Friday night in the NBA will see the New York Knicks travel south to take on the Miami Heat. The game is scheduled for an 8:00 pm tipoff and will be televised live on ESPN. Currently Miami is favored by 11.5 points with the total being set at 195 for this game.
Free Analysis: Losers in seven of its last eight games and still seeking cohesiveness, New York (7-11) could be the NBA's biggest early disappointment. Carmelo Anthony was unable to explain the Knicks' offensive troubles following their most recent defeat. After netting just one point and shooting 0-for-7 from the floor in Tuesday's 111-78 win at Charlotte that snapped New York's six-game slide, Carmelo Anthony netted just 15 points versus the Cavaliers and did not have an answer for his club's struggles. "I can't really put my finger on it right now," said Anthony, who shot 5-of-14 versus the Cavs. "We'll get back and look at it to see what happened. But right now, I can't even think about it." Averaging 26.0 points in 15 career games against the Heat, Anthony had 29 and nine rebounds in a 91-86 win at Miami on Feb. 27, less than a week after the Knicks acquired him from Denver. Despite consecutive games scoring over 100 points against Denver and Charlotte this week, New York has been held below 90 in five of its last nine contests. Amare Stoudemire had 19 and 14 rebounds but the Knicks scored only 36 points in the second half and committed 22 turnovers overall at Cleveland. The Knicks rank 15th in the league with 94.5 points per game, while they have allowed 95.3 ppg, which ranks 19th. New York is still in playoff contention (half a game out), but they need to start putting some wins together or they will start to fade from playoff contention. The Knicks will also have to wait at least two more games for the debut of point guard Baron Davis. The 32-year-old, who signed with New York on Dec. 19, has yet to play as he recovers from a back injury, and was ruled out of this weekend's games by coach Mike D'Antoni early Friday. The Heat were one team that showed interest in Davis after he was waived by the Cavaliers, but they have been just fine without the veteran. Miami is a half-game up on Atlanta for first place in the Southeast Division and is averaging the second-most points per game in the league with 104.4. Coming off a 4-1 homestand, the Heat picked up a 101-98 victory in Detroit on Wednesday. James scored 32 points and netted the final six from the foul line to seal the win, which halted a three-game road losing streak.Chris Bosh added 27 points for the Heat, who were without Dwyane Wade for a sixth straight contest due to a left foot injury. Wade is day-to-day and could play tonight, while Miami has gone 8-1 without its star guard this season. Bosh, meanwhile, has scored at least 20 points in a season-high four straight contests, while James is second in the league with 29.1 points per game. The Heat and Knicks split their four meetings last year, with Wade averaging 28.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game in the four encounters, while James had 25.3 points, 9.8 rebounds and 7.0 assists in the season series. Stoudemire had 23.5 points and 9.8 rebounds and per game in the four contests for a New York club that had lost seven straight to Miami before winning the final two encounters.
Free Pick: Looking to make a play on the Under in this one.The Knicks scoring woes have been documented this year and it won't get any better for them with a hobbling Anthony and the fact that Miami has allowed just 92.6 ppg at home. New York has averaged just 94.5 ppg overall and 93.2 ppg on the road and they shoot just 29.9% from long range on the road. The Knicks had been porous last year on defense and they used the offseason to help out that end of floor and it has helped some as they are allowing just 95.3 ppg overall and an impressive 91.3 ppg on the road. The Heat come in 2nd in scoring at 104.4 ppg and they have scored 106.6 ppg at home, but the loss of wade may be catching up a bit as they have averaged just 87 ppg in their last 2 games at home. I believe both of these teams will bring some defensive intensity and that along with the Knicks poor scoring output should keep the scoring down.
Free Picks: Spurs at Timberwolves Betting
http://PregameVideos.com - Revenge game for the Spurs and Favorable schedule for Spurs plus other factors NBA bettors need to know about Spurs at Timberwolves (Friday, January 27, 2012) from Pregame.com - Including predictions from Bryan Leonard and analysis from host Scott Spreitzer.