NBA Playoffs Prediction: Can the Rockets cover at the Spurs? 5/1/17
The San Antonio Spurs open their NBA Playoffs Series with the Houston Rockets tonight at 9:30PM ET. Which team has the edge?
GAME 1 ODDS
According to oddsmakers, the Spurs are favored at home, as they are getting odds of -5.5 points against the Rockets. The over/under total for the game is listed at 213 points.
HISTORY
These two met four times this season, with the Spurs winning three of the four meetings. These two both went 2-2 against the spread in the four games.
THE SPURS
The Spurs are coming off a 6-game series win over the Grizzlies in which they also went 4-2 against the spread. San Antonio is now 65-23 overall, 34-10 at home and 45-41-2 against the spread. The Spurs now average 105.3 points per game on offense while allowing 98 on defense.
Kawhi Leonard led the team in the playoff series with 31.2 points and 6 rebounds per game. Tony Parker added 16.3 points per contest.
THE ROCKETS
Houston opened the playoffs by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder in five games. The Rockets went 3-2 against the spread. Houston is now 59-28 overall, 26-17 on the road and 45-42 against the spread. The Rockets average 115.2 points per game on offense while giving up 109.3 on defense.
James Harden led the team against the Thunder, averaging 33.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 7 assists per game. Lou Williams is adding 18.8 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
NBA PLAYOFFS PREDICTION
The Spurs had a grind with the Grizzlies and now welcome a tremendous offensive team to town today. The Rockets actually played pretty well in the two games at OKC. Houston covered the spread in the two games on the road and I think they cover today against the Spurs.
San Antonio has struggled offensively at times, as Leonard doesn’t always get much support from his teammates. Harden has a lot more scoring options to work with.
NBA Playoffs Prediction: Houston Rockets +5.5