Not So Defensive
When the Golden State Warriors had a lengthy road trip last month, they passed the test with flying colors. Their current five-game trip is only one game old, but it’s not turning out the same way.
Golden State looks to rebound from a lopsided loss when it continues its road trip against the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday in a matchup of the two worst defensive teams in the league.
Oddsmakers from SBG Global have made Golden State –4 point spread favorites (NBA Odds) for today’s game, the over/under has been set at 224.5 total points (Matchup). Our public betting information shows that 88% of bets for this game have been placed on Golden State -4 (View NBA Bet Percentages).
The Warriors (13-11) allow a league-high 106.9 points per game while Memphis is close behind, with an average of 105.8 points allowed.
Golden State yielded even more than its average in the opener of this road trip, a 109-87 loss Sunday at Detroit. It was the Warriors’ worst loss since the a 105-82 defeat at Boston on Nov. 21 – a contest which marked their only defeat of a five-game trip from Nov. 18-24.
They had won 10 of 13 in between the loss to the Celtics and Sunday’s setback.
"We weren’t ready to play, and we got our butts kicked,” Warriors forward Stephen Jackson said. "This is definitely uncalled for – we’re a professional team. This is terrible – you start a road trip and get blasted like this.”
Guard Baron Davis, who is putting up All-Star-caliber averages of 22.8 points, 8.3 assists and 5.2 rebounds, had just two points on 1-for-8 field-goal shooting on Sunday – his lowest total scoring output since a two-point effort Nov. 4, 2006, against Utah.
Golden State, though has won its last three games against the Grizzlies, while averaging 118.7 points in those high-scoring affairs, which included a 116-104 victory on April 6 in its last visit to Memphis.
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies (7-16) snapped their season-worst six-game losing streak on Saturday with perhaps their most impressive victory of 2007-08, winning 123-119 at Orlando.
Rudy Gay scored a career-high 32 points – his fourth 30-plus point effort of the season – to help Memphis finally win a close game. The Grizzlies remain 0-6 in games decided by three points or fewer.
"The biggest thing was that we had some players step up when we needed it most,” said Gay, whose 19 points per game lead the team. "This was a game that could have gone either way, but a lot of guys hit big shots when we needed them.”
Memphis is likely to again be without second-leading scorer Pau Gasol on Monday night. The center has missed the last two games after getting his foot tangled with a teammate in practice on Thursday.
Mike Miller, whose 46 3-pointers made lead the Grizzlies, has averaged 21 points in his last two games after scoring just eight combined in losses to Atlanta and Detroit.
Miller should especially look forward to facing the Warriors. He scored 78 total points in two games against Golden State last season, including a career-high 45 in a 118-115 overtime road loss on Feb. 21.
By: Marc Young – theSpread.com – Email Us
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