The Oklahoma City Thunder can take a commanding 3-0 lead in their second-round Western Conference series on Friday night when they travel to Staples Center for Game 3 against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Thunder went up 2-0 on the Lakers on Wednesday with a 77-75 home win, failing to cover the posted spread on the NBA lines at the sportsbooks. Kevin Durant scored 22 points in the victory.
The Thunder will try to spoil to the party on Friday; they are 35-31 ATS against the number this season, while the Lakers are 27-39 ATS. Oklahoma City is 31-35 on the totals; Los Angeles is 37-29.
View Oklahoma City vs LA Lakers Odds and Stats.
Betting Line:
If you're backing the visitors in this one, you'll find the Thunder listed as 2.5-point underdogs at Sportsbook. Meanwhile, the OVER/UNDER line for this game was set at 194 at Sportsbook.
Power Rankings / Prediction:
It's a betting matchup between the No. 7-rated Lakers and the No. 2-ranked Thunder, according to the NBA Power Rankings here at Odds Shark. Predictive-scoring formulas run on this game indicate a potential 104-100 result in favor of the Thunder.
How They Match Up:
In rebounding, the battle of the boards features Los Angeles's No. 2-rated squad against Oklahoma City's No. 6-rated roster. When it comes to long-range shooting, Los Angeles rates No. 23 in the league with 5.5 per game, while their foes tonight rank No. 12 with 7.2 per outing.
Defensively, the Thunder feature the league's No. 16-rated defense on the road, allowing 97.6 points per game. Los Angeles, meanwhile, comes in at No. 16 in the league in scoring at home.
Last time out for Los Angeles, they were a 77-75 loser as they battled the Thunder on the road. The Lakers covered in the match as an 8-point underdog, while 152 combined points moved the game UNDER for totals bettors. Kobe Bryant scored 20 points in a failed effort to lead the Lakers to victory (they lost 77-75 to Oklahoma City at Chesapeake Energy Arena on Wednesday).
Oklahoma City Thunder Trends:
When playing on Friday are 5-5
Before playing LA Lakers are 8-2
After playing LA Lakers are 7-3
After a win are 7-3
Los Angeles Lakers Trends:
When playing on Friday are 8-2
Before playing Oklahoma City are 5-5
After playing Oklahoma City are 7-3
After a loss are 7-3
A few Thunder at Lakers trends to consider:
Oklahoma City is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
Oklahoma City is 5-1 SU in their last 6 games when playing LA Lakers
Oklahoma City is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 13 of Oklahoma City's last 19 games on the road
LA Lakers are 12-2 SU in their last 14 games when playing at home against Oklahoma City
LA Lakers are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of the LA Lakers last 7 games at home
LA Lakers are 17-8 SU in their last 25 games when playing Oklahoma City
Next up:
Oklahoma City at LA Lakers, Saturday, May 19
LA Lakers home to Oklahoma City, Saturday, May 19
