Kevin Durant and LeBron James square off tonight when the Thunder bring their winning streak to South Beach. Meanwhile, in college basketball, Iowa State looks to climb higher in the rankings at the expense of Kansas. It’s not going to be an easy defeat as the Jayhawks haven’t been beaten at home for some time now.
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NBA – Knicks Pound Celtics
The Knicks recorded their third straight victory after embarrassing the Celtics 114-88. Carmelo Anthony led all scorers with 24 markers.
NBA – Pacers Crush Lakers
The Pacers handed the Lakers their fifth straight defeat 104-92. Lance Stephenson had a sparkling game, finishing with a double-double 15 points and 14 rebounds.
NCAAB – #7 Spartans Survive #15 Hawkeyes
Michigan State bounced back from their loss against Michigan last Sunday by carving out a hard-earned 71-69 overtime victory over Iowa Tuesday night.
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NBA – Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Miami Heat (7:00 PM ET)
Kevin Durant is still on fire and no team over the past 10 or so have found a solution to stop him from lighting up the scoreboards. Seemingly riding Durant’s mean scoring streak is Oklahoma City, who have now won eight straight games.
[sc:NBA240banner ]Durant has been putting up 31.3 PPG throughout the season, but in his last 10 games, he poured a mind-bending average of 38.3 PPG – both figures are an NBA-best.
More than Durant, the difference-maker for the Thunder could be their work on the glass; Oklahoma City is 2nd in the NBA in rebounding (46.1 RPG) while the Miami Heat are ranked 30th with only 36.8 RPG. Aside from going 8-0 SU in their last eight games, Oklahoma City is also successful against the spread with a 7-1 slate during the same stretch.
Odds: Thunder (+4) vs. Miami (-4), O/U: 204.0
The Heat are coming off a 113-101 win over their 2013 NBA Finals nemesis, San Antonio Spurs. Tonight, they face another of their finals victims, the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Expect the spotlight to be on the huge match-up of the league’s top two MVP contenders, Durant and LeBron James. Miami has clearly dominated the last few match-ups with the Thunder as the Heat are 6-0 SU and ATS in their last six meetings.
Despite having a player of James’ caliber, Miami isn’t entirely a player-centric team. The Heat are 5th in the NBA in assists with 23.6 dimes per game, with James topping the team (6.8 APG) followed by Mario Chalmers (5.1).
NCAAB – Iowa State Cyclones vs. Kansas Jayhawks (9:00 PM ET)
The Cyclones got a much-needed win (81-75) against #22 Kansas State last Saturday to boost their morale after suffering three straight losses. That string of losses dropped the Cyclones in the AP rankings, where they are currently ranked No. 16.
A win tonight against Kansas would not only even their regular season match-up, as the Cyclones were defeated by Kansas last January 13th 77-70, but would also result in a climb in next week’s updated rankings.
Melvin Ejim leads the team in scoring with 17.9 PPG while DeAndre Kane tops the team in assists with 5.8 APG. The Cyclones are 7th in the nation in points (84.8 PPG) and 2nd in assists (18.2 APG). They are 6-1 Under in their last seven road games.
Odds: Iowa State (+8.5) vs. Kansas (-8.5), O/U: TBA
With both Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid playing perfectly alongside one another, the Jayhawks appeared to have found their rhythm after an unsteady start to their season. Nothing illustrates this point better than the Jayhawks six-game winning streak with four against ranked teams.
Kansas is shooting exceptionally well from the field. The Jayhawks shot 54.9% in their last five games and 52.0% in the last 10 overall. They are 3rd in the nation in field goal percentage with a 51.0% clip. The Jayhawks are 6-0 SU and 5-1 ATS in their last six games in Lawrence.
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