NBA Basketball: Golden State Warriors at L.A. Clippers – Clippers Favored
Team Page: Golden State :: Los Angeles
55% of Bets Placed on Golden State +6 | Matchup | NBA Picks
The Golden State Warriors hope their strong play at home will transfer to the road and help them snap an 11-game losing streak at Staples Center on Saturday when they face the struggling Los Angeles Clippers.
Oddsmakers have made Los Angeles -6 point spread favorites (NBA Odds) for todays game, the over/under has been set at 209.5 total points (View NBA Sports Books).
Golden State (26-29) has not won at Los Angeles since a 96-85 victory over the Clippers (25-29) on March 21, 2004. Since then, the team has dropped five consecutive road games against the Clippers and six in a row to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Warriors look to halt the Los Angeles losing streak and win three games in a row for the first time since a season-high five-game winning streak from Nov. 9-18.
Golden State has posted back-to-back wins – both at home – for the first time this month. Stephen Jackson had 26 points and a career-high 12 assists Wednesday in a 118-115 overtime win over Memphis in the Warriors’ first game since the All-Star break.
"That’s the best thing: We’re finding ways to win now," Jackson said. "We’re not going to blow everybody out, and we’re going to have to survive some games, but we’re doing it."
The Warriors have rarely done it on the road. They are 6-20 away from Oakland, including 2-14 against the Western Conference, and have the second-fewest road wins in the NBA while allowing a league-high 112.8 points per game.
Golden State hopes to avoid a 10th loss in 12 road games as it continues working Jason Richardson back into the mix. The team’s top scorer each of the past three seasons, Richardson returned Wednesday after missing 22 games with a broken hand to score 19 points and grab 10 rebounds.
Richardson, scoring a career-low 13.0 points per contest this season, has been limited to 24 games due to various knee injuries and the broken hand.
"I saw a lot of things I liked with Richardson," Warriors coach Don Nelson said after Wednesday’s victory. "It’s good to have him and I know he is rusty. He will be thrown in there every game now and he will get considerably better each game."
Golden State was without Richardson for its previous two visits to Staples Center. The team lost 108-103 to the Lakers on Jan. 22 after a 115-109 defeat to the Clippers on Jan. 17.
The Warriors host the Lakers Sunday before opening a five-game road trip Tuesday at Milwaukee.
The Clippers will attempt to stop their longest slide since a season-high six-game losing streak from Dec. 11-22.
They lost their fourth consecutive game Tuesday, 115-90 to Phoenix as they were outrebounded 50-38 with center Chris Kaman sidelined with flu-like symptoms.
"They didn’t make it look worse than it was; that is how bad it was," said Clippers forward Elton Brand, who started at center for Kaman after missing two games with back spasms. "They had backdoor cuts for layups, guys getting open shots, and hustle plays."
The Clippers hope Kaman will return Saturday to provide support for Brand. Leading the team with 20.6 points and 9.1 rebounds per game, Brand had 27 points and 11 boards in the last meeting with Golden State.
Los Angeles is uncertain if Cuttino Mobley will play after missing Tuesday’s loss with a left groin strain.
By: Marc Young – theSpread.com – Email Us
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