The Los Angeles Clippers will travel to SBC Center to take on the San Antonio Spurs. Action begins at 8:00 pm ET on Friday, Dec. 18 and can be seen on ESP, PRI and KMY.
The Spurs enter this game hoping for similar success after dismantling the Wizards 114-95 on Wednesday. Kawhi Leonard was the game’s leading scorer with 27 points on 9-for-15 shooting. The Clippers, meanwhile, are coming off a 103-90 win against the Bucks on Wednesday. Chris Paul was the game’s top scorer, registering 21 points on 7-for-12 shooting.
Trips to the foul line may prove key for the Clippers in this one. They’re ranked first in the league in free throw attempt rate (34.8), while San Antonio is among the best at keeping opponents off of the charity stripe (ranking first by allowing a free throw attempt rate of 21.6).
The Spurs are a seven-point favorite against Los Angeles and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at 199 points. The Spurs have gone 22-5 Straight Up (SU) and 18-9 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have had success covering the spread (7-3). The rebounding edge goes to the Spurs in this matchup, who are one of the top rebounding teams in the league with an average of 46.3 boards per game. San Antonio is one of the most disciplined teams in the league with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.83. Crossing over to the defensive side of the court, the Spurs prevent teams from making three-pointers, ranking first in the league with 157 total three-pointers allowed (5.0 per game).
Over on the other bench, the Clippers were a poor bet so far, with a disappointing record of 9-15-2 ATS. Their SU record, 16-10, hasn’t been quite as bad. Against the Western Conference, Los Angeles is 10-7 SU and 6-10-1 ATS. The Clippers are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, ranking fifth in the NBA at 1.74.
This game marks the season’s first head-to-head clash between the conference foes. Their previous game was a Clippers victory, bumping their SU record over the last 10 meetings to 6-4. The teams are even ATS, with a 5-5 record.
Predictions: SU Winner – SA, ATS Winner – SA, O/U – Over
Notes
San Antonio is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Antonio’s last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of San Antonio’s last 6 games at home.
San Antonio is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home.
San Antonio is 3-6 SU in their last 9 games when playing LA Clippers.
The total has gone OVER in 11 of San Antonio’s last 16 games when playing LA Clippers.
The total has gone OVER in 13 of San Antonio’s last 19 games when playing at home against LA Clippers.
San Antonio is 20-5 SU in their last 25 games when playing at home against LA Clippers.
The total has gone OVER in 13 of the LA Clippers last 19 games when playing on the road against San Antonio.
The Clippers are a top-10 scoring team, averaging 102.6 points per game. San Antonio gives up just 88.2 points per game, best in the league.
Los Angeles averages a solid 103.8 points per away game this season. However, San Antonio is the top-ranked team in points allowed at home, giving up just 86.1 points per game.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the San Antonio Spurs are an outstanding 20-2. In games where they fail to hit triple digits, the Los Angeles Clippers have a subpar record of 1-5.
San Antonio is 2-3 when allowing 100 or more points this season. The Clippers have a stellar 15-5 record when they hit the century mark.
The Spurs have the third-best offensive rating in the NBA (106.6). The Clippers are also in the top half of the league based on their defensive rating of 101.7 (ranked 14th).
The Los Angeles Clippers average 98.2 possessions per game and 1.044 points per possession. The San Antonio Spurs earn fewer possessions with 95.2, but they score more points with 1.066.
Los Angeles is among the top-ranked teams based on its average effective field goal percentage of 50.4% (ranked eighth in the NBA). San Antonio is an even 3-3 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
San Antonio ranks near the top of the league in assists at second (25.2 assists per game). Los Angeles is ranked seventh, with 22.9 assists per game.
The San Antonio Spurs average 5.8 blocks per game for a rank of seventh. The Los Angeles Clippers rank lower (12th), earning 5.3 blocks each game.
San Antonio is ranked 24th when it comes to offensive rebounding. Los Angeles ranks 21st in defensive rebounds.
The San Antonio Spurs make an average of 8.3 steals per game. When the Los Angeles Clippers allow 8 or more steals, they are a solid 10-6.
