The No. 7 Dallas Mavericks (1-3 SU, 1-3 ATS) look to extend their first-round playoff series with the No. 2 Houston Rockets (3-1 SU, 3-1 ATS) when the teams meet Tuesday. You can watch the game live on TNT.
The Mavericks avoided being swept and extended the series with their in-state rivals at least one more game with a 121-109 win Sunday. The Mavs are still faced with the difficult task of having to win three consecutive games over the West’s No. 2 seed or go a fourth straight year without taking a postseason series since winning its first title in 2011. No NBA team has ever rallied from a 0-3 hole.
On the verge of capturing just their second postseason series win since a run to the Western Conference finals in 1997, the Rockets failed in their first chance to eliminate the Mavericks and can wrap up the series Tuesday. As good as the Rockets have been it’s hard to believe their only series win in the past 18 seasons came in 2009, with eight first round exits. Houston has won all four games against the Mavs at home this season going 4-0 ATS.
KEY INJURY
Mavs forward Chandler Parsons is out for the remainder of the playoffs as he explores options for his ailing right knee. Parsons played in Game One of the series aggravating the injury that cost him the final six regular season games. The injury will likely require corrective surgery.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“They played like the team that was trying to close us out and we played like the team that was going home. That can’t be like that. We have to have a killer instinct in that type of moment. The guys in this locker room are feeling this loss. We’re taking it pretty hard. We know deep down this won’t happen again.” Rockets forward Josh Smith following Saturday’s loss
BETTING TRENDS
- Dallas is 7-17 ATS in its last 24 games overall.
- Houston is 20-7 ATS in its last 27 home games.
- The OVER is 8-2 in Houston’s last 10 games overall.
KEY STATS
13: Mavericks guard JJ Barea dished out 13 assists Sunday, the most he’s had in a game this season, and scored 17 points for his first playoff double-double starting for the first time in the series in place of Rajon Rondo.
32.5: Dallas’ Monta Ellis scored 31 points Sunday and averaged 32.5 in the last two series games.
17: The Rockets missed 17 consecutive field goals covering the second and third quarters Sunday allowing the Mavs to go on a 25-3 run to take control of the game.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
It’s evident the Rajon Rondo experiment in Dallas didn’t work out and the Mavs, due to injuries and the lackluster effort given by the former All-Star, turned to a pair of bench players to keep their season alive. Can JJ Barea and Al-Farouq Aminu continue to deliver for the Mavs like they did in Saturday’s win? Barea and Aminu recorded their first career postseason double-doubles and gave the effort Rondo couldn’t or wouldn’t put forth. “I thought JJ and Al-Farouq were phenomenal,” Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki said.
The Rockets will say it’s just a bump in the road, that they didn’t execute their game plan and let the Mavs dictate the pace of play. And don’t expect the Rockets to miss 17 straight field goals like they did Saturday in a stretch that turned a close game into a Mavs rout. As poorly as they shot the Rockets still scored 109 points getting to the rim enough to score well. Rockets center Dwight Howard needs to be better at the free throw line after missing 10 of 13 attempts Saturday and Houston’s three-point shooting, the most prolific in the NBA this season, was absent.
The Mavs did everything they wanted, and needed, to do Saturday to extend the series. They’ll need to do more of the same to extend the series another game. Suddenly Dallas has become an offensive force that has seemingly scored at will against the Rockets over the last two games. Another all-out effort is needed Tuesday but the Mavs are just overmatched despite the efforts of Monta Ellis and Dirk Nowitzki. We’ll give the Rockets a Game Four mulligan and expect them to come out with a little more intensity to put this series away.
Houston 111, Dallas 103
The NBA lines for this contest will first be released by BookMaker sportsbook. Gamble on the game between every commercial break with BookMaker’s live betting feature. Along with an adjusted in-game moneyline, you can wager on what will happen on the next play or how many points will be scored in the next half. Live betting is the most exciting way to play!
Load your betting bankroll from your smartphone with BookMaker’s new cashier feature! Depositing and withdrawing funds from your account has never been easier. BookMaker's live betting platform means you always have access to odds and lines to every sporting event. Click here and start wagering today! The matchup between the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets will go down Tuesday, April 28, 2015, at 8 p.m. ET at the Toyota Center. The contest will be broadcast nationally on TNT.
