn a win this season. Gerald Laird homered among his three hits to back Porcello and lead the Detroit to a 5-2 victory over the White Sox on Sunday, snapping a four-game winning streak.Porcello (1-0) was sharp against an aggressive Bulls lineup. He allowed five hits, struck out four and didn’t issue a walk in 7 2-3 innings.Detroit’s rotation entered 0-3 despite a respectable 3.83 ERA.Laird homered to left against Chris Sale (1-1) leading off the third. Detroit added runs in the fifth and sixth, both runs scoring on wild pitches, and two in the ninth. Laird also doubled in the fifth, then singled and scored in the ninth.The White Sox brought the tying run to the plate in the bottom of ninth, but Jose Valverde struck out Dayan Viciedo to end the game.Porcello got the White Sox to repeatedly swing early in the count during the first six innings. Through four innings, he’d thrown just 31 pitches, two fewer than Sale threw in the second inning alone.Sale breezed through the first but struggled to command his off-speed pitches after that, racking up 102 pitches in five-plus innings. He struck out five and walked two, managing to keep the damage to a minimum. Prince Fielder doubled, scored and drove in a run for Detroit. Delmon Young added two hits and is batting .350 over 243 lifetime at-bats against the White Sox. Viciedo hit his second homer, a solo shot in the eighth. Adam Dunn doubled twice and Paul Konerko doubled against Porcello and improved to 8 for 20 lifetime against the righty. Porcello got 12 of his 23 outs on groundballs. Detroit salvaged the last game of the three-game weekend series, winning for the 22nd time in 30 games against the White Sox. After scoring 40 runs while winning five of their first six games, the Tigers scored just three runs in dropping the first two games of this series.The Tigers won the division by 15 games last season over Cleveland and were 16 games better than the third-place Sox, in part leading to forecasts of a possible Detroit cakewalk this season.

NOTES—Konerko has a hit in all eight games this season. … Former Tigers outfielder Clete Thomas was claimed off waivers by the Minnesota Twins on Saturday. Thomas made Detroit’s opening-day roster and played in three games before being designated for assignment last week. … Brandon Inge got his first start of the season as Detroit’s designated hitter. He is expected to get regular duty at second base this season, not one of the five positions he’s played during his 12-year big league career.

ST. LOUIS—The St. Louis Cardinals’ other Carpenter is fast making a name for himself. Rookie Matt Carpenter, no relation to injured pitcher Chris Carpenter, made his first opening day roster because of Skip Schumaker’s spring training injury. He’s getting a chance to play because Lance Berkman and David Freese have been nursing minor injuries. When those guys come back, at the very least the Cardinals will have a very valuable bench piece. The rookie homered, tripled and drove in five runs, backing strong pitching from Jake Westbrook in a 10-3 victory over the Cubs on Sunday.Cubs starter Paul Maholm (0-2) surrendered six runs in four innings. The left-hander is 0-7 with a 7.03 ERA in nine starts since his last win on July 10, 2011 against the Cubs when he was with Pittsburgh.The 26-year-old Carpenter is batting .409 with 10 RBI in 22 at-bats, following up on success in spring training when he led the team with 25 hits. He singled his first two trips with an RBI, belted a two-run shot to straightaway center off Lendy Castillo in the fifth for his first career homer and added a two-run triple off Rodrigo Lopez in the seventh. Berkman missed the weekend series with a strained left calf but did some running Sunday and could be back Tuesday when the Cardinals open a three-game series against the Reds. Freese also could be back from an injured right ring finger, but outfielder Carlos Beltran was taken out in the sixth, four innings after he was hit by a pitch on the right forearm when he had trouble throwing.Yadier Molina hit a three-run homer in the third and has six RBI the last three games. Plus he threw out Marlon Byrd attempting to steal in the third.Westbrook (2-0) allowed one earned run in seven strong innings, following up on his debut in which he gave up an unearned run in seven innings at Cincinnati. He dropped 20 pounds in the offseason after a disappointing 2011 in which he went 12-9 but with a 4.66 ERA and was virtually unused in the Cardinals’ World Series championship run. Westbrook pounded his sinker for 12 ground ball outs, and allowed four hits. He threw first-pitch strikes to nine of his first 11 batters.Reed Johnson had two hits and an RBI for the Cubs, who scored their second run on a wild pitch. They were outscored 15-4 the last two games after hammering Adam Wainwright in St. Louis’ home opener for a 9-5 victory.Westbrook allowed an unearned run in seven innings in his first start at Cincinnati. He’s gotten plenty of support, with St. Louis scoring 17 runs his first two outings. The Cardinals needed one hit to score twice in the second, with Carlos Beltran hit by a pitch and Molina walking setting the table to start the inning. Carpenter followed with an RBI single and Shane Robinson beat out the relay on a double play ball for a run-scoring groundout…..Rafael Furcal had been 0-for-12 before doubling to start a four-run third capped by Molina’s homer.After two starts, Maholm is saddled with an unsightly 13.50 ERA.The Cardinals are 12-6 against the Cubs the last two seasons and 8-2 at home.

