Ron Mercer hit three straight baskets and a pair of free throws down the stretch as the Bulls ended a 10-game losing streak with a 78-72 victory over the Heat, who have dropped 10 straight.
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"I told the guys that games like this are must-wins for us," Riley said. "The tough part of our schedule goes from here."
The Bulls ended the game with an 11-2 run over the final 3:12, including eight unanswered points by Mercer over the last 2 1/2 minutes.
"We just went out and played hard," Mercer said. "Everybody played hard, it was a team effort. It was a good win for us. We just have to learn from our mistakes."
Mercer scored 10 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter. Rookie Trenton Hassell added 13 and Brad Miller had 12 on 2-of-14 shooting for the Bulls. Marcus Fizer contributed 11 points, all in the second period.
"The score was not great," Chicago coach Tim Floyd said. "That is why these two teams are struggling. We are fighting it in terms of getting the ball in the basket. A win really helps. Our mentality has to be if we are going to struggle shooting the ball, then we have to hold the other team."
Eddie Jones had 15 points and Rod Strickland 13 for Miami (2-12). Alonzo Mourning also scored 13 before fouling out with 9 1/2 minutes to play.
"I've never lost 10 games in a row at any level," Mourning said. "This is new to me. But I'm not going to succumb to disappointment or be sorry for myself. I'm going to look at this as a challenge, just like any other adversity I've gone through my whole life."
Paced by Fizer's 11 points in 11 minutes, the Bulls built a 47-40 halftime lead. Both teams shot poorly in the third quarter, with Miami scoring 15 points and holding the Bulls to 10, the final two on a dunk by Hassell with two seconds left.
The Heat made just 5-of-16 shots in the third quarter, but the Bulls were even worse, converting under 19 percent (3-of-16) of their attempts.
Miami outrebounded Chicago, 43-35, but also committed nearly twice as many turnovers, 19-10.
"We've got to win our next game and then win the game after that, then win the game after that," Mourning said. "The one thing we can't do is run from it. We have to get up and get ready to play another game."
Neither team shot well from beyond the arc. The Heat were 1-for-6 while the Bulls were 0-for-5.
Chicago (2-12) opened a three-game homestand at the United Center, where it had not played since November 10.