Dallas Mavericks at Utah Jazz
Friday, 12/3/10, 10:30 PM EDT, TV: ESPN
Opening Point Spread: Utah -3
Current Betting Line: Utah -3.5
Opening Total: 193
Current Total: 193
Dallas shares the league’s longest winning streak with tonight’s opponent as it travels on the road to face the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City. The Mavericks picked up is seventh straight victory with a 100-86 win over Minnesota on Wednesday. “It’s progress,” said coach Rick Carlisle. “We’ve got to continue it. I like this group a lot. We’ve been very business-like with our approach.” The team has posted a solid 8-3 mark against Western Conference foes, including a 5-1 mark on the road. Dallas has dropped the last five games in Utah and 10 of the last 13 meetings on tonight’s court. The Mavericks are 15-55 all-time against the Jazz in Utah. In the early going of the 2010-11 season, the squad is a perfect 7-0 ATS on the road and the NBA lines page has them as an underdog.
The Mavericks enter tonight’s contest owning the second-best opponents’ field goal percentage in the league, with the Jazz ranking first in the NBA. “Utah is always tough to play,” said Carlisle. “We haven’t won there since I’ve been here and I don’t think we’ve been close. Rebounding has been a determining factor in this series in Salt Lake, with Dallas being out-rebounded by 6.8 a contest. The team has also had trouble defending the paint in this series, surrendering 47.2 points in the lane over the five-game losing streak.
Utah has garnered victories in its last seven games by an average of 8.7 points and tallied an impressive 110-88 victory over Indiana on Wednesday. The Jazz have been shooting 49.8 percent and holding the opposition to 90.4 points per game during the streak, its longest since a nine-game run that took place on January 20 to February 9. The team was particularly strong in holding onto the basketball versus the Pacers, committing a season-low seven turnovers. Point guard Deron Williams posted a double-double with 24 points and 16 assists while not turning the ball over once. Utah is 7-4 ATS at home this season.
The Jazz are 7-5 versus the Western Conference and posted a 4-3 mark in those contest on their home floor. Utah is 86-54 all-time against the Mavericks and Williams had led the team in scoring in five of the last six meetings. It’s very important for the team to reach the 100-point plateau in games, posting a 10-1 record when doing so, while going 4-4 when going under the mark. Head coach Jerry Sloan’s squad is also a perfect 5-0 in games decided by six points or less.
Bettors will be interested in knowing that the Mavericks are 18-6-2 ATS versus the Western Conference, while the Jazz are 40-17 ATS Versus the Southwest Division.
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