Posted on
4/9/2008 5:40:41 PM
NBA Basketball Betting - New Orleans at Minnesota
By Charles Jay
WHO: New Orleans Hornets (54-23 SU, 47-29-1 ATS) at Minnesota Timberwolves (19-58 SU, 35-41-1 ATS)
WHERE: Target Center in Minneapolis
WHEN: Wednesday, April 9 at 8 PM ET
BetUS NBA basketball betting odds: New Orleans -10, Total 203.5
In the HEAD-to-HEAD NBA betting trends:
* NO has won and covered four of the last five meetings
* Four of the last six meetings have gone UNDER the total
* NO has covered seven of the last eight meetings as the road team
* NO has won four of the last five meetings SU as the road team
* Seven of the last nine meetings in Minneapolis have gone OVER the total
* MINN has made more three-pointers in four of the last five meetings
New Orleans is one of the more trustworthy teams with the basketball, turning it over just 11.5 times a game. The Hornets barely out-shoot their opponents, hitting at a 46.4% rate and surrendering 46%. Also:
* NO has won five of its last six games SU
* NO has covered four of its last six road games
* NO has won five of its last six road games SU
* NO has played six of its last eight road games OVER the total
Minnesota has averaged 96.5 points a game at home, which ranks just 28th in the league. The T-Wolves have made just 5.2 three-pointers a game, and have a +2.4 rebounding margin at the Target Center. Also:
* MINN has lost its last five games SU
* MINN has covered three of its last 11 games
* MINN has played five of its last six games OVER the total
* MINN has covered three of its last nine home games
* MIN has won four of its last six home games SU
* MINN has played four of its last five home games OVER the total
Minnesota found its shooting eye in the last two games, hitting almost 52% against both Memphis and Charlotte. But the Wolves lost both games because they have deficiencies on the defensive end. Meanwhile, the Hornets went stone cold at home against Utah last night, shooting just 36.5% in a 77-66 loss. So it will be an angry New Orleans squad that comes into the Target Center. And they've been a pretty strong road proposition, covering at a 67% rate (14-7 ATS) laying points away from home.
The previous three meetings between these teams came within just 35 days; New Orleans won by 18 points (100-82) at Minneapolis on November 17, then lost at home to Minnesota nine days later. The Hornets did extract some payback on December 22 with a 110-76 romp at the N.O. Arena.
So now the "payback arrow" is back in the Wolves' court, but we don't know if that means very much here against a New Orleans team that holds a very narrow lead in the Western Conference, but could slip all the way to sixth place with a couple of losses, and which has a solid 12-4 ATS record playing in the back end of back-to-back situations.
They'll bounce back here, and so we'll lay the points with the Hornets, the 10-point favorites in the BetUS NBA betting odds.
JAY'S PLAY: NEW ORLEANS
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(Charles Jay of http://www.eBookies.com is a freelance writer and handicapper who not only can make his shots from the top of the key, but also contributes with gusto to the BetUS Locker Room)