Pro Hoops on Friday night and we will see the Memphis Grizzlies travel to the Lone Star State to take on the Houston Rockets. The game is scheduled for an 8:00 pm (Eastern) start time and will be televised locally. Currently the Odds for the game have Houston favored by 2.5 points while the total sits at 194.
Analysis: The Memphis Grizzlies resume their push for home-court advantage in the first round of the postseason on Friday when they visit the Houston Rockets, who clinched their first playoff berth since 2008-09 earlier this week. Memphis is fifth in the Western Conference, one game behind the third-seeded Denver Nuggets. Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley has picked up where he left off in March, when he averaged 17.6 points. Conley has scored at least 20 points in each of his five games this month, and he’s averaging 20.6 points over his last 13 games. Memphis is 20-7 since the All-Star break, and they moved a franchise-best 28 games above .500 with a 94-75 win over Charlotte on Tuesday. Coach Lionel Hollins was able to rest most of his starters late in the game, so the Grizzlies should be well-rested against the Rockets. Forward Darrell Arthur (back) and point guard Jerryd Bayless (knee) are both listed as day-to-day, so Tony Allen and Quincy Pondexter could see extra playing time. Pondexter is averaging 9.5 points in the last four games.
The Rockets are a half-game back of sixth-place Golden State, and they’d like to move up to avoid facing Oklahoma City or San Antonio in the first round. Houston has won 13 straight home games against the Grizzlies, including a 121-96 victory on Dec. 22. The Grizzlies answered with a nine-point win in Memphis on March 29, when Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph led the way with 21 points apiece. Forward Chandler Parsons will likely miss his fourth straight game with a calf injury, but the Rockets are hopeful that he’ll return before the end of the regular season. “I want to be out there more than anything, but at the same time I’ve got to be cautious and I’ve got to be smart about it,” said Parsons, who is averaging 15.3 points. The frontcourt duo of Greg Smith and Omer Asik continues to work well together, and they’ve helped the Rockets average 54.4 points in the paint over their first five games this month.
Pick: Im looking at the Over in this one. The Rockets score a tone and give up a ton at home and Memphis can put some points on the board, especially in an uptempo game. Look for at least 200 points in this one.
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