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Wednesday's Tip Sheet
Kevin Rogers
Game of the Night: Warriors at Jazz – 9:05 PM EST
Since Stephen Curry returned to the Golden State lineup on December 1, the Warriors (21-10 SU, 14-17 ATS) have won six of eight games to move into first place of the Pacific division. The first game back for Curry was a loss at Detroit, but Golden State has fallen only once in the past seven trips to the court. The most recent victory for the two-time defending champions came in Monday’s 110-93 home blowout of the Grizzlies as 12 ½-point favorites, led by Kevin Durant’s 23 points.
The Jazz (14-17 SU, 14-16-1 ATS) were one of the final four teams in the Western Conference last season, but Utah isn’t even one of the top four teams in its own division now. Since Utah knocked off San Antonio and Houston at home earlier this month, Quin Snyder’s club has dropped four of their last five, including road losses to the Spurs and Rockets. Utah finished off a two-game road trip with a 102-97 setback at Houston on Monday, as the Jazz lost in spite of limiting the Rockets to 37% shooting from the floor.
Golden State edged Utah in its first matchup this season in Salt Lake City, 124-123 in late October. The Jazz put together a 16-point third-quarter advantage before the Warriors eventually erased the deficit with four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Former Jazz forward Jonas Jerebko tipped in the game-winner in the final second to give Golden State its first victory at Utah since clinching a second round sweep in the 2017 playoffs.
Unfortunately for Utah, the Jazz have played only 11 home games compared to 19 away contests this season. The Jazz haven’t been able to build any kind of home-court advantage at 5-6, compared to a 28-13 mark last season at Vivint Smart Home Arena. With Curry in the lineup, the Warriors have won eight of 10 games away from Oracle Arena, but own a 4-5 ATS mark in the favorite role in these contests.
Back Above the Border
The Raptors (23-9 SU, 15-17 ATS) are back at home following a four-game road trip which started well, but ended with a dud. Toronto picked up a pair of blowout wins over the Clippers and Warriors, but the Raptors dropped the final two games at Portland and Denver. Point guard Kyle Lowry sat out the last two contests with a thigh contusion, as the Raptors’ offense was limited to a season-low 86 points in Sunday’s defeat to the Nuggets.
Toronto welcomes in Indiana tonight as the Pacers (20-11 SU, 16-15 ATS) play with no rest following a shocking home loss to the Cavaliers, 92-91 as 12 ½-point favorites. The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for Indiana, while the Pacers connected on only 4-of-22 attempts from three-point range. The Pacers extended their UNDER streak to 11 games in a row, while limiting their last eight opponents to 101 points or less.
Double Strike
Surprisingly, the Kings have taken both matchups from the Thunder this season. Sacramento (16-14 SU, 19-11 ATS) seeks a third win over Oklahoma City (19-10 SU, 16-13 ATS) tonight as the teams meet at Golden 1 Center. The Kings begin a three-game homestand after getting drubbed at Minnesota on Monday, 132-105. Sacramento fell behind by 30 points at halftime on the second of a back-to-back after winning at Dallas on Sunday night.
OKC hits the road for a pair of games after beating the Clippers and Bulls at home. The Thunder has struggled on the highway of late by dropping three in a row away from Chesapeake Energy Arena, while posting an 0-4 ATS mark in their last four opportunities as a road favorite. Each of the first two matchups between the Kings and Thunder this season sailed OVER the total (222 and 227), but tonight’s total has been jacked up to 234 ½.
Back from Mexico
Maybe the Magic (14-15 SU, 17-12 ATS) may relocate to Mexico City, because apparently they can’t lose there. Orlando took a pair of neutral-site games against Chicago and Utah in a pair of low-scoring affairs, limiting those two teams to 91 and 89 points, respectively. The Magic haven’t won in their real home (Amway Center) since November 18 against the Knicks, but Orlando is seeking a season sweep of San Antonio. In their last matchup at AT&T Center in early November, the Magic shot 50% from the floor in a 117-107 triumph as 7 ½-point underdogs against the Spurs.
San Antonio (16-15 SU, 16-14-1 ATS) improved to 12-5 at home after blowing out Philadelphia on Monday to finish off a six-game homestand at 5-1. Now, the Spurs need to improve on their road numbers as they own a dreadful 4-10 mark, while last winning on the highway on November 26 at Chicago. The total numbers for the Spurs correlate with where they play as their last five home games finished UNDER the total, but San Antonio is 7-0-1 to the OVER in its last eight away from AT&T Center.
Washed Away
It’s not even Christmas and it feels like the Wizards’ (12-19 SU, 12-19 ATS) season is finished. Granted, Washington started slowly two seasons ago (3-9) and reached the conference semifinals, but the Wizards aren’t taking care of business away from home. After blowing out the Lakers in impressive fashion on Sunday, the Wizards fell at Atlanta last night, 118-110 to drop to 4-13 away from Capital One Arena.
Washington looks for its second victory over Houston in less than a month after the Wizards staved off the Rockets in overtime, 135-131 as two-point home favorites on November 26. The Rockets (15-14 SU, 12-16-1 ATS) are riding a four-game winning streak after beating the Jazz for the first time in three tries this season, 102-97 on Monday. James Harden torched Utah for 47 points, while posting 54 points and 13 assists against the Wizards last month.
