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Saturday's Tip Sheet
Kevin Rogers
Game of the Night: Warriors at 76ers – 8:30 PM EST
Golden State (43-19 SU, 25-36-1 ATS) finishes off its four-game road trip which started with promise in Monday’s victory at Charlotte. However, the Warriors fell at the buzzer on Wednesday in Miami, followed by a late meltdown at Orlando the next night.
Kevin Durant didn’t suit up on Thursday, as the Warriors overcame an eight-point halftime deficit by outscoring the Magic, 30-11 in the third quarter. Orlando cruised past the two-time defending champions in the fourth quarter, 33-15 to shock the Warriors, 103-96. Steve Kerr’s squad shot 9-of-40 from three-point range, while getting held to its lowest point total since scoring 93 in a 20-point home loss to Toronto in December.
Now, Golden State will try to salvage the trip in Philadelphia against a 76ers’ (40-22 SU, 29-33 ATS) that snapped a 19-game losing streak to Oklahoma City dating back to 2008 in Thursday’s 108-104 road triumph. Philadelphia completed a perfect 2-0 road trip after beating New Orleans on the first stop, as the Sixers built an 11-point halftime edge before OKC made it interesting in the final minute. Tobias Harris paced Philadelphia with 32 points on 11-of-17 shooting, while drilling 5-of-7 three-point attempts.
The Warriors have covered only once in their last nine games, while losing consecutive road contests for the first time since late November/early December at Toronto and Detroit. Philadelphia halted a 10-game slide to Golden State on January 31 at Oracle Arena in a 113-104 victory as eight-point underdogs. The game easily finished UNDER the total of 240 ½, as the two teams combined for 36 fourth quarter points. Stephen Curry lit up the Sixers from downtown by knocking down 10 three-pointers and scored 41 points in Golden State’s first loss to Philadelphia since 2013.
Third Time Around
The Thunder and Spurs have gone through plenty of playoff battles that have gone both team’s ways. Oklahoma City (38-23 SU, 33-28 ATS) dropped its third consecutive game in Thursday’s 108-104 setback to Philadelphia. The Thunder played without leading scorer Paul George, who missed only his second contest of the season due to a sore right shoulder. Russell Westbrook posted another triple-double with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, but the former MVP shot 8-of-24 from the floor, including hitting only 1-of-9 attempts from three-point range.
San Antonio (34-29 SU, 33-29-1 ATS) rebounded from a dreadful rodeo road trip in which it finished 1-7 as the Spurs took care of the Pistons at home, 105-93 as 4 ½-point favorites on Wednesday. The Spurs held their first opponent to below 100 points since limiting Memphis to 96 points on January 9 as Gregg Popovich’s squad allowed Detroit to shoot 36% from the floor. Six Spurs scored in double-figures in Wednesday, led by 24 points from LaMarcus Aldridge as San Antonio improved to 23-7 at AT&T Center.
OKC has failed to cash in five straight games, while finishing UNDER the total in the last three games with totals of 240, 238, and 239. The Thunder and Spurs eclipsed the OVER in each of the first two matchups, including in a 154-147 double-overtime setback at San Antonio on January 10 as Oklahoma City erased a 12-point deficit to force the game past regulation. Aldridge torched the Thunder for 56 points that night, while converting 20 field goals and 16 free throws.
The Thunder captured the second matchup two nights later at Chesapeake Energy Arena, 122-112 as six-point favorites. OKC overcame a nine-point halftime deficit to outscore San Antonio, 71-52 in the second half, while marking the ninth win by the home team in the last 10 meetings.
Deer Crossing
The Bucks (48-14 SU, 36-23-3 ATS) continue a five-game road swing in Utah as Milwaukee heads to Salt Lake City following Friday’s victory against the Lakers in Los Angeles. Milwaukee won in the first two stops at Chicago and Sacramento, as the Bucks edged the Kings in overtime on Wednesday, 141-140 in spite of blowing a 13-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.
