ORLANDO • Jimmy Butler was exhausted. But he fought on, putting the Miami Heat on his back in the final minutes and refusing to let their championship dreams die.
Playing to the point of exhaustion and beyond, he scored 35 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, passed off 11 assists and made five steals in Miami's 111-108 victory on Friday over the Los Angeles Lakers, cutting the deficit to 3-2 in the best-of-seven National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals series.
"I left it all out there on the floor along with my guys," said Butler, who played 47-plus minutes. "And that's how we're going to have to play from here. This is the position we're in, we like it this way, (and) we've got two more to (win)."
The weary playmaker - who shot 11-of-19 from the floor and 12-of-12 from the free-throw line - slumped on an advertisement board beyond the end of the court before hitting the free throws that put the Heat ahead with 16.8 seconds remaining.
He traded scores with four-time NBA Most Valuable Player LeBron James on six straight possessions in the final two minutes, carrying Miami just far enough to force a Game 6 today.
"That's what the team asked of me. That's what they need me to do," added Butler, who also had a triple-double in his team's Game 3 win. "I know I'm capable of it. I have a great group of guys around me. That gives me a lot of confidence to go out there and hoop."
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra could not praise his star player enough after the game, saying: "His will to win is remarkable. To do that in 47-plus minutes and take the challenge on the other end, every young player coming into this league should study footage on Jimmy Butler."
Duncan Robinson added 26 points for Miami, while Kendrick Nunn chipped in 14, Bam Adebayo contributed 13, Tyler Herro had 12 and Jae Crowder scored 11.
James amassed 40 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists and three steals for the Lakers. Anthony Davis finished with 28 points, 12 boards and three blocks.
The Lakers had a chance to clinch the title, but Danny Green missed a wide-open three-pointer, and then Markieff Morris turned the ball over with 2.2 seconds left.
Herro's two foul shots with 1.6 seconds left put the Heat up by three, and James' half-court heave at the buzzer was off the mark.
The latter admitted Butler outplayed him down the stretch.
"That was back and forth, big play after big play," James said. "That's the beauty of the game, being able to compete at the highest level.
"You take those opportunities and live in the moment. We were both just trying to do that and will our teams to victory. He was able to make one more play than I was tonight and get the victory."
The key play was a foul call on the Davis with 16.8sec left when Butler drove to the hoop, one James lamented. "I thought he was chest to chest with Jimmy and the call didn't go our way. It was a tough call," he said.
Looking beyond the defeat, James has urged his teammates to simply focus on winning Game 6, instead of thinking about lifting the trophy.
"You take the game as it's going and you play," he said. "You play each quarter, you play each possession and you live with the results.
"You have to live in the moment and prepare yourself each and every possession, because if you start to wander and your mind starts to go, you make a mistake."
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
MIAMI V LA LAKERS
Game 6: StarHub Ch202, tomorrow, 7.30am
