Yes, it has gotten worse.

The Heat, a team that was in the playoffs seven months ago, is now tied for the worst record in the NBA after a 78-72 loss Thursday night to the Chicago Bulls in front of 17,003 at the United Center.

Chicago ended its losing streak at 10 games and extended Miami's skid to 10. The teams are both 2-12.

``Both teams played hard because they wanted to win,'' Heat coach Pat Riley said. ``But they made the three plays at the end of the game that counted. Night in and night out it's the same kind of mistakes.''

Ron Mercer provided the late spark for Chicago, scoring eight of his 19 points in the final 2:23. Greg Anthony added 11 points and six steals, and Charles Oakley grabbed 10 rebounds.

``[The Bulls] got what they wanted, and we never got what we wanted,'' said shooting guard Eddie Jones, who led the Heat with 15 points. ``We played terribly from start to finish.''

The glory days of the two franchises, which met in the Eastern Conference finals just four years ago, are clearly behind.