Jazz vs. Rockets Odds, Prediction: Game 5 NBA Playoffs
Always tough for one NBA team to sweep another in a best-of-7 series – only Eastern Conference top seed Milwaukee was able to pull that off in the first round this year. These guys are all professionals and no one wants to be swept/embarrassed.
NBA Playoffs Point Spread and Betting Analysis
The team with the 3-0 lead tends to lose a bit of urgency in Game 4 (especially if it’s on the road) as the guys know they are playing with house money and that no team in league history has rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win an NBA playoff series.
We fully expect the Houston Rockets to finish the job back home in Game 5 on Wednesday and set up a mega-clash with the Golden State Warriors in the West semifinals. Houston won the first two games of this series at home over Utah by 32 and 20 points, respectively.
Utah Jazz
The Jazz prevailed 107-91 in Game 4 on Monday, finally showing the type of defensive team they were during the regular season when they were No. 1 in efficiency since the All-Star break. That was really on display in the fourth quarter when Utah outscored the Rockets 31-12 – young Jazz star Donovan Mitchell outscored Houston himself in the fourth 19-12 and finished with 31 points. He had been struggling this series and early in Game 4 by missing nine of his first 12 shots.
The Jazz had been outscored by 11 with Mitchell on the floor through the first three quarters. Jae Crowder also had his best game of the series by far with 23 points. He started a second straight outing over Derrick Favors. Rudy Gobert battled foul trouble and was held to four points in 24 minutes. The Jazz have covered 12 of their previous 16 Wednesday games.
Houston Rockets
Houston had its chances to end things, as a strong third quarter gave it a three-point lead entering the fourth. But an early 15-1 Utah run gave the Jazz the lead for good. In that 12-point fourth, the Rockets were an ugly 0-for-13 from three-point range and 4-for-20 overall. James Harden, so dominant most of this series, got his 30 points but was 8-for-19 and minus-12.
Clint Capela had just four points and was minus-20 in 28 minutes. He has been battling a bit of a virus. The bench was non-existent with five total points. Houston was dominated on the boards, 52-39, and in paint points (52-22) and second-chance points (17-3). The Rockets are 7-0-1 ATS in their past eight at home.
UTA
HOU