The Jazz (35-26 SU, 32-27-2 ATS) seek their fourth consecutive win after holding off the Nuggets on Thursday, 111-104 to cash as 7 ½-point underdogs. Not only did the Jazz snap a five-game skid at Pepsi Center, but Utah improved to 6-5 SU and 5-6 ATS with no rest this season. Utah overcame a slow start as the Jazz outscored the Nuggets, 33-15 in the second quarter to grab control, while picking up its first road win since January 27 at Minnesota.
Milwaukee pulled away from Utah in its first matchup at Fiserv Forum on January 7 as five-point favorites in a 114-102 win. The Bucks outscored the Jazz, 31-16 in the fourth quarter, while Giannis Antetokounmpo put together a 30-point, 10-rebound performance in the victory for Milwaukee. The Jazz have had their way with the Bucks in Salt Lake City over the years by winning 16 consecutive home meetings, while Milwaukee has cracked the 100-point mark only once in this stretch, which came last season.
Long Hike
The Nuggets (42-19 SU, 33-28 ATS) dropped only their fifth home game in 32 tries at Pepsi Center in Thursday’s flat effort in a 111-104 setback to Utah. Denver had won five consecutive contests prior to that loss, but the Nuggets still hold the top spot in the Northwest division, while suffering their first loss as a home favorite since November 13 against Houston.
Denver welcomes in New Orleans, as the Pelicans (28-36 SU, 31-32-1 ATS) ended a brief two-game skid by beating the hapless Suns, 130-116 on Friday. The Pelicans shared the scoring load as Julius Randle led New Orleans with 22 points, while Jrue Holiday posted 21 points and Anthony Davis scored 17 points in 21 minutes of action. New Orleans picked up its fourth road win in the last nine tries, while the Pelicans grabbed their third straight victory in the role of a favorite.
Now, the Pelicans are flipped to a heavy underdog, but that has not affected this team negatively. New Orleans has stepped up to the plate by covering in six of seven opportunities as an underdog of eight points or more. Denver has captured two of the first three matchups this season with New Orleans, but the Pelicans have managed to cover in all three games as an underdog.
Kevin Rogers
Game of the Night: Warriors at 76ers – 8:30 PM EST
Golden State (43-19 SU, 25-36-1 ATS) finishes off its four-game road trip which started with promise in Monday’s victory at Charlotte. However, the Warriors fell at the buzzer on Wednesday in Miami, followed by a late meltdown at Orlando the next night.
Kevin Durant didn’t suit up on Thursday, as the Warriors overcame an eight-point halftime deficit by outscoring the Magic, 30-11 in the third quarter. Orlando cruised past the two-time defending champions in the fourth quarter, 33-15 to shock the Warriors, 103-96. Steve Kerr’s squad shot 9-of-40 from three-point range, while getting held to its lowest point total since scoring 93 in a 20-point home loss to Toronto in December.
Now, Golden State will try to salvage the trip in Philadelphia against a 76ers’ (40-22 SU, 29-33 ATS) that snapped a 19-game losing streak to Oklahoma City dating back to 2008 in Thursday’s 108-104 road triumph. Philadelphia completed a perfect 2-0 road trip after beating New Orleans on the first stop, as the Sixers built an 11-point halftime edge before OKC made it interesting in the final minute. Tobias Harris paced Philadelphia with 32 points on 11-of-17 shooting, while drilling 5-of-7 three-point attempts.
The Warriors have covered only once in their last nine games, while losing consecutive road contests for the first time since late November/early December at Toronto and Detroit. Philadelphia halted a 10-game slide to Golden State on January 31 at Oracle Arena in a 113-104 victory as eight-point underdogs. The game easily finished UNDER the total of 240 ½, as the two teams combined for 36 fourth quarter points. Stephen Curry lit up the Sixers from downtown by knocking down 10 three-pointers and scored 41 points in Golden State’s first loss to Philadelphia since 2013.
