The first round of the NBA Playoffs continue today and we will see the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Houston Rockets in Oklahoma City Oklahoma. The game is scheduled for a 9:35 pm (Eastern) start time and will be televised on TNT. Currently the Odds for the game have Oklahoma City favored by 1.5 points while the total sits at 205.5.
Analysis: Oklahoma City scored 66 points in the first half on Saturday night, but managed just 38 points in the final two quarters. The club actually shot better from three-point range (38.5%) than from inside the arc (37.7% FG) in Game 3, but made a blistering 28-of-30 foul shots and committed just 11 turnovers, which was a small number for such a fast-paced game without their top point guard. Although the Thunder had 12 of their shots blocked on Saturday, they still grabbed eight more offensive rebounds than Houston (13-5) and held a convincing 49-41 overall rebounding edge. The best player in this series has clearly been SF Kevin Durant, whose playoff career-high 41 points plus 14 rebounds in Game 3 gives him 31.3 PPG, 8.0 RPG and 5.7 APG this postseason. These are pretty hefty numbers for a player making just 42.9% FG and 30.4% threes in his three games. PG Reggie Jackson was one of many Oklahoma City players to share point-guard duties on Saturday, and although the second-year player from Boston College had just one assist and three turnovers, he thrived offensively with 14 points (3-of-6 FG, 6-of-6 FT). PF Serge Ibaka also shot more than usual, attempting 14 field goals (7-of-14 FG) in Game 3, after combining to shoot just 17 times in the first two contests of this series.
In Game 2, Houston nearly erased a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter of Game 2 with a stunning 21-2 run, but Oklahoma City made big shots down the stretch and held on for the 105-102 win. In Saturday's Game 3, the Rockets trailed 50-24 after the first 20 minutes of the game, but came roaring back to take a two-point lead with 45 seconds remaining. However, Kevin Durant capped off his 41-point night with a fortunate bounce on a three-pointer at the top of the key that put the Thunder up for good in a 104-101 victory. Houston lost Game 3 at home despite outshooting its opponent 43.4% FG to 37.9% FG and outscoring them 42-30 in the paint and 17-6 on fast-break points. While the Thunder will be without PG Russell Westbrook (knee) for the rest of the postseason, the Rockets starting point guard is also hurting as Jeremy Lin (chest) was limited to just 18 minutes on Saturday. Houston's offense was outstanding all season with 106.0 PPG (2nd in NBA) on 46.1% FG and 36.6% three-pointers (both 9th-best in league), knocking down 10.6 threes per game (2nd in NBA). But so far this series, the club has 98.0 PPG on 39.6% FG and 27.8% threes. Defensively, this Rockets team really struggles to stop opponents, allowing 102.5 PPG in the regular season (3rd-worst in league), and 109.7 PPG during the postseason. SG James Harden continues to pace the offense with 28.7 PPG in this series, but has shot just 36.9% FG and 4-of-21 threes (19%). C Omer Asik scored 10.1 PPG during the regular season, but took only one shot in 31 minutes on Saturday. He was strong defensively though, with eight rebounds and four blocks, and is averaging 9.7 RPG this postseason.
Pick: Going to look to the Over in this one. The Thunder showed they can score even without Westbrook, especially vs this porous Houston defense. I look for the Thunder to go all out offensively in this one as a win here would give them a few days off before the next round starts. Houston also needs to go all out offensively here, as for them there is no tomorrow if the lose. The Rockets average 108.1 ppg at home and they have scored 103 ppg on this tough Thunder defense the last 2 games. I feel that in desperation mode they will push tempo and the Thunder will run right along with them. Both teams should be able to notch at least 103 points in this one.
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