NBA

Miami Heat at Denver Nuggets

· National Basketball Association
3-5, 2-2 Away
Final
122 - 135

6-3, 4-2 Home

Nikola Jokic's third straight triple-double leads Nuggets past Heat 135-122

Russell Westbrook highlights vs. Miami Heat

The triple-double was Jokic’s NBA-best fifth of the season.

After missing the past three games in concussion protocol, Jamal Murray had 28 points and became the first player in Nuggets franchise history with 1,000 career 3-pointers.

The Heat played most of the game without Jimmy Butler, who turned his ankle on a drive against Murray seven minutes into the game and did not return.

Denver raced out to a 17-6 lead in the opening 4:10 as part of a 40-point first quarter in which it made 14 of its 20 shots. Though it fought back to get within seven in the final five minutes of the game, Miami never led and trailed by as many as 26 in the second half.

Tyler Herro had a team-high 24 points and 11 assists for the Heat.

Takeaways Heat: Miami’s fourth loss in its past five games came with the added pain of losing Butler, who is second on the Heat with 18.1 points per game.

Nuggets: Though concerns continue to persist about the drop off between its starting five and its bench, Denver continued its recent surge, winning for the sixth time in the past seven games after an 0-2 start.

Key moment After carrying an 11-point lead into halftime, the Nuggets outscored the Heat 15-4 in the opening 3:03 of the third quarter to extend its advantage to 86-64.

Key stat Russell Westbrook continued a strong recent stretch, dishing out a season-high 10 assists for Denver. It’s just the second time he's had double-digit assists in his past 44 games.

Up next The Nuggets host the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday, the same day the Heat continue a six-game road swing at the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Regular Season Series

DEN leads series 1-0

Matchup Prediction

Nuggets: 48.4%
Heat: 51.6%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 122 - 135
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 122 - 135
4th 3.1 shot clock turnover 122 - 135
4th 27.2 Haywood Highsmith makes 5-foot two point shot (Terry Rozier assists) 122 - 135
4th 35.1 Christian Braun makes dunk (Nikola Jokic assists) 120 - 135

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/mia.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originMIA https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/den.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originDEN
46-94 FG 50-81
48.9 Field Goal % 61.7
20-43 3PT 18-35
46.5 Three Point % 51.4
10-13 FT 17-19
76.9 Free Throw % 89.5
33 Rebounds 39
9 Offensive Rebounds 6
24 Defensive Rebounds 33
33 Assists 37
11 Steals 5
1 Blocks 5
11 Turnovers 17
3 Team Turnovers 1
14 Total Turnovers 18
0 Technical Fouls 0
0 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
23 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 29
26 Fast Break Points 25
50 Points in Paint 58
19 Fouls 13
0 Largest Lead 26

Game Information

Ball Arena

Location: Denver, CO
Attendance: 19,621 · Capacity:

2024-25 Southeast Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Orlando 19 12 .613 - W2
Miami 14 13 .519 3 W1
Atlanta 15 15 .500 3.5 W1
Charlotte 7 22 .241 11 L5
Washington 4 23 .148 13 L2

2024-25 Northwest Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Oklahoma City 23 5 .821 - W8
Denver 16 11 .593 6.5 W2
Minnesota 14 14 .500 9 L3
Portland 9 20 .310 14.5 L2
Utah 7 21 .250 16 L1
Full Standings

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