The Western Conference Finals between the Memphis Grizzlies and the San Antonio Spurs shifts to Memphis, Tennessee for Game 3 tonight. The game is scheduled for an 9:05 PM (Eastern) start time and will be televised on ESPN. Currently the Odds for the game have Memphis favored by 5.5 points while the total sits at 178.
Analysis: The Spurs has a 2-0 lead last year in the Western Finals before losing 4 straight to the Thunder. They will try and not let that happen again. Spurs point guard Tony Parker set a personal playoff-best with 18 assists in Game 2 but isn’t relaxing over the 2-0 edge. “We understand that we didn’t do anything,” Parker said. “We just protected home court and we have a long way to go because we know we’re playing a very good team.” Parker also had 15 points and three steals while bettering his previous personal-best for playoff assists by four. He has been playing with a painful left calf injury suffered in the second-round series against the Golden State Warriors and underwent an MRI exam on Thursday. The results displayed the calf contusion is dissipating and the three-day break without a game also should help Parker be more spry for Game 3. He is averaging 17.5 points and 13.5 assists in the series. Guard Danny Green has been stellar from long range and is 9-for-14 from behind the arc over San Antonio’s last three playoff games, while power forward Tim Duncan has blocked six shots despite shooting 9-for-23 from the field over the first two games. San Antonio has made 23 3-pointers in the series – including a franchise postseason-record 14 in Game 1. San Antonio is a strong 8-1 SU (5-4 ATS) with at least three off-days in between games this season, while Memphis is a poor 3-5 (SU and ATS) with this excess rest.
The Memphis Grizzlies are in must-win mode as the Western Conference finals move to the FedExForum for Saturday’s Game 3. The Grizzlies dug themselves out of a 0-2 hole in their first-round series against the Los Angeles Clippers and will need to do so again with San Antonio winning two on its homecourt. The Grizzlies haven't lost on their home floor during these playoffs, going 5-0 (SU and ATS) and holding these opponents to a mere 89.6 PPG on 42% FG (33% threes). The Grizzlies offense has really struggled since the first round of the playoffs, scoring just 91.4 PPG on 40% FG over seven games. In this series, the team has a paltry 86.0 PPG on 38% FG. But the defense is still capable of winning games for this club, holding three of the five playoff visitors to 83 points or less. The one big consistency for Memphis has been its ball-handling, as the club averages 19.5 APG and 10.6 TOPG for the entire postseason, which equates to a strong 1.83 Ast/TO ratio. Power forward Zach Randolph finally got his game going in the second half of Game 2. He had just four points on 2-of-18 shooting over the first six quarters of the series before finding room to operate during Memphis’ second-half comeback. Randolph finished with 15 points and 18 rebounds – including seven on the offensive boards – and center Marc Gasol also had a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds. The Grizzlies need their star post players to find their shooting touch – Gasol is 11-for-28 from the field and Randolph is 7-for-26.
Pick: As much as I wanna go with the Spurs in this one, I feel the Under is the better play. This game just screams ugly and low scoring. Memphis at home has allowed just 87.8 ppg on the year, while in the playoffs at home they have allowed just 89.6 ppg. Not only do they play great defense at home, but they also pay it at a very slow pace and i see them getting that pace in this one. It's their only shot of winning. The Spurs do like an uptempo game, but they will get down and dirty and play that slow game as well. Usually overlooked is the Spurs defense and they come in hot, having allowed just 88.4 ppg in their last 5 games, while allowing just 86 ppg to Memphis in the first two games of the series. Both teams will come out with allot of defensive intensity and that will make for an ugly, low scoring game.
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NBA Free Picks: San Antonio Spurs vs Memphis Grizzlies Betting
What pro basketball bettors need to know about San Antonio Spurs vs Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday (5/25/13) - a free pick from Pregame.com's Ken Thomson and Vegas Runner.