Juve dropped four points behind champions Milan who beat Lecce 2-0 with goals from Antonio Nocerino and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the Swede's 19th league goal of the season.
The fireworks were at third-placed Lazio, who had two players sent off and lost 3-1 at home to Bologna despite being gifted a bizarre own goal.
Daniele Portanova and Alessandro Diamanti put Bologna 2-0 ahead in half an hour, then Lazio had Matuzalem sent off for elbowing before the break.
Lazio pulled one back in the 56th minute when Bologna defender Matteo Rubin's back-pass wrong-footed goalkeeper Jean-Francois Gillet and trickled into the net.
But Lazio had Alvaro Gonzalez sent off two minutes later for a tackle from behind and Rene Krhin almost immediately made it 3-1 for Bologna, his goal followed by a shirtless celebration.
Milan moved on to 57 points from 27 games with Juventus on 53 and Lazio on 48.
Udinese, level fourth with Napoli on 46 points, lost 1-0 at lowly Novara, who moved off the bottom with 20 points.
Lecce's defeat left them in deep trouble with 25 points in 18th place, six adrift of Cagliari and safety.
Cesena, bottom with 17 points, went down 2-0 at home to Siena in a match which hinged on a controversial incident in the 73rd minute.
Siena were awarded a penalty for a sliding tackle by Luca Ceccarelli, who was also sent off although replays suggested he made contact with the ball.
Claudio Terzi's penalty was saved by Francesco Antonioli but Franco Brienza scored from the rebound, then Albanian Erjon Bogdani volleyed the second in the 81st minute.
Fiorentina's indifferent season continued with a 1-0 defeat at Catania that left them 15th with 32 points. Francesco Lodi scored with a penalty just before the hour for the Sicilians who are eighth with 38 points.
Juventus nearly fell behind after only 10 seconds at Genoa but Rodrigo Palacio's dipping shot was brilliantly turned over the bar by Gianluigi Buffon.
Both teams had further chances in a flowing first half which somehow ended goalless.
There was even more drama after the break when a Mirko Vucinic back-header bounced off the bar and the Montenegro forward also struck the foot of the post with another effort.
Simone Pepe should have broken through when he was allowed a free shot on goal from a free-kick but instead whacked his effort against the woodwork from six metres.
He had the ball in the net shortly afterwards but it was ruled out for offside, although replays suggested he was level with the last defender when the ball was played through.
Milan, who survived in the Champions League by the skin of their teeth after losing 3-0 at Arsenal on Tuesday for a 4-3 aggregate win, took a seventh-minute lead against Lecce with Nocerino's deflected shot.
