Denver beats Miami 100-88 in an NBA Finals rematch and moves atop the Western Conference

MIAMI (AP) — Michael Porter Jr. scored 25 points, Aaron Gordon added 16 and the reigning NBA champion Denver Nuggets took sole possession of first place in the Western Conference standings with a 100-88 win over the sliding Miami Heat in a finals rematch on Wednesday night.

Jamal Murray scored 14 points and Nikola Jokic finished with 12 points, 14 rebounds and six assists for the Nuggets (46-20), who moved a half-game ahead of Oklahoma City (45-20) and a full game up on Minnesota (45-21) in the West race.

Denver is an NBA-best 10-1 since the All-Star break.

Bam Adebayo scored 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for Miami. Jimmy Butler scored 15, Terry Rozier had 14 and Duncan Robinson added 11 for the Heat (35-30), who are now 2 1/2 games behind Orlando — a winner over Brooklyn on Wednesday — in the Southeast Division race.

The Heat have lost four straight and remain No. 8 in the Eastern Conference, playing again Wednesday without Tyler Herro (foot) and Kevin Love (heel).

Denver is 12-1 in its last 13 games against the Heat, including last season's NBA Finals, and has won seven consecutive games on Miami's home floor.

Denver used a 15-0 run in the first quarter to build a double-digit lead, one that eventually reached 13 points in the opening period. The Nuggets led for all but 2:48 of the first half, but the Heat never trailed by more than eight in the second quarter.

And in the third, Miami finally — but briefly — reclaimed the lead. Former Nuggets center Thomas Bryant scored for a four-point lead late in the third, matching Miami's biggest edge of the night, but Denver responded with a 10-2 run and stayed ahead the rest of the way.

UP NEXT

Nuggets: Visit San Antonio on Friday night.

Heat: Visit Detroit on Friday night, then again Sunday afternoon.

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