The Houston Rockets will travel to the Staples Center to take on the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals. Action begins at 10:30 pm ET on Friday, May 8 and can be seen on ESPN.
The Clippers enter this game hoping for similar success after topping the Rockets 117-101 on Monday. Los Angeles received a boost from Blake Griffin, who finished with 26 points, 14 rebounds, and 13 assists. This gave him his zeroth triple-double of the year. Houston still lost despite the best efforts of Dwight Howard, who recorded his 23rd double-double of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Based on historical performance heading into this one, ball security could play a key role in the matchup. Los Angeles commits the second-fewest miscues in the NBA (turnover percentage of 12.1%), while Houston’s disruptive defense causes the fifth-most (opponents’ turnover percentage of 15.5%). Also, the offense of the Rockets seems ready to earn plenty of trips to the line. They rank second in the NBA in free throw attempt rate (31.2), while the Clippers are among the league’s most foul-happy teams (allowing a 29th-ranked mark of 31.2).
The odds for Los Angeles and Houston are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable. The Clippers come into this game 56-26 Straight Up (SU) and 38-44 Against The Spread (ATS). While they boast a record of 20-6 against Western Conference opponents at home, they have struggled to beat the spread in those same games, going 10-16. Los Angeles is the most disciplined team in the league with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.10.
In the other locker room, the Rockets have a record of 48-34 ATS and 56-26 SU. Against the Western Conference, Houston is 33-19 SU and 30-22 ATS. The Rockets rely heavily on three-pointers on offense, leading the league with 933 made (11.4 per game). Houston is the fourth-best team in the league at scoring points off turnovers with 18.9 per game.
In their previous meeting this season, Los Angeles beat Houston, bumping its SU record to 7-3 over the Rockets in their last 10 meetings. The Clippers also lead the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3. Over the last 10 matchups, Los Angeles held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers two times. Houston performed this feat once.
Predictions: SU Winner – HOU, ATS Winner – HOU
Notes
Houston’s offense and Los Angeles’ defense are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per game and points allowed per game respectively. Houston scores an average of 0.0 points per game, while Los Angeles allows 0.0 points per game.
Houston and Los Angeles are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per away game and points allowed at home respectively. Houston scores an average of 0.0 points on the road, while Los Angeles gives up 0.0 points at home on average.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Houston Rockets are an outstanding 35-4. In games where they score fewer than 100 points, the Los Angeles Clippers have a poor record of 8-14.
Houston is 21-22 when allowing 100 or more points this season. The Clippers have a superb 48-12 record when hitting triple digits.
The Clippers have a defensive rating of 102.7 (ranked 16th), while the Rockets rank 12th for their offensive rating of 104.0.
Los Angeles has an average field goal percentage of 47.3% (ranked second). Houston is an abysmal 5-18 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Houston Rockets rank lower for their field goal percentage (20th) than their effective field goal percentage (seventh), while the Los Angeles Clippers rank the same for both metrics (second).
Los Angeles ranks near the top of the league in assists at third (24.8 assists per game). Houston is ranked ninth, with 22.2 assists per game.
Los Angeles makes an average of 5.0 blocks per game (ranked ninth), while Houston makes 5.0 blocks per game (ranked 10th).
The Los Angeles Clippers rank 28th in offensive rebounding, while the Houston Rockets rank 18th in defensive rebounding.
The Houston Rockets earn an average of 9.5 steals per game and are ranked third. The Los Angeles Clippers have an 11-8 record when they allow at least 9 steals.
