NBA Playoff Betting – (2) Rockets at (7) Mavericks (Game 3)

Houston Rockets at Dallas Mavericks (-1, 215 o/u)

Big things were expected from the Dallas Mavericks (0-2, 0-0 home) when they traded for Rajon Rondo midseason. But the talented point guard never really found his rhythm in the Dallas offense and continually clashed with head coach Rick Carlisle. Rondo’s struggles continued into the postseason, and the Mavs went on to drop the first two games of their best-of-seven series with the Houston Rockets (2-0, 0-0 away).

Now, as the series shifts to Dallas for Game 3 (7:00 PM Eastern at the American Airlines Center), the Mavs will have to dig themselves out of the 0-2 hole without Rondo after the enigmatic guard suffered a season-ending back injury during Dallas’ 111-99 Game 2 loss. (Not only did Dallas get blown out straight-up, but they also were crushed ATS as five-point road dogs.)

Making matters worse for the Mavs, the team won’t have Chandler Parsons for the remainder of the year, either. The former Rocket averaged nearly 16 points and five assists in his first year with the Mavericks, providing key secondary scoring and a lethal threat from distance.

Despite the key injuries, Carlisle is confident his squad can rebound at home.

“We’re coming home, and we’ve got the best fans in the league,” Carlisle told the team’s official website. “We’re excited to be home, so that’s where we are. … From here, we’re moving forward. We’ve got a series to win, and we’ve got to win Game 3 with the guys that are available.”

For the Mavericks to hold serve at home, they’ll have to do a better job controlling Josh Smith and Dwight Howard in the paint. The pair combined for 43 points and 20 rebounds in Game 2. Howard, in particular, looked strong with 28 and 12.

“It’s playoff basketball,” said the Rockets center. “I think for guys that have been around for a while they tend to play a little bit different in the playoffs than they do in the regular season. It’s a new season for myself and I get a chance to start fresh.”

In the trends, Houston has won and covered in the last three against Dallas, and are 6-1 ATS in the last seven head-to-head. Over/under-wise, four of the last six in Dallas have stayed under the total.

With Dallas reeling from injuries, look for Houston to take a 3-0 stranglehold on the series and cover the modest one-point spread.

(Photo credit: thepanamerican (Flickr: Rockets v Thunder 22 by Norma Gonzalez) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo has been cropped.)