Posted on 11/29/2007 4:59:52 PM

Bet on NBA - Houston Rockets (-2) vs. Golden State Warriors (+ 2)

By D.S. Williamson

After a 0 and 6 start the Golden State Warriors have turned the corner. They have won 7 out of their last 8 and look to make it 8 out of their last 9 when they face the Houston Rockets.

The Rockets, who some NBA bettors pegged as a team to watch in the tough Western Conference, have sort of played okay basketball so far this year. They are 7 and 7 and sort of remind me of a large, ominous truck, stuck in the mud. Sure, it looks good, but it just keeps spinning its wheels.

That’s the Rockets for you who, even though having one of the best all-around players in the game in Tracy McGrady and one of the best centers in the game in Yao Ming, still find a way to lose games.

One of the problems, I think, is their penchant for playing tough defense, slowing a game down, and then trying to get the ball into the hole by making tough shots. The truth about basketball betting is that sometimes you need to run and then sometimes you need to slow it down. The Pistons play both ways - - why aren’t the Rockets doing the same? They average a paltry 95.4 points a game. That’s not going to cut it unless you have a truly balanced team like the Spurs.

Here are the key trends in this one:

The Houston Rockets are 4 and 11 against the spread in their last 15 road games.

The Golden State Warriors are 6 and 2 against the spread in their last 8 games.

It looks to me like the Rockets will have a terrible time in this game. One of the things that really stands out to me is the fact that the Warriors force, on average, 15 turnovers per game. It will be impossible for the Rockets to slow this game down. If they have to start running with the Warriors, which the Rockets will do in order to stay close, then forget about it. Big Yao just can’t get down the court fast enough.

The BetUS NBA line is Golden State Warriors + 2 against the spread at home versus the Houston Rockets.

I like the Warriors to run the Rockets off of their feet in this one. The Warriors won’t hesitate to take the open shot while the Rockets will try and force the ball to Yao. Since Yao can’t change his style, the Warriors will have an easy time in this game.

I think the Warriors pull the upset in this one and win outright

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