The unusually long pause between the first and the second series game could help both sides better prepare for what they have seen in the Sunday’s 121-109 Golden State Warriors win over Portland Trail Blazers, but there were hardly any surprises. Both teams played to their strengths, and unfortunately for the visitors, it seems that the Warriors could more easily improve on their game. The overall No.1 seed will look to put a strong grip on the series by going 2-0, while the Blazers hope that they steal one before going home.
Portland Trail Blazers at Golden State Warriors
LINE: Golden State -15 (-102); moneyline -2500
Total: 220.5 (-103o, -104u)
Lillard and McCollum give it all, but there’s no support
The Portland Trail Blazers knew it, Lillard and McCollum knew it, and the entire world knew it, so it’s hardly a surprise that the Portland’s dynamic backcourt duo put their entire team on their backs and tried to carry them to an upset victory in Game 1. They came close too, and it might have happened if anyone else managed to step up their game and rise to the occasion. This was expected too. Lillard and McCollum combined for 75 points and took 54 field goal attempts. The rest of the Rip City was just resting in peace, combining for 34 point on 12-of-39 shooting. Portland need Nurkic back, and they need him soon.
The game was close through three quarters as the Blazers enjoyed their luck and had Thompson on a quiet night. It was McCollum who created most of the offense on his own in the first half, scoring 27 of his 41 points in array of drives, jumpers and three balls. He was getting much attention from the opposing defense, but could not be stopped. Lillard chimed in with some deep shots and took over in the third, but as the fatigue set in, the Warriors ran away with it. The Blazers scored only 21 points in the finals quarter, missing 10 of its 11 shots early on. They managed to climb back to a 6-point deficit with 6 minutes to go, but ran out of steam.
It was a good game from Portland in a hostile environment, but it was not enough, at that’s the scary part. The Portland Trail Blazers are also 3-30 in their franchise playoff history when they lose the first game, so it certainly feels like an uphill climb from here. Can they possibly count on McCollum and Lillard bringing it at the same level against one of the best defenses in the league?
Those two have been doing it all season long, but not on this level. And even if they manage to repeat a similar performance, the Blazers forwards are completely outmatched. Turner and Harkless scored in double figures, and the former also did an excellent job on the glass, but they didn’t get anything from Aminu and Crabbe, and two best players on the Golden State team were Durant and Green. Vonleh and Leonard were completely lost out there, so there seems to be no solution to improve.
Place: Oracle Arena, Oakland, California
Date/Time: Wednesday April 19th, 2017. 10:30 PM ET
TV Coverage: TNT
Forwards step up in Splash brothers non-so-splashy game
When you are this good as the Warriors have been for such a long period of time, you are likely to get nitpicked. The Warriors won by 12 against the Blazers, sustaining the berserk mode of the opposing guard tandem, but it didn’t come as easily as it could have come, bringing up the voice of the naysayers. Sure, Curry and Thompson haven’t played on their level.
Thompson was having all kind of troubles staying in front on McCollum and it frustrated him to a point that he missed 5 of his 6 attempts for the three ball, most of which were wide open by his standards. Curry also had extra defensive duties, but did score 29 points, but also had 5 turnovers to just 4 assists. The Warriors didn’t get much from their bench veterans, but backup guard Ian Clark was up for a game with 12 points on just 5 shots. He was the centerpiece of the 4th quarter run that pushed Warriors to the win.
But it was the play of Golden State prized forward combo of Draymond Green and Kevin Durant that stood out. Green enjoyed one of the best shooting days of this season, finishing with 19 points on a 3-of-4 shooting from the deep. He was all over the place, grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out 9 assists, while also playing excellent defense during the most important stretch and adding 3 steals and 5 blocks to the cause.
Durant was his usual self, leading the Warriors with 32 points and 11 rebounds. The Warriors shot 53.1 percent on field goals as a team, going 11-of-27 from downtown and 24-of-28 from the charity stripe, so it was all well on the offensive end. They were active and played with effort on the defense as well, but couldn’t stop red hot Blazers guards.
The game was not played at a frantic pace, but the Warriors looked to increase it as much as they could, feeling more comfortable in transition. They scored 24 fast break points, compared to just 10 of the Blazers. They were also able to the get to the rim, as their opponents don’t have much of an interior presence in the middle of their defense.
Portland Trail Blazers at Golden State Warriors Game 2 Trends & Prediction
The Portland Trail Blazers covered in Game 1, aided by a large. This brings them to 41-42 against the spread this season, and 3-0 against the Warriors in 2017, despite losing each one. The total point have fallen exactly where the books expected them. It counts as an over compared to the closing lines, but as the punters moved the line down, about half of the money got paid on the under. Portland are 45-37-1 against the projected line this season and 14-3 since March 15.
Golden State ATS record evened up at 40-40-3 overall with the loss. They are also just 21-19-2 at home, so there’s no reason to automatically back them up. Despite the Game 1 counting as an over, Golden State are profitable with the minus points. Their O/U record is 33-50 overall. Still, the books clearly liked what they’ve seen from the nation’s top team, increasing the spread and lowering the lines despite the Blazers cover and the nominal over points.
This is looking to be the most boring series as far as the betting is concerned. The public has played the zig zag here and have jumped on the Blazers this time, probably overreacting to what Lillard and McCollum have done in the first game. The line is unlikely to move much though despite the popular bet. If you are looking to take the Warriors with me, lower your hopes. I’m staying at -14, same as in the first game. The home court of the Oracle don’t change that much no matter which game is played, and I don’t believe that the Blazers will manage to stay close as long as they did the last time. I’m going with 224 fair total points number, so I’ll monitor the movement of the line closer to tipoff to see if an over is to be had. These numbers account for Nurkic being out. Stotts was non-committal about his availability, and he’s officially questionable, but I doubt he returns before the series shifts to Oregon.
My Pick: Pass
Total: Over 220.5 (-103)
