MIAMI – The Denver Nuggets are finally “back where they belong” at the top of the National Basketball Association (NBA) Western Conference, after four months of admiring other teams.
On March 13, Michael Porter Jr. scored 25 points as the defending NBA champions beat the Miami Heat 100-88 on the road to improve to 46-20 and edge the Oklahoma City Thunder (45-20). ) in the West.
Denver led for most of the first half before the Heat took the lead with a third-quarter rally, only for the Nuggets to regain the lead and pull away in the final frame.
Nuggets star Nikola Jokic was held to 12 points after a disciplined defensive effort by Miami, but that simply left more space for Porter, who drained five three-pointers on nine-of-16 shooting.
He said his performance owed everything to the time and space his teammates allowed him to shoot freely.
“Did you see the photos I received? There were three of them, so they’re really my teammates, all the credit goes to them,” Porter told ESPN. “We have a good, well-rounded team, so when you take something away, there’s another option. This is what happened tonight.
Denver’s fourth straight win took them to the top of the West for the first time since November, suggesting Michael Malone’s men are in form at the right time as they chase the play-off top seed.
“It feels good,” added Porter, who received support from Aaron Gordon with 16 points and Jamal Murray with 14, of regaining the top spot. “It’s like we’re back where we belong.” We wanted the No. 1 seed and we’ve been playing well since the All-Star break.
“But we have to keep that, there are a lot of good teams in the West, so we have to approach every game knowing that people are coming for our place.”
Coach Malone echoed his player’s sentiments.
He said: “If we can get (the No. 1 seed), of course we’ll take it.
“And we’re not going to hesitate to do it.” You know, it was very effective for us last year, having a home ground throughout the play-offs.
Bam Adebayo led Miami’s scorers with 17 points. The Heat’s fourth straight loss leaves them eighth in the Eastern Conference with a 35-30 record.
In another game, Luka Doncic scored 21 points and Kyrie Irving 23 to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 109-99 home victory over the short-handed Golden State Warriors, who were missing injured Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.
“We played well on the defensive end, and from the first snap of the ball at the beginning of the game, we had physicality, that was the big difference tonight,” Irving said.
“We knew they were struggling and had a few tough games, and we wanted to make it tough for them.”
The only sour note for Dallas was Doncic’s departure midway through the fourth quarter, ending the Slovenian star’s streak of seven consecutive triple-doubles.
He went out with a tight left hamstring and didn’t return.
“He signaled to me that his hammer was tight, so we knocked him out,” Dallas coach Jason Kidd said. “We will have a better answer tomorrow.”
Elsewhere, the Sacramento Kings dominated the Los Angeles Lakers en route to a comfortable 120-107 victory in Northern California.
The Lakers’ Austin Reaves made seven three-pointers to finish with a game-high 28 points, but Los Angeles failed to stop Sacramento’s scoring flow.
All five Kings starters finished in double figures, with Harrison Barnes leading the scoring with 23 points.
Cleveland moved past Milwaukee into second place in the Eastern Conference with a 116-95 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans, who entered the game on a four-game winning streak.
Darius Garland led the Cavs with 27 points, Jarrett Allen adding 17 and Georges Niang 16. AFP
