The Rockets find themselves down 2-0 after another defeat in Golden State to the Warriors. Houston needs to find a way to stymy Kevin Durant in front of their home crowd. Here is a sports betting recap from Game 2 and a look ahead to tonight’s Game 3 matchup.
After hanging on to a 115-109 victory in Oracle Arena on Tuesday night, the Warriors are now up 2-0 in their series against the Rockets. Kevin Durant put on a show on Tuesday evening — leading the Warriors to an extremely tight cover of a 5-point spread and inching the matchup over a 222 O/U.
Durant is averaging 32 PPG in the series despite a bit of inefficiency with a 42.5 FG%. Durant is 4/9 from three-point range and has added two steals and three blocks during the series.
Durant’s running mate — Draymond Green — posted an extremely well-balanced 15-point, 12-rebound, and 7-assist line on Tuesday night. The Splash Bros. added 41 points in the contest.
The margins are so small in this series. For that reason, turnovers could be crucial. In Game 2, the Rockets turned the ball over 17 times and ceded 24 points off the mistakes. Houston is second-worst behind the 76ers during the playoffs with 15.7 turnovers per game — after averaging a sixth-best 13.3 throughout the regular season.
The Rockets clearly will need to clean up their game and perhaps will be boosted by the home crowd. The Rockets lead playoff contenders with a 20.0 net rating at home — after sweeping the Jazz in the Toyota Center.
Stat of the Day
The Golden State Warriors averaged 16.3 PPG off turnovers during the regular season. In Game 1, the Warriors only scored 10 points off turnovers but scored 24 in Game 2.
At home, the Rockets allowed 16.4 points off turnovers during the regular season. The Warriors will likely try to take advantage of the Rockets’ mistakes during Game 3 while playing a faster-paced, transition-style game. The Rockets play at a far-slower pace than the Warriors and will look to control the flow of the game at home.
Prop Shop: James Harden O/U 34.5 Points
Despite blurred vision from getting poked in his eyes during Game 2, James Harden still managed 29 points on 19 field-goal attempts. Unfortunately, 29 points were not enough to go over his 33.5 points prop in Game 2. That makes Harden one-and-one on his points props thus far against the Dubs.
Harden averaged 36 PPG during the regular season on a league-high 24.1 attempts per game. During the playoffs, Harden leads with 23.1 attempts per game and should be boosted with crowd support. Breakfast Lean: James Harden Over 34.5 Points (FanDuel Sportsbook)
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The Breakfast Pick
Bookmakers for FanDuel Sportsbook peg the Rockets as 3-point favorites at home in the Toyota Center. The O/U sits at 221.5 at the time of this writing.
The Warriors lone victory in the four-game set between the two teams came in the Toyota Center on March 13 in a 106-104 win. The Warriors received big contributions from their main cogs in Game 2 while no Rocket outside of James Harden exceeded 18 points.
That said, the Rockets clearly need this game to get the series back on track. In front of a home crowd, the Rockets should clean up the turnover issues and control the pace of the game. FanDuel Sportsbook posts a +450 price for a Rockets’ series victory. There is no way the Rockets get there unless they defend home court today. Breakfast Lean: Houston Rockets Cover 3 Points to get the series to 2-1.
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