Posted on 11/1/2007 12:21:06 PM

NBA Odds Houston Rockets (- 4) vs. Utah Jazz (+ 4)

By D.S. Williamson

Terrific second game for both teams.  The Jazz ended the Rockets’ season last year in the playoffs, the Rockets have hired Rick Adelman as coach, and the Jazz have new life with a starting five that many will consider one of the best in the league.

Ronny Brewer and Derron Williams were absolutely fantastic the other night versus the Golden State Warriors on the road.  The Jazz are a very good team and there is no doubt in my mind that Jazz coach Jerry Sloan will have his team ready for their home-opener.

Before going in-depth, here are some trends to remember:

The favorite (the Jazz in this one) are 6 and 2 against the spread in the last 8 meetings between these two teams.

The Jazz are 8 – 1- 1 against the spread in their last 10 home games.

The Rockets are 3 and 14 against the spread in their last 17 games overall.

What all of these trends point to is a rather workmanlike win for the Jazz.  What the jazz have over the Rockets is a true point-guard in Derron Williams.  Not only can he score at will, as evidenced by the 24 points he rang up versus the Golden State Warriors, but he can dish at will as well; he racked up 8 assists in their first game.

Then, there’s Ronny Brewer who scored 18 in the Jazz’s first game of the season.  Take into account the excellent play of Carlos Boozer and the defensive pressure of Mehmet Okur on Rockets’ center Yao Ming, and all of a sudden the Jazz look very, very good in this one.

Even though the Rockets have two superstars on their team in Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming, they will be hard-pressed to match-up with the entire Utah Jazz team.

The other Rockets’ starters, Rafer Alston, Shane Battier, and Luis Scola, just aren’t as good as Williams, Andre Kirilenko, and Carlos Boozer. 

Expect Boozer in particular to have a monster game versus Scola in this one.

The BetUS line is Utah Jazz – 4 against the spread at home versus the Houston Rocket.

Take the Jazz to throttle the Rockets good in this one and win by at least 10 points.

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