Houston Rockets vs Golden State Warriors
Leading 2-1 against the Houston Rockets, the Golden State Warriors will try to defend home court once again and make it a two-series lead in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.
A lot, if not all online sports betting fans expected the Warriors to win Game 3 at Oracle Arena. However, you’ll have a difficult time finding someone who predicted the Dubs to take the W in such historic fashion against the NBA’s best regular-season team this 2017/18 campaign.
Stephen Curry had a breakout performance, and the Warriors will certainly hope that he’ll be at his best again when they play their second at Oracle Arena.
Talking Points
Winning is one thing, but winning by a ridiculous 41 points in a postseason game is another. And the Warriors did just that against a team that ranked sixth in defensive rating in the regular season.
Golden State’s 126-85 victory in Game 3 is the franchise’s biggest winning margin in the postseason, surpassing the 39-point mark set by the then Philadelphia Warriors in 1948—that’s 70 years ago! Meanwhile, for the Rockets, that was their largest playoff defeat in history.
While it could be said the Rockets merely had an off night, it can’t be denied that there are a lot of things that went well for Golden State, particularly Curry and their third-quarter offence.
Curry, who was plain terrible in the first two games, finally woke up and put the Rockets to sleep with his long-range shooting. The two-time NBA MVP shot 5-of-12 from deep and finished with a game-high 35 points.
For what it’s worth, Curry’s total in the match is two points more than James Harden and Chris Paul’s tally combined—a real bad night for the Rockets, huh?
Western Conference Finals – Game 3
🏀 Golden State Warriors 126-85 Houston Rockets#DubNation #Rockets #NBA pic.twitter.com/SLGN36YsRO
— SBOBET (@SBOBET) May 21, 2018
Moreover, Golden State showed why they are considered the best third-quarter team in the league. They outscored the Rockets 34-24 in the penultimate frame and carried the momentum to cap off the night with 38-18 fourth quarter.
Curry, for his part, scored 18 points on 7-for-7 shooting in the third quarter alone to spark the Warriors’ run. Durant chipped in 10 in the period as he and Curry scored five points each to give the team a 10-0 burst.
Indeed, if Golden State want to make it 3-1, they need to continue that third-quarter trend.
It will be interesting to see what adjustments Houston will make in Game 4. They are the only team who can keep up with the Dubs’ scoring pace, thanks to Harden, Paul and Trevor Ariza. However, it’s hard to erase the fact that they seem to be a team that relies heavily on their three-point shooting.
In their two losses to the Bay Area team, they shot 35 percent and below from deep. That number increased to 38 percent in their Game 2 win.
The Warriors have the tough task of limiting Harden and Paul and stopping the Rocket from getting wide-open shots, but they will surely be confident after doing that the last time out.
History
Oracle Arena. Need we say more?
The Warriors now hold the NBA record for the most consecutive home wins (16) in the playoffs, breaking the Chicago Bulls’ mark set in 1990 to 1991. The last time the Warriors lost a postseason home affair was in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals, during which the Cleveland Cavaliers staged the biggest upset in league history.
Golden State have been undefeated since then, starting in their first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2017 playoffs.
The deafening and bright yellow crowd in the so-called “Roaracle” Arena was imposing in Game 3, and Houston can’t expect a more welcoming crowd when they return.
Clutch City coach Mike D’Antoni has the best words to describe the Warriors’ home-court advantage: “There’s a certain energy that their fans will give them and moments they hit two or three 3s you can get a buzz going that helps the home team. You just have to try to keep that crowd out as much as you can.”
What are the odds?
There’s a growing trend in this year’s conference finals: blowouts.
Through seven games (four in the East and three in the West), the lowest margin of victory is nine points, in the Cavs’ latest win over Boston. Before that, it was 13—in Boston’s Game 2 win and Golden State’s Game 1 victory over the Rockets.
In the West alone, the average margin of victory is 25 points through three games! Considering this, it’s not surprising that Asian Handicap odds on the Warriors are at -8.00 @ 1.91. The Rockets are at +8.00 @ 1.99.
While NBA betting lines on most sports betting sites suggest another one-sided affair, it’s interesting to look at Over-Under odds. Over 223.00 pays at 1.88 while Under 223.00 is at 2.05. Both the Warriors and Rockets boast remarkable offence, though it should be noted that they have the tendency to go cold at times.
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
