After rattling off 14 wins in a row, the Houston Rockets have hit a bit of a rough patch and have dropped two straight heading into their Christmas Day matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Sportsbook opened the Thunder as 1.5-point home underdogs with a total of 217.
James Harden has been doing his part, though. Harden has posted two straight outings of 50-plus points, becoming the first player since Kobe Bryant in 2007 to reach 50 in back-to-back games. The superstar joined Wilt Chamberlain as the only players to reach the 50-point mark in consecutive losses. Chris Paul hasn’t played in either of those games and is listed as doubtful for the holiday contest.
Russell Westbrook is the key cog in the Thunder’s offense, and the veteran has been balling out in recent weeks. Westbrook is averaging 29.8 points on 59.8 percent shooting for OKC with 9.5 assists and nine rebounds during a four-game winning streak. Westbrook collected his fifth triple-double of the month in Saturday’s 103-98 win over the Utah Jazz.
Betting on Oklahoma City at home has been a questionable endeavor lately. In the Thunder’s last eight games in OKC, they’re 1-7 ATS.
Sportsbook Odds & Computer Pick
The Oklahoma City Thunder opened as 4-point underdogs at online sportsbook Sportsbook, while the NBA total line was sitting around 215 at Sportsbook for those who prefer OVER/UNDER betting on the total amount of points scored.
A 112-108 result in favor of the Rockets is the prediction by the OddsShark handicapping pick engine. View the computer score prediction and who will win the pick on the moneyline for all upcoming NBA matchups here.
Houston Rockets vs Oklahoma City Thunder Matchup
Team Betting Records & Power Rankings
Oklahoma City battles the Houston Rockets, currently with a 25-6 mark (16-14-1 ATS). The OVER/UNDER records, important for totals betting, are 13-20 for the Thunder and 17-14 for the Rockets. Stay Informed: follow us on Twitter for odds specials, betting line moves and Oklahoma City vs Houston injuries news.
This game matches up the No. 7 (Oklahoma City Thunder) and the No. 1 (Rockets) teams in the league, according to our current NBA betting Power Rankings at OddsShark.
Statistical Matchup
The game also pits Oklahoma City's No. 22-ranked offense averaging 102.64 PPG, against a Houston Rockets defense that ranks No. 15 at 105.35 PPG. The Oklahoma City field goal percentage has averaged 44.06% so far, less than Houston shooters have achieved on the year, 46.9% per game.
Recent Outings Betting Recap
James Harden was dynamite, scoring 51 points and adding 4 rebounds but Los Angeles still won, 128-118, over Houston on Friday at Toyota Center.
Russell Westbrook scored 27 points and added 10 rebounds for a double-double, leading Oklahoma City over Utah, 103-89, on Saturday at Vivint Smart Home Arena.
Next Betting Matchups
Houston at Boston, Thursday, December 28
Oklahoma City home to Toronto, Wednesday, December 27