OffshoreInsiders.com Senior Writer Vegas Matty previews the Dallas Mavericks at Portland Trail Blazers. There are many March Madness picks up, but plenty of opportunities to excel in NBA betting.
The Dallas Mavericks (47-19) probably will not catch San Antonio for the best record in the Western Conference, but they can still capture the #2 seed ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers if they can finish the regular season strong. The Mavericks (-1) will look to bounce back from a 96-91 home loss to the Lakers last Saturday as they begin a brief two-game road trip by visiting the Portland Trail Blazers (37-29) on Tuesday.
Dallas saw LA inch closer in the standings with a 97-84 home win over Orlando on Monday, cutting the lead for the second spot in the playoff race to a half-game. Lakers star Kobe Bryant had suffered an ankle injury against the Mavs in their latest meeting, but he played through the pain and scored 16 points on 7 of 19 shooting from the field against the Magic.
Portland would face Dallas if the playoffs started today and wants to move up from the sixth slot by getting hot down the stretch as well. The Trail Blazers just wrapped up a four-game East Coast road trip with consecutive losses at Charlotte and Atlanta, which was especially disappointing considering they had opened the trip with impressive wins at Orlando and Miami. They struggled to score in the finale against the Hawks, falling 91-82 as the total went UNDER for the first time in three games. The UNDER has also cashed in the team’s last three home games.
The Mavericks have not won or lost consecutive games the last six times they have taken the court, but they have had a difficult time covering the spread recently. They are 1-5 against the line in their last six games overall and have seen the OVER cash four times during that stretch. However, they have won nine of their last 11 road games and own a 10-5 mark in the first half of back-to-backs this season.
Portland has split the last six home meetings with Dallas after dropping the previous six games in the series there. The Blazers have also covered the spread in four of the last six meetings overall despite losing both meetings with the Mavs this season straight-up by a combined eight points. The UNDER is 3-1 in the last four meetings between the teams and 5-2 in the past seven. The winner has cracked the century mark in scoring three times in the last seven meetings, including a 103-98 Dallas victory back on December 15.
Top expert pick on today’s card: Nobody has ever accused the Canadian Crew of being a hype machine. They are simply about winning. Recently it’s been 23-12 with named plays and 6-3 overall. They’ve never had a losing month.
The UAB Blazers vs. Clemson Tigers game is the NCAA Best Bet Play in Game Ever. Also get Dallas Mavericks at Portland Trail Blazers on NBATV. The Canadian Crew continues to prove nobody exploits situations, mismatches, intangibles, motivational factors and more with the success rate as the Crew. Get some clear cut ones from the Big Dance tonight. It’s all up at OffshoreInsiders.com