Dallas Mavericks at Denver Nuggets, Game 2 (Denver leads 1-0)
With the Los Angeles Lakers’ upset loss to Houston on Monday night, the Denver Nuggets suddenly look like they could be the team to beat in the Western Conference.
After all, the Nuggets pounded the Hornets in five games and then handled the Dallas Mavericks 109-95 in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals. That the Nuggets did that with a below-average game from All-Star Chauncey Billups (six points, five assists) does not bode well for Dallas.
The Nuggets are 6.5-point favorites for Tuesday night’s Game 2, with an over/under of 206.
Denver shot 55 percent from the field in Game 1 against the Mavs and outscored them 58-30 in the paint as Nene (team-high 24 points) was dominant inside. And after Kenyon Martin’s hard foul on the Mavs’ Dirk Nowitzki in the first quarter of Game 1 (since upgraded by the league to a flagrant foul), even the Dallas star struggled in the opener. No other Maverick helped, as none had more than 15 points. Even normally sure-handed point guard Jason Kidd had eight turnovers.
Another problem for the Mavs is the health of Josh Howard, who now has two bad ankles. He averaged 18.8 points, including 28 in Game 4, as Dallas bounced San Antonio in a five-game, first-round playoff series. But he tweaked his right ankle in Game 1 and scored only four points after that. Howard missed 30 games this season with an ankle problem, and the team is worried that he will even make it through this series.
“Very,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said Monday. “I’m always concerned. It’s been a problem since the third week of the season. We always hold our breath, cross our fingers.”
Denver’s Carmelo Anthony took advantage of a gimpy Howard in Game 1, scoring 21 second-half points Sunday.
The Nuggets haven’t lost a home game in two months, winning 14 in a row there. They have covered in all four playoff games there.
WagerWeb.com Key Trends
* Under is 4-0 in the last 4 meetings.
* Underdog is 6-2 ATS in the last 8 meetings.
* Mavericks are 1-4 ATS in the last 5 meetings in Denver.
* Mavericks are 1-8 ATS in the last 9 meetings.
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