The Los Angeles Lakers (3-3 SU, 2-4 ATS) are 7-0 SU and 6-1 ATS in their last six games against the Houston Rockets (1-4 SU, 2-3 ATS). The Lakers will look to continue their recent dominance over the Rockets with another win this Sunday night in Los Angeles.
- Date/Time: October 31, 10:30 p.m. ET
- Stadium: Staples Center
- TV Coverage: AT&T SS
- Sportsbook Odds: Lakers -12.5 | O/U 224 points (Line History)
- Rockets vs Lakers Matchup Report
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The Lakers opened as 12.5-point favorites and have since moved down slightly to Los Angeles -12. The total has settled in at 222 points after Sportsbook on Saturday at 224 points. The UNDER is 5-1 in Los Angeles’s last six games against Houston.
Houston News & Notes
The Rockets couldn’t get much going in a 122-91 loss at home to the Utah Jazz on Thursday night. Utah jumped out to a 32-18 lead in the first quarter and went into halftime with a commanding 61-40 lead over the Rockets. Houston fell to 0-3 SU and 1-2 ATS over its last three games with the loss and has now lost by at least 10 points in six of the team’s last seven games.
Christian Wood led the team in scoring with 16 points and rebounds with seven in 27 minutes of action on Thursday. Wood is averaging a career-high 11.2 rebounds per game this season and is also averaging a team-leading 19.8 points per game. The 26-year-old center doesn’t have much help around him this season in Houston.
Los Angeles News & Notes
Los Angeles picked up its first double-digit win of the season on Friday, covering the spread as 8.5-point favorites in a 113-101 victory at home over the Cleveland Cavaliers. LeBron James led the team with 26 points and eight rebounds and Carmelo Anthony also had a strong game off of the bench going 6-for-8 from three-point range to score 24 points in 25 minutes of play. James is listed as questionable on Sunday with ankle soreness.
This was also the Lakers’ best defensive performance of the season. Los Angeles allowed 119.6 points per game during its 2-3 SU and 1-4 ATS run to start the season. The Lakers finished with a top five scoring defense in each of their first two seasons under head coach Frank Vogel allowing 107.6 points per game in 2019-20 and 106.8 points per game in 2020-21. Improved play in the defensive zone would help the Lakers to start winning more consistently.
How Houston Will Cover
Atlanta played poorly against the Wizards, but that was on the second night of a road back-to-back and the Hawks’ third game in four nights. A better defensive effort should be expected this Saturday and would put the Hawks in position to cover the spread or pick up an outright upset.
How Los Angeles Will Cover
Friday’s win over Cleveland was Los Angeles’s most complete effort of the season. A similar effort against this underwhelming Rockets roster should lead to a win and cover at home. It will obviously help matters if LeBron James is able to play without being hindered by his sore ankle.
Computer Pick: Lakers -11
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Buy Sports Picks Now- Houston is 2-12 SU in its last 14 games.
- Los Angeles is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 home games.
- The UNDER is 6-0 in Houston’s last six games.
