Heat dominate Nuggets in 4th quarter of NBA Finals again, and this time get the win
Miami Heat forward Kevin Love, bottom, reaches for a loose ball against Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. during the second half of Game 2 of basketball's NBA Finals, Sunday, June 4, 2023, in Denver. (Kyle Terada/Pool Photo via AP)
DENVER (AP) — It was a popular theme before the NBA Finals started — about how the Nuggets, an up-tempo team with fresh legs that could exploit the mile-high altitude in Denver, would have a good chance to wear down the Miami Heat.
The combined fourth-quarter score of the first two games: Heat 66, Nuggets 45. In Game 2, the Heat outscored the Nuggets by 11 to turn an eight-point deficit into a 111-108 win and knot the series at 1.
And any thought that Miami couldn’t handle all the supposed disadvantages they faced coming into Denver on short rest after a seven-game conference final against the Celtics — out the window, just like Denver’s home-court advantage in this best-of-7 series.