The San Antonio Spurs are back in the drive seat in their series with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Their next goal is to go up 3-1, but of course, that won’t be easy to do with the Spurs playing on the road. The Thunder also still have the devastating combo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, who’ll both be needing to deliver in tonight’s ball game. Read on for more about this matchup. You can also check out our breakdown of Game 4 between the Cavs and the Hawks.
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Spurs vs. Thunder Game Four Round Two Preview
Where: Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City
When: Sunday, May 8, 2016 8:00 PM ET
Line: San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
Betting on the San Antonio Spurs
Leonard posted 31 points to go along with 11 rebounds, three assists, a steal, and a block in 39 minutes of action. He got help also from LaMarcus Aldridge and Tony Parker, who generated 24 and 19 points, respectively. The Spurs didn’t shoot the ball well in Game 3 with 43.4 percent mark from the field. That’s something that’s bound to happen though for San Antonio, as the team has been generally lights out in their shooting in this series, wherein they are making 48.8% of their shots.
In any case, expect the Spurs to keep banking on their offense that is largely being driven by their desire to find the open man. The Spurs are making 25.7 assists per game thus far in the second round with Parker leading the team with 7.7 dimes in the past three games.
Aldridge paces the team in Thunder series with 34.3 points per game, while doing some fine work on the defensive end by averaging 1.7 blocks per contest.
Betting on the Oklahoma City Thunder
Too much of Russell Westbrook can sometimes be bad for the Thunder. Take for example OKC’s loss on Friday, in which electric point guard went 10-for-31 from the field on his way to a 31-point night. The 31 points was nice, but that doesn’t hide his inefficiency.
While Westbrook dished out eight assists, his number of missed shots suggests that he could’ve done more to involve his teammates, including Kevin Durant, who went 10-for-18 from the floor for 26 points. Westbrook’s ugly shooting line obviously was a big reason why Thunder shot just 41.5% in Game 3.
Also needing to adjust are the Thunder’s big men, who are being killed by Aldridge. That being said, Serge Ibaka and the Thunder’s frontline have already made strides in containing the Spurs big man, limiting Aldridge to only 8-for-21 shooting after mocking OKC’s defense in the first two games wherein he went 33-for-44.
On the other side of the ball, the Thunder exploited San Antonio’s porous interior defense, as they outscored the Spurs in the paint 40-20
The Thunder are 7-3 SU and ATS in their last 10 home games against San Antonio dating back to 2013. With the prospect of being down 3-1 in the series, look for the scrappy Thunder team to put up a gallant fight later tonight.
Writer’s Prediction
Oklahoma City wins, 104-100.
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