Portland Trail Blazers at Dallas Mavericks
Tuesday, 1/4/11, 8:30 PM EDT
Opening Point Spread: Dallas -4
Current Betting Line: Dallas -4.5
Opening Total: 185
Current Total: 184
Portland is starting to catch fire and has won two straight and six of eight heading into tonight’s contest against Dallas. The Blazers defense has played a huge part in the team’s recent run by holding four consecutive opponents to 95 or fewer points. “Our chemistry has gotten better,” said LaMarcus Aldridge. “I think guys are really figuring out their roles.” He will be called upon in a big way tonight due to averaging 21.8 points and 7.8 rebounds in the four meetings last year, while scoring 25.3 a night since last facing the Mavericks in a 103-98 road loss on December 15. Last year, the Trail Blazers won twice in Dallas for the first time since the 1998-99 season. The team had dropped 18 of 20 games versus the Mavericks before last year. Portland is 2-5-1 ATS versus the Southwest Division and currently an underdog on the NBA lines page.
The Trail Blazers are one of only six teams in the league that have already played 19 road games. Portland’s defense has allowed opponents to score 100 points just nine times all year. The unit allowed 103 points at Dallas on December 15, marking the first time an opponent hit the century mark in almost a month. In fact, the defense went 11 straight games without allowing 100 points before that particular contest. Each of Portland’s first 12 wins came when holding opponents under 100 points. The Trail Blazers are allowing 89.1 points per game in wins and 100.7 points in losses.
Dallas is 25-8 overall on the season and brings a 13-6 home mark into tonight’s contest against a Western Conference rival. The Mavericks are 7-3 versus such opponents while playing inside the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. The team may be without two of its top scorers on Tuesday, with Caron Butler out with a knee injury and Dirk Nowitzki still recovering from a sprained knee. Both players played a huge part in the earlier win this season over Portland by combining for 44 points. Dallas is 10-1-1 ATS versus teams with a winning record.
The Mavericks have won 20 of the last 25 matchups with the Blazers and Nowitzki averaged 27.5 points and 8.8 rebounds against Portland last year. Dallas recorded a 104-95 win over Cleveland on Sunday, picking up the team’s 18th victory in 22 games. The team committed just 10 turnovers in the win over the Cavaliers, marking the third straight game they recorded 12 or fewer turnovers. Reaching the century mark is critical for the squad’s success this year, recording a 17-0 record when scoring 100-or-more points. The Mavericks were 35-7 when they scored at least 100 points in a game last season.
Bettors will be interested in the Blazers being 4-1 ATS on one days rest, while the Mavericks are 1-4 ATS in the same situation.
