New York Knicks AT Atlanta Hawks
Jan 28, 2011 at 7:30 PM EST
Opening Line: Atlanta -6.5
Current Line: Atlanta -6.5
Opening Total: 207
Current Total: 206
Opening Moneyline: Atl -260 / NY +240
Current Moneyline: Atl -280 / NY +230
The Hawks recently had one of the most embarassing losses this season, a 41 point drubbing by the New Orleans Hornets, a game that the Hawks managed to score a pathetic 59 points while giving up 100. They followed that woeful performance up with a win against the Bobcats, before dropping another game to the Bucks. It leaves the Hawks at 29-17 and they are tied with Orlando for the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. Atlanta big man Al Horford was not pleased with the offensive execution, commenting “We just became stagnant on offense. It’s a lesson that we are still learning. I don’t think it hurts enough yet because we haven’t done anything about it.”
The Knicks, meanwhile, are coming off a pride and confidence building home win against the “Heatles,” as LeBron refers to himself and his squadron. The Knicks found a way to do something they hadn’t been doing for most of the season: play defense. They held the potent Miami offense to a mere 88 points while managing to score 93 themselves. The win on national television was a boost to the Knicks who are seeking to reclaim their glory days of the 80s and 90s after floundering in mediocrity for the entire Isiah Thomas tenure.
Some betting trends:
New York is 2-6 SU in their last 8 games and thet otal has gone UNDER in 6 of their last 7 road games. They are 1-5 SU in their last 6 on the road and 14-4-1 ATS in their last 19 road games. The total has gone OVER in 8 of their last 11 games against the Hawks and they are 5-2 SU in their last 7 against Atlanta. The total has gone OVER in 10 of their last 13 games on the road against Atlanta and they are 3-6 SU in their last 9 against the Hawks.
Atlanta is 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games and the total has gone OVER in 8 of their last 12 games. They are 8-3 SU in their last 11 games and 7-16 ATS in their last 23 home games. The total has gone UNDER in 7 of their last 9 at home and they are 11-2 SU in their last 13 at home. They are 2-5 SU in their last 7 against the Knicks and 2-6 ATS in their last 8 against NY. The total has gone OVER in 8 of their last 11 against the Knicks and OVER in 10 of their last 13 at home against the Knicks. They are also 0-5 ATS in their last 5 home games against the Knicks.
Key Matchups:
Amar’e Stoudemire vs. Al Horford
Horford recently made the switch to center, and while Amar’e has been hovering between center and power forward, you can expect Horford to draw the defensive assignment as Atlanta’s best interior defender. Horford has had success against the Knicks in his career, averaging 18.0 points per game and 11.8 rebounds. Amar’e has also had a good career run against the Hawks, averaging 23.9 points per game and 10.2 rebounds per game. Amar’e is seeking to build on his better performances of late, as he has scored 24 and 30 in the last two games, totaling only 36 in the two games before those. Last game against the Hawks he played at about his season average, scoring 24 and grabbing 10 rebounds in a 9 point Knick loss at home. That game, the Hawks had 6 players in double figures and New York is going to have to improve their all around defensive effort to prevent that from happening again.
Landry Fields vs. Joe Johnson
Landry Fields has been one impressive rookie; so impressive in fact that the Knicks refused to offer him up in a trade to bring in Carmelo Anthony. Despite being a second round pick, the 6’7″ shooting guard is one of the best rebounding guards in the league, averaging 7.2 boards a night while scoring 10.0 points per game. He’s shooting high percentages from the field (52%) and from three (38%), so Joe Johnson can’t simply sleep on him defensively. Last game Fields held Johnson to a mere 7 points, his second lowest scoring game of the year.
Tonight’s game should be a good one as New York seeks to climb above .500 on the road against a Hawks team that is 14-7 at home.
