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The Utah Jazz visit Madison Square Garden and take on the New York Knicks on Wednesday night.
Utah is trying to get home-court advantage in the playoffs and they are just one game behind the 4th seeded Rockets in the Western Conference team standings. The Jazz have recovered from a recent four-game losing streak with back to back road wins. New York is out of the playoffs but despite their predicament, the Knicks pulled off a shocker and stunned the Houston Rockets in their last assignment. The Knicks look to slay another giant when they host the Jazz on Wednesday night.
Back to Back Road Victories
After four straight home losses, the Utah Jazz have rebounded with back to back victories on the road. Utah defeated Washington last Friday night in DC and then they picked up a win over the Cavaliers in Cleveland. With their latest win, the Jazz moved to 5th place in the Western Conference and they are just one game behind the 4th seeded Houston Rockets.
Bojan Bogdanovic led Utah with 28 points while Rudy Gobert added 20. Donovan Mitchell added 19 points nine rebounds as the Jazz made 20 three-pointers against a Cavs team that played without Andre Drummon, Darius Garland, and Tristan Thompson. Jordan Clarkson played his first game against his former team and he chipped in 13 points for the Jazz.
Utah ranks 16th overall in scoring at 111.5 points per game on the season. They are 11th in rebounding at 45.6 boards grabbed per contest and are 26th in passing department at 22.2 assists per game. The Jazz are 9th in the NBA in scoring defense at 108.3 points per game this season.
Knicks Shock Rockets
The New York Knicks are having another terrible season but the Knicks head to this home game after a shocking win over the Houston Rockets. New York is one of the worst teams in the league this season with their 19-42 SU record. The Knicks are 4-6 SU in their last 10 games played, and they have won their last two games played.
Rookie R.J. Barrett scored a career-high 27 points on 10-18 shooting from the floor. Julius Randle added 16 points plus 16 rebounds while Bobby Portis and Wayne Ellington each scored 15 markers for the Knicks. Reggie Bullock and Dennis Smith Jr. were still out of the game due to injury.
The Knicks rank third from last in scoring at 105.4 points per game this season. They are also 28th in passing at 21.9 assists per game and are 6th overall in rebounding at 46.6 boards per contest. New York is allowing its opponents to score an average of 112.0 points per game, 19th in the Western Conference.
Who Wins?
Utah is 2-4 SU in their last six games played. The Jazz are 3-0 SU in their last three games played on the road, and 11-1 SU in their last 12 games played against the Eastern Conference. New York is 2-6 SU in their last eight games played. The Knicks are 3-2 SU in their last five games played at home, 1-9 SU in their last 10 games against the Western Conference, and 1-17 SU in their last 18 games against the Northwest Division. Head to head, the Jazz are 7-3 SU in their last 10 games played against the Knicks.
The Jazz have won back to back road games and they are starting to play beautiful music once again. Utah is trying to catch up with the Rockets and at this stage of the season, they can’t waste games like this. Bojan Bogdanovic looks like he’s out of his shooting slump and that’s bad news for the Knicks.
New York took advantage of Houston’s small-ball to bully the Rockets off the glass and inside the paint. New York’s season is over and they are just playing for the lottery. However, when you have a young team like them, you have a bunch of young guys who want to prove themselves that they belong at this level. That makes them dangerous.
However, I don’t think that New York can bully Utah the way they did the smaller Rockets team. Gobert will control the paint in this game and with Utah’s scorers back in the groove and shooting in rhythm, I expect the Jazz to come up with a comfortable win over the Knicks on Wednesday night.
Prediction: Utah Jazz
Other Bets to Make
The Jazz are 1-5 ATS in their last six games played. Utah is 3-0 ATS in their last three games played on the road, and 2-5 ATS in their last seven games against the Atlantic Division. The Knicks are 5-4-1 ATS in their last 10 games played. New York is 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games played at home, and 1-6 ATS in their last seven games played in March. Head to head, the Knicks are 14-6 ATS in their last 20 games played against the Jazz.
Jazz
-8 (-112)
Knicks
+8 (-108)
Odds from BetOnline as of 03/04/20
The Knicks are coming off back to back games where they scored 125 in each game. New York took advantage of Houston’s small line-up to beat them in their last outing. However, the Jazz have the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in Rudy Gobert and he should be able to contain the Knicks’ frontline. I like Utah to cover because of terrific defense and Rudy Gobert’s presence in the middle.
Prediction: Jazz -8
The total has gone over in six out of the last 10 games played by the Jazz. Utah has seen the total go over in two out of their last three road games. The total has gone over in five out of the last six games played by the Knicks. The under is 6-4 in New York’s last 10 home games against the Western Conference. Head to head, the total has gone over in eight out of the last 10 meetings between these two teams.
Over
218.5 (-113)
Under
218.5 (-107)
Odds from BetOnline as of 03/04/20
Utah has scored an average of 131.33 points per game in their last three games played against the Knicks. The Jazz have scored 129 and 126 points in their last two assignments. They have also allowed 113 or more points in nine out of their last 10 games played. The Knicks have conceded at least 115 points in four out of their last five games and New York has scored 125 points in each of their last two games, both wins. This is an unlikely pair to go over the total but both have been involved in high-scoring games as of late. This one should be no different.
Prediction: Over 218.5
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