The Houston Rockets' slow start to the 2015-16 NBA season continued as they were thrashed by the Miami Heat at the AmericanAirlines Arena.
It looked like the visitors would be coming away with their first win of the season as they headed into half time with a 19-point lead, but they managed just 12 points in the third quarter.
By contrast, the Heat hit their stride in the second half, adding 65 points after the interval, with Dwyane Wade and Luol Deng ensuring that the sides were level at the end of the third, before Chris Bosh opened up a lead for Miami in the final period.
The Oklahoma City Thunder remain unbeaten after cruising to victory over the Denver Nuggets, who suffered their first loss of the new campaign.
Former league MVP Kevin Durant made sure that the Thunder moved ahead early on before piling on the points in the third quarter, outscoring their opponents 37-20 after half time to set up the comfortable win.
Dirk Nowitzki led the Dallas Mavericks to victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, who are without a win in their first three games.
The visitors looked the stronger of the two sides from the start, opening up a 13-point lead within 10 minutes, before Nick Young kept the Lakers in contention at half time.
Julius Randle and Louis Williams got the home side back within six in the fourth quarter, but Nowitzki finished the game with 25, while Zaza Pachulia and JJ Barea both found the basket late on.
The Chicago Bulls inflicted a third-straight defeat on the Orlando Magic as they improved to 3-1, with an unbeaten record at home.
The Bulls went into the fourth quarter with a 12-point lead, but Orlando started to chip away at their advantage, with Jason Smith and Shabazz Napier leading the Magic just a point back inside the final four minutes.
Nikola Mirotic, Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler all added free throws late on though, ending the visitors' hopes of completing the comeback.
The Boston Celtics slipped to their first defeat of the season, despite finishing strongly in their loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
The Spurs led by 15 late in the second quarter as LaMarcus Aldridge continued to impress with his new team, but Avery Bradley and Isaiah Thomas got Boston back into contention.
The home side cut the gap to four points inside the final two minutes, but Kawhi Leonard kept the visitors ahead, while a couple of free throws from Aldridge saw him finish the game with 24.
The Toronto Raptors maintained their 100% start to the season with a comfortable win over the Milwaukee Bucks, who are still looking to get off the mark.
The visitors briefly led in the first quarter, but DeMar DeRozan and DeMarre Carroll soon took charge for the Raptors, putting the home side 14 points ahead at half time, which Milwaukee never looked like overturning in the second half.
The Charlotte Hornets are still looking for their first win of the season, after surrendering a lead to the Atlanta Hawks in the final six minutes of their contest.
Paul Millsap ensured that the visitors made a good start, opening up a 10-point lead by the end of the first quarter, but Nicolas Batum led a second-half comeback as the Hornets scored 37 points in the third, before Kent Bazemore piled the points on in the final moments for the Hawks.
Results in full: Atlanta Hawks 94-92 Charlotte Hornets, San Antonio Spurs 95-87 Boston Celtics, Houston Rockets 89-109 Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks 87-106 Toronto Raptors, Orlando Magic 87-92 Chicago Bulls, Denver Nuggets 93-117 Oklahoma City Thunder, Dallas Mavericks 103-93 Los Angeles Lakers
Sian Cowper
