NBA Playoffs YTD: 27-17-2
3-4 today. Was somehow on the money with the NYK and NOH game but played the other way. LOL Moving on to Saturday:
Indiana played well like they did since Game 1 only to be outclassed again by Derrick Rose. We'll probably see the very same intensity from both team since Game 1 and the Boozer being a non-factor can even extend this game to 5. The best bet in the series is definitely the UNDER 188.0. I don't think we'll see any of the team shoot 45% or better tomorrow. Pacers average 44.2 with the Bulls only allowing 43. Pacers are an even better defensive team at home than they are on the road and you should expect the likes of George, Hansbrough and maybe even Granger to take bad shots with the game and their season on the line. The pressure should help dictate a low scoring game as well. Rose will still take majority of the shot and stay below 38% (as he was in the whole series). If you're thinking of Bulls' motivation, they'll go and try win this game to get a head start on their next assignment. Rest will be very important to this team. As for the side, I think it will be as close as the last 3 games and taking the team with the points is the smartest thing to do here. Given the Bulls' offensive problems, I say we see this Pacers team leading and being up a number of times only to yield late in the game to the Bulls. They'll probably lose by not more than 4 so Indiana Pacers +4.5.
Again, I think I got this series all figured out. Home team takes the game and if Portland can extend this series to 7, they have a better chance of winning the series. The play is on the Portland Trailblazers -4.0. The total is rather tricky, we saw a fast paced 1st half only to hit the decelerate pedal hard in the 2nd half. By now, Portland should've noticed two things. One is that they need a strong start (that's why Portland 1Q at home is gold) to keep the game away and second is that with Wallace, they are an even better defensive team than they ever were. The total play should be UNDER 187.5. I'm leaving it as a lean for now since a lot has 186.5 or less. Both teams could hit 90 points easy which is why every little points for the total counts.
I never would've guessed the Grizz will comeback only as a 2 point home favorite. I was expecting them to be as high as a 4.5 point fave. This one tells us to play the obvious side which is Memphis. Let's hop on it and get trapped. Memphis Grizzlies -2.0 is the right play. I couldn't emphasize how good the Grizz' front court is over the Spurs. They are longer and bulkier (not to mention younger). Home court will be crazy now that they have the chance to go up 2-1 after this game. Like in my previous writeup, Grizzlies have a great advantage with their front court, they are more athletic as a whole than the Spurs and will greatly benefit playing at home (30-11). No play with the total at the moment, I'm leaning on the OVER 191.5 since they shoot better at home.
Denver has no real answer for Durant and Westbrook plus that nifty 5.5 points, why not? Oklahoma City Thunder +5.5. I don't think we'll see a blow out here or would suddenly playing at high altitude have great effects on the outcome. It's either Thunder win or the game is forced to go down the wire where the points will greatly matter. Both teams are pretty evenly matched and if it weren't for a 15-31 1Q, Game 3 could have potentially went to OT. Like their previous games, both teams should pretty much even each other out and decide the outcome in the last few minutes of the match. It should be a good game to watch.
BOL.