NOTES—The Cubs had been 8-for-10 on steals before Byrd was thrown out…..Westbrook threw first-pitch strikes to nine of his first 11 batters….Two members of the Cubs rotation have no wins since July 10, 2011, with Chris Volstad 0-6 with a 4.17 ERA since beating the Astros…..Beltran is batting .429 (9-for-21) with two homers and six RBI against Maholm…..Schumaker (oblique) began his rehab with Triple-A Memphis Sunday and was 0-for-2, while turning a double play at second base….Matt Holliday had been 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position before his RBI single in the third…..Carpenter is the Cardinals’ first rookie to get four hits since Daniel Descalso on July 6, 2011 against the Reds. He’s the team’s first rookie to get five RBI since Freese had six on April 29, 2010 against the Braves.

GLENDALE—Scrambling with time running down in regulation, the Blackhawks found a way to score in the closing seconds for the second straight game.This time, they pulled out a win to head back to the Windy City with home-ice advantage.Bryan Bickell had his second goal 10:36 into overtime and the Blackhawks beat the Phoenix Coyotes 4-3 on Saturday night.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before, back to back games forcing overtime,” Patrick Kane said. “But I was thankful we seized the opportunity and won this one.”

Phoenix took the opener 3-2 in overtime after giving up a goal to Brent Seabrook with 14 seconds left in regulation. Patrick Sharp did it to the Coyotes with even less time in Game 2, redirecting a shot by Kane with 5.5 seconds left.Bickell, like Phoenix’s Martin Hanzal the game before, became the hero when he beat Mike Smith from between the circles after Viktor Stalberg kept a pass by Phoenix’s Rostislav Klesla in the Coyotes’ zone.Brandon Bollig also scored for the Hawks, who tied the series at 1-1 as it heads back to Chicago for Game 3 on Tuesday night.

“It was exciting to get the goal to give the team the win, but you know what? It should be exciting to go back to Chicago now,” Bickell said.

The Coyotes had their chances.Overcoming a second straight shaky start, they fought back and were leading 3-2 after Antoine Vermette scored two goals and Raffi Torres added another.Smith was steady after nearly being knocked out by Andrew Shaw in the second period, making some big saves down the stretch and in overtime.Phoenix just couldn’t put it all together, missing on a couple chances at an empty net at the end of regulation and Smith missing the two shots that mattered the most.The combination prevented the Coyotes from taking a 2-0 lead in eight straight playoff series since moving to the desert since 1996 and leaves them needing to win in Chicago to regain home-ice advantage.

“We have confidence in our team on the road, we know how to play the game,” Coyotes captain Shane Doan said. “As ugly and as painful as it looks, we all recognize that it’s one game. It’s going to be a long series.”

