New York +7½ over NEW ORLEANS
If the New York Knicks and the New Orleans Hornets do not settle their contest at New Orleans Arena in regulation on Wednesday, they will set an NBA record for most overtime contests between two opponents in a single season. Each of the teams' first three games this season went into overtime, tying the league record last achieved by Miami and Cleveland during the 2001-02 campaign. Obviously this team plays very tight games, with only one of the last 8 meetings decided by more than 8 points.
With such evenly matched teams, the Hornets are in no position to be giving away this many points. They have lost three of five after winning eight in a row. On Saturday, they capped a 2-2 road trip with a 96-86 setback at Orlando. Meanwhile, New York rallied from a 15-point second-half deficit to beat San Antonio on last night, 105-97, becoming the first Eastern Conference team to win at the SBC Center. The Knicks simply have more to play for here. They are just two games behind Milwaukee and Washington, which are tied for the eighth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. New Orleans is in sixth place which just does not provide them with the same incentive.
Off a loss of 10 or more points, New Orleans is a poor 2-7 ATS, while New York is a terrific 9-0-2 ATS vs. such opponents. While the oddsmakers seem to indicate that the betting public thinks the Knicks will have a letdown after their win last night vs. the Spurs, we take the contrarian view here. We see the Knicks bringing the momentum from that big win to New Orleans and giving the Hornets all they can handle. Indeed, the league is 5-1 ATS when playing without rest on the road following a win in San Antonio. While the Hornets may prevail in the end, it should be yet another close game.
PROJECTED FINAL SCORE: NEW ORLEANS 100 NEW YORK 96