The San Antonio Spurs (31-6) look to extend their six-game winning streak when they take on the New York Knicks (18-19) at the AT&T Center. The game starts at 8:30 pm ET on Friday, Jan. 8 and will air on MSG and FSW.
The Spurs easily got past the Jazz 123-98 on Wednesday. Tim Duncan led all scorers on the team with 18 points on 8-for-13 shooting. The Knicks, meanwhile, are coming off a 98-90 win over the Heat on Wednesday. Carmelo Anthony shot 9-for-12 and led in scoring with 25 points.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Spurs won the first game 94-84. Duncan recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
The Spurs are a considerable 13-point favorite at home and the Over/Under (O/U) for this matchup is set at 194 points. The Spurs are attempting to build on their records of 31-6 Straight Up (SU) and 26-11 Against The Spread (ATS). In their last 10 games, they are 8-2 ATS. The Spurs, sporting the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the NBA (1.91), have proven themselves to be an extremely efficient offensive team. The San Antonio defense has been dominant, only giving up 89.5 points per game, which is the best in the league. Opposing offenses have been stifled by the Spurs, who allow a field goal percentage of only .427.
On the other side, New York has a SU record of 18-19 and an ATS record of 22-15. In Western Conference games, New York has gone 6-5 SU and ATS. The Knicks are shooting lights out from the foul line so far, with an NBA-best .817 free throw percentage. New York’s three-point defense is one of the top in the league, with opponents making only 6.0 shots from the three-point line per game.
The Spurs’ win over New York in their last game evened up the two teams’ head-to-head record over their last 10 games. However, with a 5-4-1 record, the Knicks have the advantage ATS.
Predictions: SU Winner – SA, ATS Winner – SA, O/U – Under
Notes
San Antonio is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Antonio’s last 5 games.
The total has gone OVER in 8 of San Antonio’s last 11 games at home.
San Antonio is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home.
San Antonio is 17-7 SU in its last 24 games when playing New York.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Antonio’s last 5 games when playing New York.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Antonio’s last 5 games when playing at home against New York.
San Antonio is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games when playing at home against New York.
San Antonio ranks sixth in points per game with 103.7, while New York ranks 11th in points allowed with an average of 99.4 given up.
New York scores 97.5 points per away game this season. However, San Antonio is the top-ranked team in points allowed at home, giving up just 88.8 per game.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the San Antonio Spurs are a fantastic 27-3. In games where they fail to hit triple digits, the New York Knicks have an underachieving record of 5-17.
When the San Antonio Spurs allow at least 100 points they are 4-3, while the New York Knicks are 13-2 when they register triple digits.
The Knicks have a defensive rating of 103.9 (ranked 17th). The Spurs rank third for their offensive rating of 109.0.
The New York Knicks average 95.9 possessions per game and 1.024 points per possession. The San Antonio Spurs earn fewer possessions with 95.1, but they score more points with 1.090.
San Antonio is ranked second in the NBA with an average effective field goal percentage of 53.7%. New York has not won a game this season when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage (0-4).
On average, the San Antonio Spurs make 25.7 assists per game and the New York Knicks make 20.1. San Antonio is ranked second, while New York is ranked 23rd.
The San Antonio Spurs average 5.7 blocks per game for a rank of eighth. The New York Knicks rank higher (seventh), earning 5.7 blocks each contest.
The San Antonio Spurs rank 23rd in offensive rebounding, while the New York Knicks rank 17th in defensive rebounding.
The San Antonio Spurs average 8.5 steals per game, ranked eighth in the NBA. The New York Knicks are an even 6-6 when they allow at least 8 steals.