Third Time Around
The Thunder and Spurs have gone through plenty of playoff battles that have gone both team’s ways. Oklahoma City (38-23 SU, 33-28 ATS) dropped its third consecutive game in Thursday’s 108-104 setback to Philadelphia. The Thunder played without leading scorer Paul George, who missed only his second contest of the season due to a sore right shoulder. Russell Westbrook posted another triple-double with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, but the former MVP shot 8-of-24 from the floor, including hitting only 1-of-9 attempts from three-point range.
San Antonio (34-29 SU, 33-29-1 ATS) rebounded from a dreadful rodeo road trip in which it finished 1-7 as the Spurs took care of the Pistons at home, 105-93 as 4 ½-point favorites on Wednesday. The Spurs held their first opponent to below 100 points since limiting Memphis to 96 points on January 9 as Gregg Popovich’s squad allowed Detroit to shoot 36% from the floor. Six Spurs scored in double-figures in Wednesday, led by 24 points from LaMarcus Aldridge as San Antonio improved to 23-7 at AT&T Center.
OKC has failed to cash in five straight games, while finishing UNDER the total in the last three games with totals of 240, 238, and 239. The Thunder and Spurs eclipsed the OVER in each of the first two matchups, including in a 154-147 double-overtime setback at San Antonio on January 10 as Oklahoma City erased a 12-point deficit to force the game past regulation. Aldridge torched the Thunder for 56 points that night, while converting 20 field goals and 16 free throws.
The Thunder captured the second matchup two nights later at Chesapeake Energy Arena, 122-112 as six-point favorites. OKC overcame a nine-point halftime deficit to outscore San Antonio, 71-52 in the second half, while marking the ninth win by the home team in the last 10 meetings.
Deer Crossing
The Bucks (48-14 SU, 36-23-3 ATS) continue a five-game road swing in Utah as Milwaukee heads to Salt Lake City following Friday’s victory against the Lakers in Los Angeles. Milwaukee won in the first two stops at Chicago and Sacramento, as the Bucks edged the Kings in overtime on Wednesday, 141-140 in spite of blowing a 13-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.
The Jazz (35-26 SU, 32-27-2 ATS) seek their fourth consecutive win after holding off the Nuggets on Thursday, 111-104 to cash as 7 ½-point underdogs. Not only did the Jazz snap a five-game skid at Pepsi Center, but Utah improved to 6-5 SU and 5-6 ATS with no rest this season. Utah overcame a slow start as the Jazz outscored the Nuggets, 33-15 in the second quarter to grab control, while picking up its first road win since January 27 at Minnesota.
Milwaukee pulled away from Utah in its first matchup at Fiserv Forum on January 7 as five-point favorites in a 114-102 win. The Bucks outscored the Jazz, 31-16 in the fourth quarter, while Giannis Antetokounmpo put together a 30-point, 10-rebound performance in the victory for Milwaukee. The Jazz have had their way with the Bucks in Salt Lake City over the years by winning 16 consecutive home meetings, while Milwaukee has cracked the 100-point mark only once in this stretch, which came last season.
Long Hike
The Nuggets (42-19 SU, 33-28 ATS) dropped only their fifth home game in 32 tries at Pepsi Center in Thursday’s flat effort in a 111-104 setback to Utah. Denver had won five consecutive contests prior to that loss, but the Nuggets still hold the top spot in the Northwest division, while suffering their first loss as a home favorite since November 13 against Houston.
Denver welcomes in New Orleans, as the Pelicans (28-36 SU, 31-32-1 ATS) ended a brief two-game skid by beating the hapless Suns, 130-116 on Friday. The Pelicans shared the scoring load as Julius Randle led New Orleans with 22 points, while Jrue Holiday posted 21 points and Anthony Davis scored 17 points in 21 minutes of action. New Orleans picked up its fourth road win in the last nine tries, while the Pelicans grabbed their third straight victory in the role of a favorite.
Now, the Pelicans are flipped to a heavy underdog, but that has not affected this team negatively. New Orleans has stepped up to the plate by covering in six of seven opportunities as an underdog of eight points or more. Denver has captured two of the first three matchups this season with New Orleans, but the Pelicans have managed to cover in all three games as an underdog.
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