NBA Basketball
2013-04-21 - Houston Rockets at Oklahoma City Thunder
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States: NBA Basketball Play Offs
Sunday 21 April 2013 - Tip Off 9:30pm
2:30am (British Time)
Preview
The Oklahoma City Thunder are the Number 1 seed in the Western Conference and they will be the big favourites to come through this series with the Houston Rockets. While they won't be under-estimating Houston, Oklahoma City also will know they match up very well with the Rockets and they will be expected to move through to the Semi Finals without too many concerns in this First Round.
It also isn't a big surprise that James Harden will be returning to face the Thunder after leaving the team in the off-season to join Houston. Harden scored 46 points against the Thunder in their only win over Oklahoma City, but he struggled against them here as his old friends know his game very well from his time here.
While the series has been about whether the Thunder can slow down Harden, who had a career year, but Oklahoma City are focusing on all of the team. They don't want to take any of the Houston team easy and so the focus is here to stop all of the perimeter shooters that the Rockets have.
Oklahoma City and Houston are both young teams that score a lot of points, but the Thunder are the more experienced in the Play Offs and that could be another key to this series.
Both will play a similar style of play with the fast-break points being important and so I am expecting a fun series to take place.
Head to Head
Oklahoma City won the season series 2-1 this year and have blown out the Rockets in two of those games.
Houston are now 1-5 against the spread in their last 6 visits to Oklahoma City.
Prediction
This should be a fun, fast series, but one that Oklahoma City will likely dominate.
I like the Thunder to cover in this first game of the series.
The Pick :
Oklahoma City Thunder 116-103 Houston Rockets
Gooner’s Statistical Value Bet
I'll back the Oklahoma City Thunder -10 Points @ 1.95
