Los Angeles Lakers at Houston Rockets, Game 3 (series tied 1-1)
Here’s a rarity in the NBA playoffs: A road favorite. That’s what the Los Angeles Lakers are tonight for Game 3 at Houston, with L.A. getting 1.5 points on WagerWeb.com, with an over/under of 194.
Oddsmakers obviously were impressed by that Game 2 effort – plus probably the fact that L.A. has covered in eight of its past 10 visits to Houston, including twice this season (both wins).
However, the Lakers won’t have starting point guard Derek Fisher tonight after he was suspended for dropping his shoulder and sending Houston’s Luis Scola to the floor on a screen in Game 2. Fisher is the quarterback of the offense and was averaging 10.0 points and 2.5 assists in this series, with just three turnovers.
That means either Jordan Farmar or Shannon Brown will start at the point. Before getting 18 minutes in Game 2, Farmar had played a total of 11 minutes in the Lakers’ previous three playoff games. Brown played 14 minutes in Game 2, which was the first time in the playoffs that Farmar logged more minutes than Brown.
The L.A. media speculates that Farmar will start because he has playoff experience as a starter, doing so in the 2007 first round and that he’s familiar with Houston starting point guard Aaron Brooks from their Pac-10 days. Brooks is averaging 15.5 points and 3.8 assists in the playoffs.
Meanwhile, Kobe Bryant looked rid of the flu-like symptoms that hampered him in Game 1, bouncing back with 40 on Wednesday. The NBA gave Bryant a flagrant foul one penalty on Thursday for his elbow to the throat area of Ron Artest, meaning Kobe will be suspended for one game if he gets three more flagrant foul ones during the postseason.
Houston committed 19 turnovers Wednesday, which Los Angeles turned into 23 points, one of Houston coach Rick Adelman’s main concerns heading into Game 3.
“We were really stagnant (Wednesday), we stood a lot,” Adelman said. “We’re turning the ball over because they’re very aggressive. They’re one of the best teams at guarding isolations, guarding post-ups. We have to get them out of their comfort level defensively.”
Lamar Odom got the start in place of a struggling Andrew Bynum in Game 2 for the Lakers and had just seven points. But expect Odom to stay in the lineup because Bynum has been awful (“It’s mental, he said of his playoff issues). Bynum played less than nine minutes Wednesday, missing his only two shots to go with one rebound, one assist and three fouls.
“Obviously, (starting Odom) gives us much more speed and agility out there on the floor,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “It is a matchup that kind of favored us.”
Whatever the Lakers did to Yao Ming worked in Game 2. He was held to 12 points after Houston’s leading scorer had 28 in the series opener. Foul trouble played a big role in that Wednesday, however.
WagerWeb.com Key Trends
# Lakers are 5-1 ATS in the last 6 meetings.
# Lakers are 8-2 ATS in the last 10 meetings in Houston.
# Favorite is 5-2 ATS in the last 7 meeting
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