The Houston Rockets (17-8) travel to face off against the Oklahoma City Thunder (19-5) on Saturday, December 14th. This game will be played at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and televised on ABC. Both team’s come into this one having won their previous games. Tip-off is set for 8:30 ET.

Rockets vs Thunder

The Rockets Are Coming Off A Win

The Rockets edged out the Warriors 91-90 on Wednesday, pushing their record to 17-8. Houston was favored by 3.5 points but didn’t cover the spread. The game’s total points of 181 fell well short of the 220.5-point line.

After leading 44-37 at halftime, Houston allowed the Warriors to take a 69-68 lead into the 4th quarter. The Rockets responded by outscoring Golden State 23-21 in the final period to secure the win.

The Thunder Are Coming Off A Win

With a 118-104 win over the Mavericks on Tuesday, the Thunder improved to 19-5 this season. Playing at home, Oklahoma City entered the game as -4.5 favorites and covered the spread, while the total points of 222 fell short of the 230 O/U line.

A key 13-0 run early in the game helped the Thunder take control, and they went into the 4th quarter leading 90-73 after a strong 3rd quarter where they outscored Dallas 33-19.

Rockets Offense Breakdown

Alperen Şengün led the Rockets to a 91-90 win over the Warriors, scoring 26 points and grabbing 11 rebounds while shooting 55.6% from the field. Jabari Smith Jr. added 15 points, hitting 3 threes at a 37.5% clip.

Houston struggled from beyond the arc, making just 6 threes at 22.2%, but shot 45.8% overall. Jalen Green contributed 12 points, with 8 coming in the 2nd quarter.

Thunder Offense Breakdown

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the standout performer in the Thunder’s win over the Mavericks, scoring 39 points, including 16 in both the 1st and 3rd quarters. He also hit 5 threes at a 55.6% rate, finishing with a 65.2% overall shooting percentage. Jalen Williams contributed 18 points, with 10 coming in the 4th quarter.

The Thunder made 20 threes as a team, shooting 40% from beyond the arc, while their overall field goal percentage was 45.5%. Luguentz Dort added 3 threes, finishing with 11 points, and Cason Wallace also chipped in 11, with 5 points in the final period.

Rockets Team Defense

Even with a tough 3rd quarter, the Rockets’ defense held the Warriors to just 90 points on Wednesday, including a strong 1st half where they allowed only 37 points. Houston gave up 32 points in the 3rd but bounced back in the 4th, allowing just 21 points to secure the win.

The Rockets limited Golden State’s three-point shooting, holding them to 31% from deep with 12 made threes. They also sent the Warriors to the free-throw line just 9 times, where they made 4. Houston finished with 10 steals and 5 blocks in the game.

Thunder Team Defense

The Rockets’ defense shined on Wednesday, holding the Warriors to just 90 points. They started strong, allowing only 18 points in the 1st quarter and 19 in the 2nd. Despite a 32-point 3rd quarter from Golden State, Houston tightened up in the 4th, giving up just 21 points to secure the win.

Houston limited the Warriors to 31% shooting from three, with Golden State making 12 threes. The Rockets also kept the Warriors off the free-throw line, where they went 4/9. Defensively, Houston recorded 10 steals and 5 blocks.

Rockets vs Thunder Trends

• In their last ten games away from home, the Rockets have a straight up record of 6-4 while going 6-4 vs. the spread. The team averaged 111 points per game in this stretch.
• The Thunder are 2-1 ATS in their last three home games and 2-1 straight-up.
• Through their last five games as the betting underdog, the Rockets have a strong record vs the spread going 3-2. Their straight up mark in these contests is 2-3.
• Through their last three games as the favorite, the Thunder have an ATS record of 3-0 and a straight up mark of 3-0.

Rockets vs Thunder Prediction

Coming in as the underdogs at +5.5, we have the Rockets as the way to go on the point spread. Not only do we have them covering, but our projections show they have a good one of winning this one straight-up, if you’re looking for a higher payout on the moneyline.

Right now, the over/under line for the game is sitting at 213.5 and given that our model is projecting 250 points between the teams, we like the over.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.