Nuggets out to wrap it up at home vs. Mavericks
Nuggets out to wrap it up at home vs. Mavericks
Dirk Nowitzki has had a great series so far, averaging 35 per game and grabbing 12 boards per contest for the Mavericks. But the Dallas Mavericks are still down 3-1 to the Nuggets, and haven't covered a spread yet. Now Carmelo Anthony and Co. can punch their ticket into the Western Conference final with a win at home in Denver. TNT tips their telecast at 9:00 p.m. Eastern with the Nuggets 8-point favorites.
The Dallas Mavericks are the gift that keeps on giving.
Handicappers will be pleased to find the Mavericks still alive and kicking for Game 5 of their Western Conference quarterfinal against the Denver Nuggets. The Mavs have dropped the cash to the Nuggets in every game this series and 11 out of their last 12 meetings overall. Thanks to Monday’s 119-117 victory as a 2½-point home favorite, Dallas is a strong candidate to finish this series 0-5 ATS on Wednesday night at the Pepsi Center.
The Nuggets opened Tuesday morning as 8-point favorites with a total of 213. It took only two hours for the betting odds to move a half-point in response to the deluge of action on Denver. Over 95 percent of bettors were on the Nuggets as we went to press, and their 85-percent support level on the moneyline speaks to the public’s confidence in Denver at the hefty price of -500. The over was pulling in nearly 70 percent support after the last three games all turned into high-scoring affairs.
Denver has been one of the most impressive teams in the NBA the past few months, moving all the way up to No. 2 in the Western standings at 54-28 (44-37-1 ATS) and creaming the New Orleans Hornets in the first round – also at 5-0 ATS. Good health is playing a huge role in Denver’s success; we’re used to seeing the Nuggets at less than full capacity, but Nene and Kenyon Martin are both in the lineup and contributing against a Dallas team with some weaknesses in the paint.
The Mavs probably wouldn’t have made it this far had Chris Andersen not started feeling queasy during the introductions to Game 4. The Birdman (18.1 PER and strong defense, mostly coming off the bench) is one of the most underrated players in the NBA, although his cult following is starting to spread into the mainstream. Andersen ended up getting an IV and missed the entire game; not coincidentally, Dirk Nowitzki had his best night of the series with 44 points and 13 rebounds.
It appears Andersen is good to go for Game 5 after what has been reported as either food poisoning or the flu. Even with The Birdman in his face, Nowitzki has been brilliant this whole series, scoring 28 and 35 points in the first two matchups in Denver. But that wasn’t enough to cover the spread, and 44 points didn’t do the trick, either.
There isn’t much room left for improvement as Nowitzki heads back to Denver and another date with Andersen, Nene, and Martin. The 2007 MVP is consistently getting pounded like mashed potatoes on his way to the basket. In each game, Nowitzki’s free-throw attempts have gone up in correlation with the welts on his body. As usual, he’s nailed almost all of his freebies at 45-of-50, or exactly 90 percent.
Nowitzki is typically paired in the Dallas frontcourt with either Erick Dampier (15.7 PER) or Brandon Bass (16.4 PER). Dampier is the nominal starter, although Bass plays more minutes and is statistically the better player. They managed between the two of them to put a lid on Nene (18.8 PER) during both games in Big D – and that still wasn’t enough to keep the Nuggets from the pay window. What’ll happen back in Denver, where Nene scored 24 and 25 points?
The trends are almost all in favor of the Nuggets winning and covering this matchup. They’re 6-0 ATS in their last six home games, all as the favorites, and they’re 21-7 ATS in their last 28 against Western Conference opponents. Denver has been highly underestimated this year. Then again, the Mavericks have been written off prematurely more than once. Dallas was 13-3 ATS in its previous 16 playoff games as an underdog before encountering the Nuggets.
Game 5 tips off at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on TNT.
Dirk Nowitzki has had a great series so far, averaging 35 per game and grabbing 12 boards per contest for the Mavericks. But the Dallas Mavericks are still down 3-1 to the Nuggets, and haven't covered a spread yet. Now Carmelo Anthony and Co. can punch their ticket into the Western Conference final with a win at home in Denver. TNT tips their telecast at 9:00 p.m. Eastern with the Nuggets 8-point favorites.
The Dallas Mavericks are the gift that keeps on giving.
Handicappers will be pleased to find the Mavericks still alive and kicking for Game 5 of their Western Conference quarterfinal against the Denver Nuggets. The Mavs have dropped the cash to the Nuggets in every game this series and 11 out of their last 12 meetings overall. Thanks to Monday’s 119-117 victory as a 2½-point home favorite, Dallas is a strong candidate to finish this series 0-5 ATS on Wednesday night at the Pepsi Center.
The Nuggets opened Tuesday morning as 8-point favorites with a total of 213. It took only two hours for the betting odds to move a half-point in response to the deluge of action on Denver. Over 95 percent of bettors were on the Nuggets as we went to press, and their 85-percent support level on the moneyline speaks to the public’s confidence in Denver at the hefty price of -500. The over was pulling in nearly 70 percent support after the last three games all turned into high-scoring affairs.
Denver has been one of the most impressive teams in the NBA the past few months, moving all the way up to No. 2 in the Western standings at 54-28 (44-37-1 ATS) and creaming the New Orleans Hornets in the first round – also at 5-0 ATS. Good health is playing a huge role in Denver’s success; we’re used to seeing the Nuggets at less than full capacity, but Nene and Kenyon Martin are both in the lineup and contributing against a Dallas team with some weaknesses in the paint.
The Mavs probably wouldn’t have made it this far had Chris Andersen not started feeling queasy during the introductions to Game 4. The Birdman (18.1 PER and strong defense, mostly coming off the bench) is one of the most underrated players in the NBA, although his cult following is starting to spread into the mainstream. Andersen ended up getting an IV and missed the entire game; not coincidentally, Dirk Nowitzki had his best night of the series with 44 points and 13 rebounds.
It appears Andersen is good to go for Game 5 after what has been reported as either food poisoning or the flu. Even with The Birdman in his face, Nowitzki has been brilliant this whole series, scoring 28 and 35 points in the first two matchups in Denver. But that wasn’t enough to cover the spread, and 44 points didn’t do the trick, either.
There isn’t much room left for improvement as Nowitzki heads back to Denver and another date with Andersen, Nene, and Martin. The 2007 MVP is consistently getting pounded like mashed potatoes on his way to the basket. In each game, Nowitzki’s free-throw attempts have gone up in correlation with the welts on his body. As usual, he’s nailed almost all of his freebies at 45-of-50, or exactly 90 percent.
Nowitzki is typically paired in the Dallas frontcourt with either Erick Dampier (15.7 PER) or Brandon Bass (16.4 PER). Dampier is the nominal starter, although Bass plays more minutes and is statistically the better player. They managed between the two of them to put a lid on Nene (18.8 PER) during both games in Big D – and that still wasn’t enough to keep the Nuggets from the pay window. What’ll happen back in Denver, where Nene scored 24 and 25 points?
The trends are almost all in favor of the Nuggets winning and covering this matchup. They’re 6-0 ATS in their last six home games, all as the favorites, and they’re 21-7 ATS in their last 28 against Western Conference opponents. Denver has been highly underestimated this year. Then again, the Mavericks have been written off prematurely more than once. Dallas was 13-3 ATS in its previous 16 playoff games as an underdog before encountering the Nuggets.
Game 5 tips off at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on TNT.
