In a contest between the two teams with the best records in the Northwest Division, the Utah Jazz (26-26) travel to play the Portland Trail Blazers (27-27) at the Moda Center. Action begins at 9:00 pm ET on Sunday, Feb. 21 and can be seen on RT and CNW.
The Trail Blazers beat the Rockets 116-103 in their last matchup. Damian Lillard led all scorers on the team with 31 points on 9-for-22 shooting. The Jazz, meanwhile, are coming off a 100-96 loss against the Pelicans in their last outing. Derrick Favors had a game-high 29 points.
Rudy Gobert has upped his play for the Jazz, averaging 13.2 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.4 steals, and 2.2 blocks over the past five games.
The Trail Blazers lead the season series against the Jazz two games to one, including a 99-85 win the last time these two teams met. Lillard put up 21 points and 10 assists.
The Trail Blazers come into this game 28-27 Straight Up (SU) and 31-24 Against The Spread (ATS). They have a record of 5-6 both SU and ATS against their division at home. So far, division foes have given the Trail Blazers offense a hard time. During that span, Portland has only averaged 93.1 points per game compared to its 103.1 season average. The Trail Blazers have a distinct advantage on the boards in this matchup. They are the fifth-ranked rebounding team in the NBA, averaging 45.9 per game, while the Jazz rank 21st in the league with 42.6 per game. Portland’s defense has been shutting down opposing offenses over the past 10 games, only allowing an average of 92.5 points per game, well under their season average of 102.0.
Across the court, the Jazz have a record of 28-25-1 ATS and 27-27 SU. Utah has done particularly well ATS over its past 10 matchups, going 8-2. The Jazz have shown improvement on the offensive end over the most recent 10 game stretch. Over that span, Utah is averaging 110.9 PPG, significantly more than their season average of 97.9.
With the Trail Blazers’ last win against Utah, their SU record against the Jazz moves to 7-3 over the last 10 meetings. At 5-5, they are even ATS.
Predictions: SU Winner – Por
Notes
Portland scores 103.1 points per game (ranked eighth), but Utah typically allows only 96.5 points per game (ranked second).
Portland and Utah are well matched, ranking sixth in points per home game and points allowed per away game respectively. Portland scores an average of 106.5 points per home game, while Utah allows 99.8 points per away game on average.
The Portland Trail Blazers have a winning record (16-4) when their opponents score fewer than 100 points this season. The Utah Jazz are 14-19 when they don’t hit triple digits.
When allowing 100 or more points in a game, the Trail Blazers are just 11-23 this season. Utah is a winning 12-7 when it hits the century mark.
The Jazz have a defensive rating of 103.2 (ranked 14th). The Trail Blazers rank seventh for their offensive rating of 104.9.
On average, Portland has 97.7 possessions per game and scores 1.049 points on each possession. Utah has both fewer possessions (93.8) and scores fewer points during those possessions (1.043).
Portland is among the top-ranked teams based on its average effective field goal percentage of 50.6% (ranked 10th in the NBA). Utah is a subpar 4-18 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, the Portland Trail Blazers attempt 28.0 three point field goals per game and the Utah Jazz attempt 23.0 per game. In games where they attempt at least 25 threes, Portland has a 23-18 record and Utah has a 10-12 record.
Portland has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.49 this season (ranked 20th), while Utah ranks lower at 28th with an A/TO of 1.33.
Portland ranks near the top of the NBA for rebounds at fifth (45.9 per game), while Utah ranks 21st with 42.6 per game.
Portland is ranked ninth in defensive rebounds, while Utah ranks eighth in offensive rebounds.
The Portland Trail Blazers’ opponents have an average turnover percentage of 13.0% this season. The Utah Jazz are 18-15 SU when their TOV% is 13.0% or higher.