Kevin Rogers
Game of the Night: Warriors at Jazz – 9:05 PM EST
Since Stephen Curry returned to the Golden State lineup on December 1, the Warriors (21-10 SU, 14-17 ATS) have won six of eight games to move into first place of the Pacific division. The first game back for Curry was a loss at Detroit, but Golden State has fallen only once in the past seven trips to the court. The most recent victory for the two-time defending champions came in Monday’s 110-93 home blowout of the Grizzlies as 12 ½-point favorites, led by Kevin Durant’s 23 points.
The Jazz (14-17 SU, 14-16-1 ATS) were one of the final four teams in the Western Conference last season, but Utah isn’t even one of the top four teams in its own division now. Since Utah knocked off San Antonio and Houston at home earlier this month, Quin Snyder’s club has dropped four of their last five, including road losses to the Spurs and Rockets. Utah finished off a two-game road trip with a 102-97 setback at Houston on Monday, as the Jazz lost in spite of limiting the Rockets to 37% shooting from the floor.
Golden State edged Utah in its first matchup this season in Salt Lake City, 124-123 in late October. The Jazz put together a 16-point third-quarter advantage before the Warriors eventually erased the deficit with four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Former Jazz forward Jonas Jerebko tipped in the game-winner in the final second to give Golden State its first victory at Utah since clinching a second round sweep in the 2017 playoffs.
Unfortunately for Utah, the Jazz have played only 11 home games compared to 19 away contests this season. The Jazz haven’t been able to build any kind of home-court advantage at 5-6, compared to a 28-13 mark last season at Vivint Smart Home Arena. With Curry in the lineup, the Warriors have won eight of 10 games away from Oracle Arena, but own a 4-5 ATS mark in the favorite role in these contests.
Back Above the Border
The Raptors (23-9 SU, 15-17 ATS) are back at home following a four-game road trip which started well, but ended with a dud. Toronto picked up a pair of blowout wins over the Clippers and Warriors, but the Raptors dropped the final two games at Portland and Denver. Point guard Kyle Lowry sat out the last two contests with a thigh contusion, as the Raptors’ offense was limited to a season-low 86 points in Sunday’s defeat to the Nuggets.
Toronto welcomes in Indiana tonight as the Pacers (20-11 SU, 16-15 ATS) play with no rest following a shocking home loss to the Cavaliers, 92-91 as 12 ½-point favorites. The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for Indiana, while the Pacers connected on only 4-of-22 attempts from three-point range. The Pacers extended their UNDER streak to 11 games in a row, while limiting their last eight opponents to 101 points or less.
Double Strike
Surprisingly, the Kings have taken both matchups from the Thunder this season. Sacramento (16-14 SU, 19-11 ATS) seeks a third win over Oklahoma City (19-10 SU, 16-13 ATS) tonight as the teams meet at Golden 1 Center. The Kings begin a three-game homestand after getting drubbed at Minnesota on Monday, 132-105. Sacramento fell behind by 30 points at halftime on the second of a back-to-back after winning at Dallas on Sunday night.
OKC hits the road for a pair of games after beating the Clippers and Bulls at home. The Thunder has struggled on the highway of late by dropping three in a row away from Chesapeake Energy Arena, while posting an 0-4 ATS mark in their last four opportunities as a road favorite. Each of the first two matchups between the Kings and Thunder this season sailed OVER the total (222 and 227), but tonight’s total has been jacked up to 234 ½.
Back from Mexico
Maybe the Magic (14-15 SU, 17-12 ATS) may relocate to Mexico City, because apparently they can’t lose there. Orlando took a pair of neutral-site games against Chicago and Utah in a pair of low-scoring affairs, limiting those two teams to 91 and 89 points, respectively. The Magic haven’t won in their real home (Amway Center) since November 18 against the Knicks, but Orlando is seeking a season sweep of San Antonio. In their last matchup at AT&T Center in early November, the Magic shot 50% from the floor in a 117-107 triumph as 7 ½-point underdogs against the Spurs.
San Antonio (16-15 SU, 16-14-1 ATS) improved to 12-5 at home after blowing out Philadelphia on Monday to finish off a six-game homestand at 5-1. Now, the Spurs need to improve on their road numbers as they own a dreadful 4-10 mark, while last winning on the highway on November 26 at Chicago. The total numbers for the Spurs correlate with where they play as their last five home games finished UNDER the total, but San Antonio is 7-0-1 to the OVER in its last eight away from AT&T Center.
Washed Away
It’s not even Christmas and it feels like the Wizards’ (12-19 SU, 12-19 ATS) season is finished. Granted, Washington started slowly two seasons ago (3-9) and reached the conference semifinals, but the Wizards aren’t taking care of business away from home. After blowing out the Lakers in impressive fashion on Sunday, the Wizards fell at Atlanta last night, 118-110 to drop to 4-13 away from Capital One Arena.
Washington looks for its second victory over Houston in less than a month after the Wizards staved off the Rockets in overtime, 135-131 as two-point home favorites on November 26. The Rockets (15-14 SU, 12-16-1 ATS) are riding a four-game winning streak after beating the Jazz for the first time in three tries this season, 102-97 on Monday. James Harden torched Utah for 47 points, while posting 54 points and 13 assists against the Wizards last month.
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