Taking this early as i think people will bet strong on the Rockets and the odds might rise in the next 6 hours.

Portland Trailblazers are out of the playoff race. Their form is rather bad, having won only 2 in their last 7, against poor Clippers and uninterested Wizards. Their star Brandon Roy is still out with an injury and he will probably return next week. In their last home game, the Trailblazers lost against the Bobcats by 8 points, and now they will get the visit of a team struggling to find a higher position at the season end.

Houston Rockets, after their incredible winning-streak, slowed down a bit, losing against the Celtics, Hornets, Suns and Spurs in their last 7. But all were strong teams, and the last 3 were playing at home, so it is natural to have problems against them. Last night, the Rockets lost by 1 point in Sacramento, and it was rather disappointing as Tracy McGrady missed a jumper on the buzzer. The team gave him the ball a lot last night, having 32 basket attempts of which he only made 13. Rockets have to start winning again, as they would need the home advantage in the playoffs. For now they stand on 5th place in the Western Conference, and looking at their schedule, i'd say they can get 6 wins in their last 8 games. They will host the Supersonics, Suns and Clippers, while traveling to Trailblazers, Supersonics, Clippers Nuggets and Jazz. Against the lower table teams they should win without problems, while the Jazz and Nuggets travels should be defeats. The home game against the Suns is hard to call right now. So 5 or 6 out of 8. Considering they win tonight, they have a chance at getting that playoff spot, as some of their contenders have much harder schedules. With Roy out for Portland and with T-Mac wanting more and more of himself, i believe the Rockets can win and cover tonight.

They've met three times this season:

- 3rd of November, the Rockets won in Houston 89-80, even though they shot worse than the Trailblazers

- 25 of January, the rockets win in Portland 89-79, shooting 40% compared to Portland's 36%, but their bench got a lot of minutes

- 11th of February, the Rockets won in Houston 95-83, shooting 48% compared to Portland's 46%

The conditions are changed a bit right now. Rockets without Yao Ming who played well in all 3 games, while the Trailblazers without Roy, who also played very well in all 3 games. Still, the Rockets showed they could come with Ming's absence in some incredible victories, while the Trailblazers seem to have lost their energy without their main guy. Tonight i expect the Rockets to get back on their winning side, and with a nice performance from T-Mac to get a 7-15 points win and climb the Conference standings. Good luck.

Pick : Rockets -5
Odds : 1.93
Stake : 8 / 10
Bookmaker : Pinnacle
Date : 2008-04-04
Match Result : 86-95
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