Phoenix won the opener by dictating the pace at just the right time, scoring two goals in the second period and the winner in overtime by keeping the Blackhawks in their zone for lung-burningly-long shifts.The Blackhawks had the early jump in Game 1, getting a goal from Jonathan Toews in his return from a concussion, and tied it late to force overtime. But for a puck-control team, the Blackhawks had a hard time holding onto it, bothered by Phoenix’s forechecking and aggressiveness in the neutral zone.The Hawks again started fast, getting a power play 1:08 into the game and outshooting Phoenix 9-1. Bickell scored at the end of the man advantage with a waist-high whack on a rebound off Dave Bolland’s shot, giving the Hawks their first goal with a man advantage in its last 15 chances.Just like Game 1, Phoenix fought back.Torres tied it midway through the first period with a wrister out front after Doan fought off a defender from behind the net to get the pass off.Vermette put the Coyotes up 2-1, camping out in front of Corey Crawford before redirecting a shot by Keith Yandle for his third of the playoffs.The power-play goal came after Kane was sent to the penalty box for goalie interference, a call that infuriated the Blackhawks because he took the brunt of the collision with Smith.A bigger crash in the second period gave the Coyotes a bigger boost — following an initial scare.After Bollig tied it with a wrister that beat Smith glove side, Phoenix’s goalie provided his team and the crowd with a bit of is-he-really-staying-in-the-game inspiration.Playing a puck behind his goal, Smith was broadsided by Shaw, who charged in from the right side. Smith threw his head back after being struck by Shaw’s shoulder and went to the ice, where he lay on his back as four members of Phoenix medical team hovered over him.Smith groggily sat up after a few minutes, prompting a chant of “Smitty! Smitty!” from the home crowd, then caused a roar as he gingerly skated toward his net. Smith squirted water from a bottle over his head, strapped his helmet back on and parked himself back in the crease.Shaw, who was surprised by the call, was sent off with a 5-minute charging penalty and a game misconduct.

“The league will look at that,” Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said. “Obviously, that’s contact to the head. Doesn’t matter if it’s a goaltender or a player, that’s blindside contact to the head and I’m sure the league will look at it.”

With Smith back, the adrenaline-infused Coyotes didn’t long to score on the ensuing power play, Vermette putting them up 3-2 with a wrister from the left circle.Smith was sturdy after nearly being cold cocked, stopping two power plays to end the second period and making several tough saves in the third.But, just like the opener, he couldn’t stop the Hawks in the closing seconds. With Crawford off for an extra attacker, the Blackhawks peppered Smith with a flurry of shots in the closing seconds. Smith turned back most of them, but couldn’t react in time when Sharp, positioned right in front of him, ticked Kane’s shot from the point to send the game to overtime.Unlike the opener, the Blackhawks got the win this time, thanks to a gritty play by Stalberg and a big shot by Bickell.

“A fortunate bounce, but at the same time we did some good things as the game went on,” Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said. “It was a competitive game, one of those games where it was on the line throughout, but today we got the bounce.”

NOTES—Coyotes C Martin Hanzal left in the first period with an undisclosed injury and didn’t return. LW Lauri Korpikoski also went out in the third period….Phoenix had killed off 30 straight penalties before Bickell’s goal in the first period…..Duncan Keith had an assist on Bollig’s goal and leads Blackhawks defensemen with 30 points in 47 career playoff games.

