So the defending champs instead found life for most of the night in Michael Porter Jr., the sharpshooter who couldn’t buy a bucket in his first career NBA Finals. Porter amassed 30 points and 11 rebounds along with impressive defensive activity in a 103-97 win Thursday night at Ball Arena. “It was a great series. … I was just looking forward to the rematch,” Porter said. “I’m so far past a bad shooting stretch in the Finals.” The Heat trailed 94-81 with 5:19 remaining, but Terry Rozier’s shot-making helped close the gap in clutch time. After a Jokic offensive foul in the last minute with a four-point lead, Jimmy Butler scored with 10.7 seconds left to cut the deficit to 99-97. Denver wasn’t in the bonus yet, so Michael Malone used a timeout to advance the ball after Miami fouled. Jokic made a pair of foul shots to double the lead and finish the game with 18 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. He came up short of joining rare company with a fifth consecutive triple-double. “Very reminiscent of our Finals games,” Malone said. -via Denver Post / March 1, 2024
