Los Angeles Lakers at Houston Rockets 1/12/21: NBA Basketball free preview, analysis, prediction, odds and pick against the spread.
2021-01-12 20:00:00 EDT
The Houston Rockets play host to the Los Angeles Lakers at the Toyota Center on Tuesday night.
The Los Angeles Lakers have been in great form to start the season as they’ve won eight of their first 11 games and they will be gunning for a third straight win after blowing past the Rockets in a 120-102 road win on Sunday. Anthony Davis led the team with 27 points on nine of 12 shooting, LeBron James added 18 points with seven assists, Talen Horton-Tucker scored 17 points on seven of eight shooting while Montrezl Harrell chipped in with 16 points. As a team, the Lakers shot 50 percent from the field and 10 of 29 from the 3-point line as they held the Rockets to just 21 points in the first quarter, before exploding for 40 points in the second quarter to set up the easy win.
Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets have been in a bit of a rut as they’ve now lost three of their last four games after falling to the Lakers on Sunday. Christian Wood led the team in scoring with 23 points on 10 of 20 shooting, James Harden added 20 points with nine assists while John Wall chipped in with 14 points, 10 rebounds and five assists but no other player finished in double figures. As a team, the Rockets shot just 41 percent from the field and 12 of 41 from the 3-point line as they were slow to start, and they didn’t look threatening after allowing 40 points in the second quarter.
Looking at the betting trends, the Lakers are 1-5 ATS in their last six games following a win of more than 10 points, 1-5 ATS in their last six games against a team with a losing record and 3-8 ATS in their last 11 games following a win. The Rockets are 2-6 ATS in their last eight home games, 2-6 ATS in their last eight games against a team with a winning record and 3-9 ATS in their last 12 games overall.
Head to head, the under is 4-0 in the last four meetings overall, the Lakers are 5-1 ATS in the last six meetings in Houston and the Lakers are 5-0 ATS in the last five meetings overall.
The Lakers have been playing well lately and they will be full of confidence after making light work of the Rockets on Sunday, but we’ve seen time and again that it’s always tough to beat the same team twice in a item. I do expect a better showing from the Rockets in this outing, especially from Harden who scored just 20 points on Sunday, but I don’t think it’ll matter too much as I have the Lakers winning this one.