Paul Konerko and the White Sox have left their struggles against the Tigers in 2011.Gavin Floyd overcame control problem to pitch six scoreless innings and Alexei Ramirez homered as the Sox beat Detroit for the second straight day, 5-1 on Saturday.Tyler Flowers and Konerko also homered for the White Sox, who won their fourth straight overall.The White Sox were 5-13 against the Tigers in 2011, including the last six meetings.The White Sox improved to 4-0 in the division. Floyd (1-1) pitched around three walks and three hit batters. He struck out six and allowed only three hits.Brennan Boesch homered in the eighth inning and Austin Jackson had three hits for the Tigers, who have lost three of its last four games.Tigers left-hander Adam Wilk, making first big league start, was hit in his pitching shoulder by teammate Prince Fielder’s foul ball while sitting in the dugout in the sixth inning.Wilk (0-1) left with a bruised shoulder but is expected to make his next start. He allowed two runs on three hits in five innings Saturday. He struck out four and walked one. Floyd loaded the bases in the second inning by hitting Delmon Young, walking Jhonny Peralta and hitting Andy Dirks. Floyd was able to recover by getting Ryan Raburn to fly out to end the inning. In the sixth inning, Floyd escaped trouble again. He allowed a leadoff a double to Jackson. After he struck out Boesch, Floyd walked Fielder and Young to load the bases. He then ended the inning by striking out Alex Avila.Ramirez homered on a 1-2 pitch from Wilk in the second inning to give the White Sox a l-0 lead.Flowers homered with two outs in the fifth inning. The ball landed deep into the left field seats. Flowers started at catcher to give A.J. Pierzynski a day off.Flowers said the calming influence of new manager Robin Ventura has been a factor in the team’s early success.Wilk had a 5.40 ERA with no decisions in five relief appearances in 2011. He was added to the rotation after Doug Fister was placed on the disabled list Sunday with a left rib muscle strain.Brent Morel led off the sixth inning with a double off Tigers reliever Collin Balester and Adam Dunn followed with an RBI double.Alejandro De Aza added an RBI triple in the seventh off Tigers reliever Daniel Schlereth and Konerko tagged Schlereth in the eighth for his first homer of the season to make it 5-1.

NOTES—The Tigers activated infielder Brandon Inge from the 15-day disabled list Saturday. He is expected to start at second base Sunday. Inge, who strained his groin during spring training, hit .197 with three homers and 23 RBIs in 103 games at third base last year. He grounded out in a pinch-hit appearance to end the game…..Raburn stole a hit from Ramirez in the fifth by making a sliding, over the head catch down the right field line.

ST. LOUIS—Lance Lynn is making the most of a surprise opportunity.Lynn pitched effectively into the sixth inning and Yadier Molina had two hits and two RBI, leading the St. Louis Cardinals to a 5-1 win over the Cubs on Saturday.The Cardinals snapped a two-game skid with their fourth win in six games. The Cubs, who lost five of their first six, had won two in a row.Lynn (2-0) gave up four hits and one run in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out five, walked two and lowered his ERA to 1.50 in a game delayed almost 2 hours by rain.The 39th overall pick in the 2008 amateur draft, Lynn allowed one run over 6 2/3 innings in his first start this season, a 9-3 win at Milwaukee on Sunday. He began the year with a 1-1 career mark.Lynn gained a spot in the rotation when Chris Carpenter was put on the disabled list with a right shoulder injury before the start of the season. The husky, 6-foot-5 Lynn, who was originally headed to the bullpen, is enjoying his time as a starter.

“He’s a big guy, a strike-thrower,” Cubs manager Dale Sveum said. “You don’t get many guys on against him. We really couldn’t get anything going.”

Jon Jay hit his second home run of the season in the seventh off Shawn Camp.The Cardinals broke open a scoreless game with four runs in the fourth off Chris Volstad (0-1). Molina brought in Matt Holliday and Matt Carpenter with a single up the middle. Daniel Descalso had an RBI triple and Tyler Greene added an RBI single. Carpenter, filling in for Lance Berkman at first base, had the key hit in the inning, smashing a 3-2 pitch off the top of the wall in right. The drive put runners on second and third with one out.Berkman has a strained left calf and is day to day. Carpenter is hitting .278 with five RBI.The Cubs finally scored in the sixth on Starlin Castro’s RBI single. J.C. Romero relieved Lynn and struck out Ian Stewart and Bryan LaHair to end the threat.But the St. Louis bullpen allowed just two hits over the final three innings. Romero turned in 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. Fernando Salas and Marc Rzepczynski pitched the eighth. Jason Motte retired the side on seven pitches in the ninth.Volstad allowed six hits and three runs over six innings. He struck out four and did not walk a batter but was unable to overcome a 13-pitch hiccup in the fourth inning.Marlon Byrd went 0 for 3 and is 2 for 27 this season.Castro committed two errors at shortstop and has four on the season. His high throw on a grounder by Holliday started the four-run fourth.The Cardinals were without World Series MVP David Freese. The third baseman was scratched before the game with soreness in a finger on his right hand.Freese, who is day to day, got hurt in an at-bat in Friday’s home opene.

