STEWING IN THE HEAT
MIAMI – They broke the stat system. That’s how good Miami and Denver were – even modern technology couldn’t keep up with the Heat and Nuggets. For 48 minutes, they went back and forth. And one overtime wouldn’t decide it, either. Finally, after three hours, the Heat said enough. James Johnson scored a career-high 31 points, Kelly Olynyk added 30 off the bench and Miami set a franchise single-game scoring record by beating the Nuggets 149-141 in double overtime on Monday night. “There didn’t deserve to be a loser,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Guys probably really enjoyed playing in a game like this.” His guys did, anyway. Olynyk became the second reserve in Heat history to score 30. Wayne Ellington had 23 points, and the Heat made 20 3-pointers – secondmost in franchise history. All that comes with a serious disclaimer. There was no official boxscore after the game, because the system crashed in the first overtime and crews were scrambling to determine official numbers long after the final buzzer. What mattered most was the score – one that moved Miami (38-33) into seventh in the Eastern Conference and left the Nuggets two games back of the last Western Conference spot.
“They just executed,” Nuggets forward Paul Millsap said. “They got some, I think, fluke plays and a little luck and they’re at home, you know. Momentum shifted a little bit.”
Elsewhere, Cleveland trounced Milwaukee, 124-117; Philadelphia routed Charlotte, 108-104; Brooklyn outlasted Memphis, 118-115; New York trampled Chicago, 110-92; Detroit crushed Sacramento, 106-90; San Antonio ripped Golden State, 89-75; and the Indiana Pacers turned back the Los Angeles Lakers, 110-100.
Back in Miami, the Heat’s point total was also an NBA season high. Houston and Oklahoma City each scored 148 in games earlier this season.
Nikola Jokic had 34 points and 14 rebounds for Denver (38-33), while Wilson Chandler added 26 for the Nuggets. Jamal Murray scored 23 and Will Barton finished with 22 for Denver.