NBA odds: Houston Rockets vs Boston Celtics Preview & Pick
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Houston Rockets vs. Boston Celtics
Date: Monday, January 10, 7:30 p.m. ET
Venue: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Broadcast: FSH, CSNE
Rockets vs. Celtics lines from Sportsbook.com
Rockets: +8.5
Celtics: -8.5
Total: 197
Check Out Our Indepth NBA ATS Betting Stats For This Game —>
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Already mired in a tough losing streak, the Houston Rockets are in a lot of trouble on Monday night; they face the dominating Boston Celtics on NBA odds.
After winning four consecutive games, Boston (28-8, 18-16-1 ATS) lost 90-79 to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday. The Celtics failed to cover, dropping them to just 3-7 ATS in their last 10 outings.
Without Kevin Garnett in the lineup, Boston may be struggling to find the right intensity. Garnett has missed six straight games with a leg injury, and it certainly showed against Chicago; the Celtics were killed on the glass, losing 48-27. Garnett is averaging 9.5 boards per game this season.
His defensive presence was also missed. Derrick Rose scored 36 points, spending half the night driving on Rajon Rondo. Without Garnett down low to cause problems, Rose was awarded 19 free throw attempts (he made 15 of them).
Offensively, Boston made just 37.8 percent of its field goals. Glen Davis was a disaster, making just four of his 17 shot attempts. Davis has played pretty well since subbing for Garnett but, if he’s off that badly on a given night, he needs to cut back his shots.
Houston (16-21, 17-17-2 ATS) has dropped five straight games. The Rockets lost 103-99 in overtime to Utah on Saturday, once again failing to cover. That dropped their record to a miserable 0-6-2 ATS in their past eight games.
The Rockets have blown back-to-back games in the third quarter. Against Utah, Houston entered the half with a 16-point lead; the team scored just 15 points in the third quarter, though, which would up costing Houston the game.
But simply finding more offense won’t be enough, as there are leaks sprouting everywhere. Those 15 points against the Jazz was Houston’s worst third-quarter offensive performance of the season; against Orlando two games ago, it suffered its worst third-quarter defensive performance.
It Kyle Lowry could turn things around, it would make a tremendous difference. The guard is a crucial part of Houston’s offense but he simply can’t make a shot right now. He’s made just 12 of his last 50 shots—a brutal 24 percent—after hitting just one of 13 against Utah. In his last three games, Lowry is just 3-23.
The Rockets have a ton of problems, not the least of which is the inability to put points on the board at crucial times. Even without Kevin Garnett, the Celtics remain one of the best defensive teams in the NBA—they’re allowing just 92 points per game. Houston simply won’t be able to score enough points to cover.
Trends:
Houston is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Houston’s last 13 games when playing Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston’s last 6 games on the road
Houston is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Boston
Boston is 11-1 SU in its last 12 games at home
Boston is 19-4 SU in its last 23 games
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Boston’s last 11 games
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Boston’s last 13 games when playing Houston
Houston at Boston pick: Celtics
Ian Van Den Hurk has covered amateur and pro sports for years, including a successful run handicapping anything from football to mixed martial arts.
