The Houston Rockets head to Staples Center on Tuesday night to take on the Los Angeles Lakers for their second straight game.
These two teams played against each other last October 31st in Houston and the Lakers emerged with a 98-85 win after leading by as many as 26 points before taking their foot off the gas pedal and allowing the Rockets to cut big into the lead.
Houston is 1-5 on the season and in 4th place in the Southwest Division team standings, 3 games behind the early leaders Dallas Cowboys. Meanwhile, Los Angeles Lakers are 4-3 and in second place in the Pacific Division, 1.5 games behind the Golden State Warriors.
The Los Angeles Lakers have won the last eight meetings between these two teams, including the other day’s 10-point win in Houston.
The Rockets are coming off their worst offensive performance of the season as they scored just 85 points against the Lakers two days ago in Houston. The Lakers’ defense was all over the Rockets right from the start, limiting Houston to only 35 first-half points.
Eric Gordon scored 17 points to lead the Rockets while Christian Wood posted a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Kevin Porter Jr. also had a good game with 13 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists, and 2 steals. Houston could be without guard Danuel House.
The Rockets rank 26th in the league in scoring at 101.5 points per game scored. They are 13th in rebounding at 46.7 boards grabbed per contest but are just 23rd in passing at 21.2 assists per game and are allowing 109.2 points per game this season.
The Lakers have played better as of late as they have won four out of their last five games. Los Angeles could’ve easily been 5-0 in their last five games but they squandered a huge lead and lost to the Thunder three games ago. The Lakers are still struggling to find chemistry but have been able to win their recent games with sheer talent alone.
Against this same Rockets, Carmelo Anthony led the Lakers with 23 points and four blocks while coming off the bench. Russell Westbrook had another all-around night with 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists while Anthony Davis added 16 points and 13 rebounds. LeBron James finished the game with 15 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists.
Los Angeles is 7th in the league in scoring at 112.6 points per game while they are 10th in passing at 24.3 assists per contest. The Lakers however are just 25th in rebounding at 44.0 boards grabbed per contest and they are allowing 112.0 points per game this season
The Rockets are 2-13 SU in their last 15 games played. Houston is winless in their last 10 games played on the road. The Lakers are 4-1 SU in their last five games played. Los Angeles is 5-0 SU in their last five games against the Southwest Division.
Head to head, the Lakers are 8-0 SU in their last eight games played against the Rockets. Los Angeles is also 4-1 SU in their last five games played against Houston at the Staples Center.
This isn’t the start that the Lakers expected. They have shown issues with chemistry and playing together and have looked lost in some games. But however which way you look at this game, LA have a much superior lineup than the Rockets. And even if they don’t play well as a unit, their individual talents should be more than enough to carry them to victory.
The Rockets are in a rebuild mode. There are a lot of youngsters in this lineup including their main go-to guys. Although this team has played hard in every game we’ve seen them play, their lack of experience has prevented win from winning games. Houston has lost its last four games and they are going up against a Lakers team that has won four out of their last five.
Unless we see another collapse like what happened to them against OKC, I’ll take the Lakers to beat the Rockets again.
Prediction: Los Angeles Lakers
The Rockets are 8-4 ATS in their last 12 games played. Houston is 5-1 ATS in their last six games against the PA, 5-1 ATS in their last six road games against an opponent with a winning home record, 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games after an SU loss, 7-2 ATS in their last nine games as road underdogs, and 7-2 ATS in their last nine road games overall.
The Lakers are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games played. Los Angeles is 1-6 ATS in their last seven games played, 2-5 ATS in their last seven games after an ATS loss, 5-16 ATS in their last 21 games after a straight-up win, 1-6 ATS in their last seven games as home favorites, 1-7-1 ATS in their last nine games against an opponent with a losing straight up record, 0-7 ATS in their last seven home games against an opponent with a losing road record, and 0-5 ATS in their last five home games against an opponent with a road winning percentage of lower than .400.
Head to head, the Rockets are 12-5 ATS in their last 17 road games against the Lakers.
The Lakers may be one of the most talented teams in the league but not only are they still trying to figure out their chemistry but they also don’t care about winning margins. Los Angeles is just 2-5 ATS this season while the Rockets are 3-3 ATS in six games played.
Los Angeles should establish big leads here, just like they did on October 31st. But while the Rockets are struggling to pick up wins, they play their hearts out every game and they have shown resilience. Just like in the last game, the Lakers won’t care about winning margins as all they want is to get that “W”. I’ll take the plus points and go with the Rockets here.
Prediction: Rockets +10
The total has gone under in each of the last seven games played by the Rockets. The under is 5-0 in their last five games against the Western Conference, 5-0 in their last five games after a straight-up loss, 6-0 in their last six games as an underdog, 4-0 in their last four games as road underdogs, 5-1 in their last six games against an opponent with a winning straight up record, and 9-3 in their last 12 Tuesday games.
The total has gone under in two out of the last three games played by the Lakers. The under is also 3-2 in their last five games played at home, 4-1 in their last five November games, 5-2 in their last seven games after a straight-up win, 7-3 in their last 10 games against an opponent with a losing road record, and six out of the last seven meetings between these two teams. The under is also 5-2 in their last seven games played in Los Angeles.
These teams played last October 31st and combined to score only 180 points in a low-scoring affair. They have also combined to score an average of 214.9 points per game in their last 10 head-to-head meetings.
The Rockets are one of the worst teams in the league when it comes to offensive efficiency, ranking 28th in that department. Houston is also averaging 101.5 points per game this season, averaging only 101.5 points per game.
The Lakers are in the upper half of the league when it comes to offensive efficiency but they are near the middle at no. 12 so they aren’t really a top offensive team as well. Los Angeles is a high-scoring team at 7th in the league at 112.6 points per game, but as we saw two days ago, they will take their feet off the gas pedal once they are up big. This should be like the first game. Lakers go up big, pull out their stars, and settle for the win.
Prediction: Under 218
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