The Charlotte Hornets (36-28) take on the visiting Houston Rockets (33-32) at the Time Warner Cable Arena. The game gets underway at 7:00 pm ET on Saturday, Mar. 12 and will air on RSW and FxS.
The Hornets beat the Pistons 118-103 on Friday. With 17 points and 11 assists, Nicolas Batum recorded his 10th double-double this season. The Rockets, meanwhile, are coming off a 102-98 win over the Celtics on Friday. James Harden led the game in scoring with 32 points on 9-for-19 shooting.
Over the last five games, Kemba Walker has really been playing well for the Hornets. During that stretch, he has averaged 29.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1.0 steal, and 3.6 three-pointers.
Based on each team’s statistical profile, ball protection could play an integral role in this matchup. The Hornets commit the fewest miscues in the NBA (turnover percentage of 12.4%), while the ball-hawking defense of Charlotte forces the second-most (opponents’ turnover percentage of 15.9%). Furthermore, getting to the line could play a crucial role for the Rockets. They rank first in the league in free throw attempt rate (36.7). However, the Hornets are among the best in the NBA at keeping opponents off the charity stripe (ranking fifth at 24.9).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Rockets won the first game 102-95. Harden was the game’s leading scorer with 36 points.
The Hornets enter the game with records of 36-28 Straight Up (SU) and 34-29-1 Against The Spread (ATS). They have a record of 36-28 SU and 34-29-1 ATS versus the Western Conference. Charlotte is excellent from the perimeter with 670 three-pointers made (10.0 per game), the fourth-most in the league. Expect Charlotte to have lots of opportunities at the line against the Rockets, who are one of the most foul-prone teams in the league with an average of 22.7 fouls per game.
On the other side, the Rockets head into the game with records of 28-36-1 ATS and 33-32 SU. Houston has done particularly well ATS over its past 10 matchups, going 7-3. Houston is one of the top three-point shooting teams in the league, knocking down 10.0 shots from three-point range per game. A large part of Houston’s game is creating turnovers and turning them into points. They are scoring 18.9 points per game off turnovers, which ranks fourth in the league.
With the Rockets’ last win against Charlotte, their SU record rises to 10-0 over the Hornets in the last 10 games. Additionally, the Rockets lead the matchup ATS with a record of 7-2-1.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cha
Notes
“Charlotte is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games “.
“Charlotte is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games “.
“The total has gone OVER in 5 of Charlotte’s last 6 games “.
“Charlotte is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games at home”.
“Charlotte is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home”.
“The total has gone OVER in 4 of Charlotte’s last 5 games at home”.
“Charlotte is 1-4-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Houston”.
“Charlotte is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Houston”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Charlotte’s last 5 games when playing Houston”.
“Charlotte is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Houston”.
“Charlotte is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Houston”.
Charlotte’s offense and Houston’s defense are well matched when it comes to scoring. Charlotte puts up 0.0 points per game (ranked zeroth). Houston gives up 0.0 points per game, which is also ranked zeroth.
Charlotte and Houston are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per home game and points allowed per away game respectively. Charlotte scores an average of 0.0 points per home game, while Houston allows 0.0 points per away game on average.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Charlotte Hornets are a tremendous 25-8. In games where they fail to hit triple digits, the Houston Rockets have an underachieving record of 2-14.
When allowing 100 or more points in a game, the Hornets are just 11-20 this season. Houston is a winning 31-18 when it hits the century mark.
The Rockets have a defensive rating of 106.6 (ranked 23rd). The Hornets rank ninth for their offensive rating of 105.0.
Houston beats Charlotte in both possessions per game and points per possession. The Rockets average 100.6 possessions and 1.051 points per possession, while the Hornets average 98.0 possessions with 1.050 points per possession.
Houston has an average effective field goal percentage of 51.0% (ranked eighth in the league}. Charlotte is a subpar 10-16 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, Charlotte attempts 29.0 three pointers and Houston attempts 31.0 per game. In games where the teams have 25 or more three point attempts, the Hornets have a solid 34-22 record while the Rockets are even at 28-28.
Charlotte has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.75 this season (ranked sixth), while Houston ranks lower at 27th with an A/TO of 1.39.
The Charlotte Hornets rebound 43.9 times per game and are ranked 15th. Ranked 20th, the Houston Rockets rebound 42.7 times per game.
Charlotte is ranked sixth in defensive rebounds, while Houston ranks seventh in offensive rebounds.
Houston is one of the top teams in forced turnovers, with opponents averaging a TOV% of 15.9% (ranked second). Charlotte has a losing record of 4-7 SU this season when its TOV% reaches 15.9% or greater.
