Chicago Bulls vs Houston Rockets NBA Betting Preview & Odds
Interconference hoops and we will see the Chicago Bulls travel to the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas to take on the Houston Rockets. TNT will carry this game, which has a start time of 8:00 pm EST.
Current betting odds for this game have the have the Rockets listed as 5.5 point favorites, while the total has been set at 214.
Head-To-Head This Year: Chicago won the lone matchup 108-100 as 1.5 point home favorites.
The Chicago Bulls are still fighting as they come in off a nice 98-96 win over the Pacers on the road and in the process they closed the gap to just two games behind them for the 8th playoff spot in the East. The win broke a 4 game losing streak for the Bulls, who are still just 13-23 away from home this year. Chicago still has 5 of their 8 games on the road and 5 of their last 8 games are vs teams that would be in the playoffs if they started today. Chicago is led by Jimmy Butler, who averages 21 ppg on the year, while 2nd is Derrick Rose, who comes in averaging 1`6.8 ppg so far. Leading the team in rebounding is Pau Gasol at 11.0 rpg and he is 3rd on the team in scoring at 16.6 ppg. Rounding out the double digit scorers on the team is Nikola Mirotic at 10.9 ppg, while Doug McDermott (43.1% & 9.5 ppg) and E’Twaun Moore (44.8% & 7.5 ppg) are the team’s best long range threats. The Bulls check in at 20th in the league in scoring, putting up 101.5 ppg, while also ranking 26th in shooting overall, 4th from long range and 10th from the charity stripe. The defensive numbers are average at best as they come in ranked 16th in points allowed, giving up 103.1 ppg, while also ranking 7th defensive FG% overall and 6th in 3-point defense. On the road the Bulls have averaged 101.2 ppg on 43.8% shooting, while allowing 106.1 ppg on 45.1% shooting.
Trends: The Bulls are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 when their opponent scores 100 points or more in their previous game and 20-8 ATS in their last 28 games on Thursday, but just 4-9 ATS in their last 13 road games and 5-14 ATS in their last 19 games playing on 1 days rest. The Over is 7-2 in their last 9 vs. a team with a losing straight up record, while the Under is 7-1 in their last 8 games playing on 1 days rest.
The Houston Rockets have not been playing all that well down the stretch, but they do come in off a huge 106-100 win over the Cavs on the road and now their last two wins were vs Toronto and Cleveland, who are the best teams in the East. Houston is currently tied with Utah & Dallas for the slots 7 thru 8 in the West, but they do own the tiebreaker over both, so if the playoffs started today then they would have the 7th seed. Houston has a favorable schedule down the stretch as 5 of their final 7 games are at home. The Rockets are led by James Harden, who averages 28.6 ppg, which is 2nd in the league. The Rockets got Michael Beasley from Miami and he is 2nd on the team in scoring, putting up 14.2 ppg in his 13 games with the team so far. Dwight Howard is having a decent year as he comes in averaging averaging 14.0 ppg and he leads the team in rebounding at 11.9 rpg, Trevor Ariza averages 12.4 ppg to round out the double digit scorers on the team. Overall Houston comes in ranked 4th league in scoring, putting up 105.9 ppg, while also ranking 14th in offensive FG% overall, 21st from long range and 29th at the charity stripe (The Dwight Howard effect). The defense has not been that good for them this year as they rank 26th in the league in points allowed, giving up 106.7 ppg, while also ranking 20th in defensive FG% overall and 22nd in 3-point defense. At home Houston has averaged 104.9 ppg on 45.0% shooting, while allowing 104.4 ppg on 47.3% shooting.
Trends: The Rockets are 50-22-3 ATS in their last 75 Thursday games and the home team ios 5-0 the last 5 in the series, but Houston is also 2-6 ATS in their last 8 home games and 1-5 ATS in their last 6 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game. The Over is 17-8 in their last 25 home games vs. a team with a losing road record, while the Under is 5-0 in their last 5 after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game.
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