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The Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder meet in a Western Conference showdown on Friday night at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.
Mitchell Pouring The Points
Second year guard Donovan Mitchell has recovered from a slow start and is pouring in the points for the Jazz. Mitchell has scored 20 or more points in 18 out of Utah’s last 19 games including 12 games with over 25 points, four games of over 33 points. As a result, Utah has won 14 out of its last 19 games to vault to 6th place in the ultra-competitive Western Conference.
Mitchell leads Utah in scoring at 22.4 points per game. The second year guard is also averaging 3.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game. Rudy Gobert is Utah’s defensive anchor with 12.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game. The Stifle Tower is also averaging 15.2 points per game. Ricky Rubio leads the Jazz in passing with 6.1 assists per game while also scoring 13.0 points per contest.
The Jazz are 20th overall in team scoring at 109.2 points per game. Utah is ranked 11th in passing at 25.0 assists per game. They are also 13th off the glass with 45.3 rebounds grabbed per contest. The Jazz are ranked 4th in scoring defense at 105.9 opponent points per game allowed.
Jazz
+145
Thunder
-165
Odds from betonline.ag as of 2/22/19
Triple Double Machine
Russell Westbrook looks to extend his streak of consecutive triple-double games to 12 as the Thunder resume play at home on Friday night. Westbrook has already recorded 24 triple-doubles this season and he is one of the main reasons why the Thunder have risen to third place in the Western Conference.
Paul George lead OKC with 27.8 points per game PG13 is also contributing 8.0 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 2.3 steals per game. As we said earlier, Westbrook is having another triple double season with 21.7 points ,11.2 rebounds and 11.2 assists per game while Steven Adams is averaging 14.7 points and 9.5 rebounds per game.
The Thunder are the 5th highest scoring team in the league at 115.4 points per game scored. They are ranked 21st in passing with 23.4 assists per game and they are also 2nd in rebounding at 47.9 boards per game. Oklahoma City is giving up an average of 112.2 points per game which is 12th best in the NBA right now.
Who Wins?
Utah is 6-4 SU in its last 10 games played and the Jazz are 1-2 SU on the road during that period. Oklahoma City is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games played and the Thunder are 5-0 SU in their last five home games. Head to head, the Thunder are 6-4 SU in their last 10 meetings against the Jazz.
Donovan Mitchell has been the man for the Jazz on offense but it’s defense that’s keeping Utah in playoff contention. Rudy Gobert has been averaging 17 points and 13.4 rebounds per game in the month of February. Meanwhile, Kyle Korver has been struggling from deep at .294 shooting and making just one three pointer per game on the average.
For the Thunder, Paul George has been on a tear with 36.2 points in his last 10 games. Russell Westbrook has 11 consecutive triple double games and with their two superstars performing at a very high level, the Thunder are playing their best basketball of the season and are making a run at the top of the standings.
OKC has beaten Utah already twice this season and they look to clinch the series on Friday night. Utah is 3-2 in its last five games played and the Jazz are 14-15 on the road this season. The Thunder are 4-1 SU in their last five games and are 20-7 SU at home this season. OKC is coming off a disappointing loss to the Pelicans but that loss was only their second in the last 13 games. The Thunder have won six in a row at home and they should make it seven here.
We’re picking the Oklahoma City Thunder to beat the Utah Jazz on 2/22/19.
Other Bets To Make
The Jazz are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games played. Utah is 2-1 ATS in their last three games away from home. The Thunder are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games played. Oklahoma City os 4-1 ATS in their last five games at home. Head to head, the Thunder are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 meetings versus the Jazz.
Jazz
+3.5 (-105)
Thunder
-3.5 (-115)
Odds from betonline.ag as of 2/22/19
Utah is 4-9 ATS in its last 13 games against the Northwest Division. The Jazz are also 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games against teams with a winning percentage of over .600. Meanwhile, the Thunder are 7-1 ATS in their last eight games when their opponent allows more than 100 points in their previous game, 5-1 ATS in their last six games against teams with a winning SU record and 4-1 ATS in their last five games after an ATS loss. The Jazz have been playing well as of late but they are still struggling against the elite teams. OKC has been successful even against winning teams.
Prediction: Thunder -3.5
The total has gone over in six out of the last 10 games played by the Jazz. The under is 2-1 in Utah’s last three games on the road. The Thunder have seen the total go over in six out of their last 10 games played. The under is 3-2 in Oklahoma City’s last five games at home. Head to head, the under is 6-4 in the last 10 encounters between these two teams.
Jazz
O 226 -105
Thunder
U 226 -115
Odds from betonline.ag as of 2/22/19
The Thunder have played to the over in 13 out of their last 18 games. The over is also 5-2-1 in the Jazz last eight road games and 5-2 in their last seven games overall. Utah is a very good defensive team but the Thunder are an offensive monster. For Utah to keep up, they need to score points-which they can if needed. The Thunder dictates this game behind Russ and PG13’s offense. The Jazz have no choice here but to go toe to toe.
Prediction: Over 226
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