Deng scores 25, Rose, 24: Bulls beat Heat 95-91

At the start of the week, Derrick Rose mentioned he was already feeling tired coming off the two-week ice show road trip. And that was before the Bulls hit a stretch of playing four games in five nights.

Saturday marked the end of a busy week and Rose somehow mustered the energy to score 24 points and lead the Bulls to a 95-91 victory over the Miami Heat at the United Center, snapping a three-game losing streak.

"The only thing I've got to say is Benadryl," Rose said with a laugh in the locker room. "You find yourself sleeping on the plane, get off and you're up all night. You try to go to sleep, but you can't.

"Now every time I get off the plane, right when I get home, I take a Benadryl and go right to sleep, wake up around 12 or 1 and I'll be good. So Benadryl helped me out a lot these four games."

Benadryl is marketed as an allergy medicine, not a sleep aid, but Rose is ready to volunteer to be the product's spokesman.

He woke up when the Bulls needed him against Miami. This game could have easily gone the other way when the teams finished the third quarter tied at 69-69.

Veteran center Brad Miller grabbed an offensive rebound, scored and completed a 3-point play on the first possession of the fourth quarter, and the Bulls managed to hold the lead the rest of the way.

"It was a big win," said forward Luol Deng, who led the Bulls with 25 points. "Every time you have a losing streak, you just want to put an end to it."

There is still a long way to go before playoff positions are settled, but this win lifted the Bulls (24-25) into a tie with Charlotte for sixth place in the Eastern Conference, while Miami (24-27) is now even with suddenly surging Milwaukee for eighth.

The Bulls got it done Saturday without center Joakim Noah, out with a foot injury, and Tyrus Thomas, who was suspended for a game because of conduct detrimental to the team.

"We definitely needed this one," Rose said. "It gives us more confidence. The locker room is way more cheerful than it was the last couple of games. Now we just have to keep it going."

There wasn't a single hero or turning point in the fourth quarter. Rose had an impressive driving scoop over Jermaine O'Neal to make it 89-83 with 1:20 left. The Bulls had some nice balance, though, with Deng scoring 7 points, Rose and Taj Gibson scoring 6 each and John Salmons adding 4 points in the quarter.

O'Neal matched two season-highs by producing 24 points and 16 rebounds. Dwyane Wade finished with 20 points and 8 assists.