A Quiet Easter Monday In The NBA
Perhaps the NBA thought that their players would have eaten too much Easter chocolate on Sunday to be able to put on a good show on Monday! Whatever the reason, there is only one NBA game taking place today, which means if you are looking for great basketball action, you need to pile on one game, look towards March Madness’ Championship game or just wait around for Tuesday! There were some great NBA games on Sunday though and we’ll start with a quick recap before going over what Monday has to offer in the top league of basketball.
The Rockets grabbed a great away day win against the Thunder, triumphing 112-115. The Pacers were handy at home to the Heat, defeating the Miami side by a score of 112-89 while the Knicks grabbed a win in New York, defeating the 76ers by a score of 101-91. In the battle of Los Angeles, the Lakers slipped to a heavy home defeat to the Clippers, losing out by a score of 78-106.
The Cavaliers continue to show that they are finding form at the right time, dealing with the Bulls by a score of 99-94 and the Spurs showed that they won’t lie down and let other teams take their crown. The San Antonio crowd was cheering a 107-92 home win against the Warriors. The Jazz also won, beating the Kings by a score of 95-101 in Sacramento.
Portland Trail Blazers @ Brooklyn Nets
The Trail Blazers come into this on the back of a rather fruitful few days. They managed to clinch the Northwest Division and they made their way to another 50 win season, something that is always worth celebrating. Things are looking good but the fact that they still have a good bit of work to do to claim home-court advantage in the playoffs should ensure that the Trail Blazers don’t take things too easy just yet. The team from Portland will be looking to clinch their fourth road victory in a row when they arrive in Brooklyn.
prilFriday night was party night in Portland when they defeated the Lakers by 107-77 to clinch the team’s first division title in 6 years! They then kept the party spirit going on Saturday with a 99-90 win against the Pelicans. These wins don’t yet guarantee that vital home-court advantage though in a playoff series where the Trail Blazers are likely to face the San Antonio Spurs or the Los Angeles Clippers. Any advantage that is available is crucial against these sides so there is a lot for the Blazers to play for in the next two weeks.
Portland will welcome Minnesota and the Jazz before the end of the campaign but they also have to travel to take on the Warriors, the league leaders and play-off hopefuls Oklahoma City and Dallas.
The Nets were on a decent run of form, winning 6 in a row and 10 out of 12, but this halted when they lost 131-99 in Atlanta on Saturday. This was the most points the team had given up in a non-OT game since April 1997! The Nets were extremely strong on their previous game, a 114-109 win against the Raptors and they will be desperate to show that the Atlanta loss was a one-off.
The Blazers hold a 50-26 record and this includes a 19-18 record away from home. In their last 10 games, the Portland side is standing with a 6-4 record. The Nets have a 35-41 record and this includes a 16-20 record at home. Their 8-2 record in their 10 most recent games is impressive. For average points scored, Portland leads 102.9 to 97.9 and for average points against, the Blazers have the advantage of 97.9 to 101.1.
Taking Portland +7, at odds of 1.90, should be a good way to make the most of the only NBA game taking place on Monday. Bet Now!
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