The headline matchup of tonight’s six-game NBA slate is between the Houston Rockets and New York Knicks.
Both these teams have deep playoff aspirations, but they have hit some bumps in the road as the season has progressed. This is the first of two matchups between these two teams this season. They will face off again on March 31st in Houston, but this matchup will be taking place at Madison Square Garden.
Looking at the odds for tonight’s game, the Knicks are 3.5-point favorites and hold -155 odds on the Moneyline on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Rockets are +130 underdogs with the game total set at 218.5 points.
This article will look at a preview and prediction for the Saturday night matchup.
Rockets at Knicks Preview
The Houston Rockets enter with a 34-20 record on the season, which slots them at fourth place in the Western Conference. This will be their second matchup since returning from the All-Star break after defeating the Hornets on Thursday. On the season, the Rockets have gone 23-31 against the spread, and the game total has remained under in 32 of their 54 games played.
Outside of Fred VanVleet and Steven Adams remaining sidelined with their long-term injuries, Houston enters with a clean bill of health. Kevin Durant headlines the production with 26.0 points per game, along with 5.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists while shooting 40.4% on three-point attempts. Alperen Sengun adds 20.5 points, 9.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game. Amen Thompson, Jabari Smith Jr., Reed Sheppard and Tari Eason each also play key roles.
As a team, the Rockets are averaging 114.5 points per game, which ranks 21st in the NBA. They rank seventh in offensive rating, 11th in field-goal percentage, seventh in three-point percentage and 29th in pace. Defensively, opponents are scoring the fourth-fewest points per game against Houston at 109.5 per contest. The Rockets also rank fifth in defensive rating, sixth in opponent field-goal percentage, seventh in opponent three-point percentage and they block shots at the third-best rate in the league.
The New York Knicks hold a 35-21 record and sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. They suffered a 15-point loss to the Detroit Pistons in their first game back since the All-Star break. On the season, New York has gone 31-26 against the spread, and the game total is 29-28 to the over/under.
Miles McBride remains sidelined, but the Knicks will otherwise arrive in full health. Jalen Brunson headlines the production for the Knicks, posting averages of 27.1 points, 6.1 assists and 3.4 rebounds. Karl-Anthony Towns leads the team with 11.9 rebounds per game along with his 19.8 points per contest. Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby take up the minutes on the wing, while Josh Hart, Mitchell Robinson and Jose Alvarado each play key roles on the roster.
The Knicks are scoring 117.9 points per game, which ranks eighth in the NBA. They also rank third in offensive rating, 12th in field-goal percentage, third in three-point percentage and 24th in pace. Defensively, opponents are scoring the eighth-fewest points per game against New York at 112.1 per contest. The Knicks also rank 10th in defensive rating, eighth in opponent field-goal percentage and 13th in opponent three-point percentage.
Rockets at Knicks Prediction, Best Bet
The Knicks did not get off to the start of the final stretch that they desired, losing 126-111 to the Pistons. New York was bullied on the boards, getting outrebounded 44-38, even while Isaiah Stewart and Jalen Duren were both sidelined.
This same concern carries into this matchup, as the Rockets lead the NBA in rebounding with 48.5 rebounds per game. Houston also ranks second in opponent rebounds allowed, first in offensive rebounds tallied and posts a league-leading 54.6% rebounding percentage. While the expectation is that these numbers will slip a bit with Steven Adams out for the year, Alperen Sengun has done an excellent job maintaining this standard, and plenty of others have pitched in on this effort.
OG Anunoby is battling through a toe injury and has not looked like himself of late. He was limited to eight points on 3-for-13 shooting in the previous game and failed to record an assist or rebound. While the Knicks need him to play a role in the offensive attack as well, the greater concern here is how effective he will be matching up with Kevin Durant. The future Hall-of-Famer is in a rhythm, coming off 35 points in the previous game, and expect both Anunoby and Mikal Bridges to struggle to contain him.
On the other side of the matchup, the Rockets have a variety of defensive options they will throw at Jalen Brunson. The Knicks star is as crafty as a player can come, but expect Amen Thompson to primarily take the challenge and for his size and athleticism advantage to be a factor. New York has other scoring options, but so much of its offense is dependent on Brunson creating for himself and others. If he is limited in his output, the entire Knicks’ offensive attack will feel this.
New York has been overall impressive offensively this season, but it has struggled to win the low-scoring defensive battles. The Rockets will do everything in their power to play with this style and expect them to have success. New York is in the midst of some internal issues it is working through, and Houston is not a team that will make it easy. Expect the rebounding and physicality advantages to be too much to overcome and for the Rockets to produce an outright upset on the road.
