Rough Night for Miami Heat in Colorado, Nuggets Win 109-89

Miami Heat lost in Denver against the Nuggets 89-109, disappointing all those who expected another fine game from Spoelstra’s guys. After trashing one of the title contenders, the Houston Rockets, this Sunday night, the Heat froze in Colorado.

“They were the aggressors,” Miami’s head coach stated following the game.

The Heat had just 36.4% from the field, shooting 32 of 88. Also, they’ve allowed more than half of Denver’s points from the paint, and just to make it clear, those weren’t Jokic’s. Last year’s All-NBA First team scored only nine buckets tonight, and the guys who hurt the Heat under the rim were mostly guards.

We just didn’t guard the way we’re capable of,” Jimmy Butler said. I don’t know how many points they had in the paint, but I figure it was a lot.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJ00hVa8L1k

Guests from Florida were competitive up until the midway of the second quarter. With 5:25 left in that sequence, Heat was up 43-42. From that moment on, the Nuggets made a 16-5 series, which pulled them away to a 10-point difference at the break.

Instead of responding, the guests allowed Denver to reach an even larger lead, as they delivered just one point in almost five minutes. By the end of the sequence, the Nuggets were already 20 points ahead. Yet, the hosts didn’t stop there but continued to pound Miami, getting the biggest advantage of the event, with 8:58 to go, when the scoreboard showed 97-70.

Jamal Murray scored 21 points for the home team, shooting 9 of 15 from the field and posting 5 rebounds. Will Barton had a good game with 15 buckets and team-high 10 boards.

“That’s when I’m at my best, when I’m getting defensive rebounds and then going down and finishing and putting pressure on the defense,” he said.

Jeramy Grant added 10 off the bench, Monte Morris 11 with 8 assists, while Plumlee and Millsap had 10 each. Jokic ended the night with 9 points and 5 boards and dimes each.

💥 Michael Porter Jr. PUTS IT BACK & the @nuggets fans approve! #MileHighBasketball pic.twitter.com/2vo9AN9Y11

— NBA (@NBA) November 6, 2019

Nuggets were 52.3% from the field and had 35 assists, which is one of the key reasons for their convincing triumph.

Butler had a team-high 16 points for the guests, and the All-Star was shooting 3 of 12 from the field. Kelly Olynyk added 13 with 7 boards, while Kendrick Nunn scored 11. Justise Winslow and Meyers Leonard had 10 each.

“We just didn’t execute,” Heat forward Justise Winslow said. “Whether it’s making the right read or setting a good screen or floor spacing, we just had poor execution on the offensive end. We have a lot of smart guys, so I’m sure we’ll fix it for the next game.”

As for the upcoming match, the Heat travels to Arizona to face the fired-up Phoenix Suns. They will have their hands full against the young team, which started to play excellent in the recent few days. The game will be played this Thursday.

After that, Spoelstra and the boys visit LeBron James on second of back-to-back nights. It will be a true test for this unit, which will reveal its capabilities.

On the other side, the Nuggets have a big clash with the 76ers on Friday. Afterward, they visit the Timberwolves before coming back home again. Denver will play later against the Atlanta Hawks and the Brooklyn Nets.