Hot Teams Collide – Sixers Host Blazers
The Portland Trailblazers (23-14 SU, 17-19 ATS, 15-21 O/U)have won three consecutive games in the BetUS Sportsbook. The Philadelphia 76ers (17-20 SU, 18-19 ATS, 16-19-2 O/U) have won four straight games while covering the spread in a whopping five consecutive games. Tonight, the red-hot opponents will look to extend their respective winning streaks when they battle at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.
The Blazers are coming off a thorough 109-95 win over Chicago on Monday, easily covering the spread in the BetUS Sportsbook as a 2-point road favorite.
Reserve forward Travis Outlaw scored a season-high 33 points off the bench, adding seven rebounds for good measure while second-year center Greg Oden added 17 points and 13 rebounds and veteran point guard Steve Blake, 16 points and 11 assists.
“The X-factor is me, Travis and Steve Blake,” Oden said. “We’re the three that are behind (Roy) and LaMarcus (Aldridge). Whenever we can step up and have good games to take pressure off those guys, it’s going to be big.”
The 76ers jumped all over the struggling Atlanta Hawks from the outset, beating their Eastern Conference rivals 109-94 to easily cover the spread as a 5.5-point road underdog on Sunday.
Shooting guard Andre Iguodala scored a team-high 27 points to go along with nine assists and six rebounds while second-year forward Thaddeus Young added 22 points and nine rebounds in the win.
“It seems like we’re getting it together a little bit,” Sixers point guard Andre Miller said after scoring 19 points with seven assists in a 109-94 road win over the Hawks on Sunday.
Philadelphia shot 54.7 percent from the field against Atlanta outscoring the Hawks 56-36 in the paint. More importantly, the Sixers shut the Hawks down in the final period, limiting the athletic Hawks to just 16 points.
“We got some stops tonight, and when we get stops, it enables us to get out and run,” said Iguodala. “We’re getting easier opportunities because of the fast break, and when that’s not there, we’re getting points out of our half-court set.”
Here is a look at tonight’s key trends, followed by my in-depth analysis and NBA Free Pick:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Portland’s last 6 games when playing Philadelphia
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Portland’s last 10 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Portland’s last 14 games when playing on the road against Philadelphia
Portland is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
Philadelphia is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Philadelphia’s last 6 games when playing Portland
Philadelphia is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games at home
Philadelphia is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home
NBA Odds
Portland Trailblazers -1½ -110
Philadelphia 76ers +1½ -110
Over 192 -110
Under 192 -110
Analysis: While the Philadelphia 76ers are playing excellent basketball and are also playing at home in this contest, I’m going to take the Portland Trailblazers to cover the spread by picking up the outright win.
No, I don’t think it’s going to be a cakewalk by any means, but I do like the young, hungry and talented Blazers to escape with a win.