NOTES—The start was delayed 1 hour, 59 minutes by rain…..The Cardinals held a pregame ceremony to present World Series rings to players and coaches. Sveum made his players watch the festivities. “It’s important to show respect for the world champions,” Sveum said. “And it’s a pretty awesome ring.” …In the series finale Sunday, both teams will mark the 65th anniversary of the day Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier. All players will wear No. 42 as part of a tribute to Robinson’s legacy.

Had he known he was going to play so poorly, Derrick Rose might have sat this one out. Good thing for him, his teammates picked up the slack.C.J. Watson scored 16 points, including the game-tying 3-pointer at the end of regulation, and the Bulls pulled away in overtime to beat the Miami Heat 96-86 on Thursday.Carlos Boozer scored 19 points and Kyle Korver added 17 for the Bulls, who outscored Miami 12-2 in overtime to boost their lead in the Eastern Conference to four games.The Bulls were able to pull off the victory despite a horrible shooting night by Derrick Rose, who scored a career-low two points.

“If I’d have seen this coming, I wouldn’t have played,” he said. “Thought I was going to come out, do all right.”

At least his team did just fine.LeBron James scored 30 points for Miami but missed a free throw that would have made it a two-possession game late in regulation. Dwyane Wade added 21 points, Chris Bosh scored 20, but the Heat lost for the sixth time in 11 games.

“This is one of the worst feelings in the regular season I’ve had this year,” James said.

Things were looking good for Miami when James nailed a 3 that made it 83-81 with 49 seconds left in regulation. But with a chance to seal the game, he missed the first of two free throws with 11.4 seconds remaining. That kept the Bulls in it and Watson made a 3 to tie it at 84 with 2.2 seconds left. The game went into overtime when Wade missed a baseline jumper at the buzzer. Deng started the extra period with a jumper. Taj Gibson dunked on Ronny Turiaf for a three-point play and scored on a neat spin move after Wade hit a free throw, making it 91-85, sending the Bulls to a dramatic win on a night when their superstar had perhaps his worst game as a pro.

“I’m not worried about my stats or anything,” Rose said. “Can I make up excuses? Yeah. But you know me, I’m not going to use no excuse. My shots weren’t falling. Shots I normally hit, I wasn’t hitting. My teammates had my back. I’m happy I have them on my team.”

Rose hit just 1 of 13 shots and sat out the extra period, a brutal night for the reigning MVP. Then again, he hasn’t played much lately, so this wasn’t a total shocker. He returned from a 12-game absence due to a groin injury for Sunday’s overtime loss at New York, only to sprain his right ankle. He did not play Tuesday, when the Bulls beat the Knicks at home, and he’s missed 23 games in all this season.But even with Rose struggling, the Bulls managed to pull this one out.Luol Deng scored 16. Boozer grabbed 11 rebounds and fed Watson for that tying 3. Korver came up big again, hitting 5 of 6 from beyond the arc after scoring 14 on Tuesday.He let out a big smile after nailing one in the extra period and helped the Bulls and helped send this one into overtime with eight points in the fourth quarter.His 3-pointer and jumper put the the Bulls ahead 78-74 with about 3:30 left, and after Wade scored, Boozer nailed a jumper and Ronnie Brewer hit a free throw to put the Bulls’ lead at 5.Wade, however, kept Miami in it.He scored on a drive and a jumper to make it a one-point game, and Bosh came up with a key rebound off a miss by Wade, feeding James for the 3 that made it 83-81. But things unraveled for the Heat, particularly when Watson hit the 3 to force OT.

“I looked up and saw CJ wide open when Boozer caught it,” Wade said. “I didn’t know what was going on. I tried to get over there and make a play on it. He still made a tough shot. That play hurt. We never recovered back from that shot.”

NOTES—The Bulls clinched their second straight Division Title and 9th of all time…..Wade tied Alonzo Mourning’s franchise record for games played at 593…..Heat coach Erik Spoelstra made a late switch and decided to have Udonis Haslem, battling stomach flu, start at center instead of Ronny Turiaf…..The Bulls and Heat meet one more time at Miami on April 19.