NBA Basketball
2011-01-31 - Orlando Magic at Memphis Grizzlies
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States: NBA Basketball
Monday 31 January 2011 - Tip-Off 8pm ET
1am (British Standard Time)
Preview
January has been a very strong month for the Memphis Grizzlies (24-24) and this game represents a chance for them to surpass the 0.500 mark for only the 2nd time this season. Memphis will be looking to continue with their recent good form at home against the Orlando Magic (31-17).
Lionel Hollins, the Head Coach, is 1 win away from becoming the winningest Coach in the history of the franchise with 96, and he has been impressed with the way Memphis have been doing anything to get through games. The Grizzlies were forced to make a 21 point comeback to overcome the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday and followed it up with an easy enough home win over Washington.
The Grizzlies have won 5 of their last 6 games and improved to 3-0 with OJ Mayo serving suspension. Zach Randolph continues to play at a high level as he recorded his 14th double-double in a row after scoring 24 points and picking up 20 rebounds against Washington. He is averaging 23 points and 14.9 rebounds during his personal streak.
Orlando will once again be looking at their All-Star Center, Dwight Howard, to lead the team. Howard had a double-double yesterday in the win over Cleveland at home and was rested for the entire 4th Quarter along with many of the regular starters. He has been averaging 25.2 points and 16.7 rebounds in his last 6 games.
The sitting of the starters allowed some of the back up players to make an impact. Ryan Anderson continued his good recent form and added 23 points and 16 rebounds in the game. He stated the Magic wanted to get on a roll again as they are 6-5 recently following a 9 game winning streak.
Gilbert Arenas was not in the rotation last night and is expected to be out tonight. Jameer Nelson should receive some additional minutes after logging 28 minutes last night.
Head to Head
Memphis have won 8 of the last 9 home contests with Orlando, including the last 2, and they have held the Magic to under 90 points per game in those contests.
The Grizzlies will certainly be expecting to play better than they did in the first season meeting at Orlando- in that game they were restricted to a season low points and shooting percentage from the field.
Orlando are 5-12 against the spread in the last 17 meetings and are 1-7 in Memphis.
Memphis are 13-7-1 against the spread at home this season, Orlando are 9-14-1 on the road.
Memphis are 12-10 against the spread on 1 days rest this season, Orlando are 4-8 in back to back contests.
Other Interesting Notes
Memphis are 18-7-1 against the spread in their last 26 games as the underdog. However, they are 1-5-1 when only given between 0.5 and 5 points at home.
They are 12-2 against the spread against teams with winning records.
The Grizzlies have won their last 4 home games against the spread when facing a team with a winning record on the road.
Orlando are 9-4-1 against the spread following a straight up win.
They are 1-6 against the spread when considered the road favourite by between 0.5 and 5 points.
Prediction
I am favouring Orlando for a couple of reasons in this game.
Firstly, while the Magic are 6-5 in their last 11 games, they have played some tough opponents and could perhaps consider themselves a little unlucky not to have more wins on the board. The team is more focused because of these close games and they desperately want to get on a run to move up the Eastern Conference.
Secondly, while the Magic have been a little unfortunate, Memphis have fought and clawed their way back into games they could easily have lost. The Grizzlies are a good team, but they are not an elite team, and these close games have come against teams with losing records.
Thirdly, Memphis do have a good record against Orlando at home, but the last 2 wins have come by a combined 7 points and this is something that can be overcome by an Orlando team that held Memphis to just 72 points in the first meeting in Florida.
I just feel the Orlando Magic can overcome the road disadvantage here and win while covering a small spread.
The Pick :
Memphis Grizzlies 88-92 Orlando Magic
BEST BETTING TIP :
I'll take the Orlando Magic - 1.5 PointsFollow me on Twitter @DavindaAulak- there is a direct link below
