James Harden wasn’t quite ready for an encore to his career night in Denver as he and the Rockets crashed and burned against the Suns. But The Bearded One will have a chance to redeem himself when his Rockets go on the road to face the imploding Indiana Pacers. The playoffs are still a possibility for the Pacers, but they’re now on the outside looking in after going on an extended losing skid.
Can the Pacers end their slide against Harden’s Rockets at home? Read on below for our preview of this East vs. West clash. Indianapolis is the site for this year’s Final Four, which is getting closer and closer. Check out our preview of the Arizona vs. Xavier Sweet 16 showdown.
[sc:NBAArticles ]Houston Rockets vs. Indiana Pacers Betting Preview
Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indiana
When: Monday, March 23, 7:00 PM ET
Line: Houston Rockets at Indiana Pacers – view all NBA lines
Betting on the Houston Rockets
James Harden and the Rockets ran out of fuel on Saturday as they crashed 117-102 at home against the Phoenix Suns. The loss snapped Houston’s three-game winning streak.
[sc:NBA240banner ]Harden scored 16 points but was just 5-of-19 from the field one game after his career-high 50-point night against Denver on Thursday. Harden’s still having another spectacular month, though, with 28 points, six rebounds and seven assists per game in the past 11 games. His shooting percentages have fallen off, but he’s getting to the line more than ever. He’s averaging 13 attempts per game, and hitting 11.
With another day’s rest, Harden could be back at it against the slumping Pacers. He already torched Indiana for a then-season-high 45 points in a 110-98 Rockets win back on Jan. 19.
The bench duo of Josh Smith and Corey Brewer could also find joy against a Pacer team that has given up an uncommon amount of 20-plus point games against opposing bench players. The Raptors’ Lou Williams, the Bulls’ Nikola Mirotic and the Nets’ Bojan Bogdanovic have all scored over 20 points in the past week against the Pacers’ second unit. Smith has scored 17 points in two of his last three games while shooting over 60 percent, while Brewer has topped 20 points three times this month.
The Rockets are 9-11 (straight up and against the spread) in their last 20 road games.
Betting on the Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers have gone from one extreme to another in a span of a few weeks. After going on a season-high seven-game winning streak to start the month, the Pacers have now dropped five in a row, which has seen them crash out of the Eastern Conference playoff picture.
The Pacers’ trademark defense has fallen off a cliff in those five games. They’re giving up 106 points per game, nine points more than their season average of 97 per game (third-best in the NBA). They gave up a season-high 123 points in a loss to the hapless Brooklyn Nets on Saturday as they allowed 61 percent field goal shooting, the highest mark in franchise history at home.
Meanwhile, Indiana’s offense could suffer a significant blow if Rodney Stuckey can’t recover from the calf injury that forced him to exit the Nets game early. Stuckey has been the team’s second-leading scorer this month with 15 points per game in just 27 minutes off the bench.
The Pacers have now failed to cover in their last four home games after covering in the previous eight in a row. But this is still a quite formidable team that beat the Warriors and the Cavs (twice), and lost by just two to the Spurs in a span of four home games last month. Expect head coach Frank Vogel to elicit some type of reaction from his team after a historically bad showing last time out.
Writer’s Prediction
The Pacers put on a much more palatable performance for their home fans as they win and cover against the Rockets. Create a betting account now and find some very palatable (and profitable) odds in the NBA slate daily.
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