The New Orleans Pelicans (17-23 SU, 18-22 ATS) take on the Portland Trail Blazers (23-16 SU, 19-20 ATS) for the third time this season on Thursday night in the second half of a two-game series. Portland has won both matchups this season by a combined three points, including a 125-124 thriller on Tuesday.
- Date/Time: March 18, 10 p.m. ET
- Arena: Moda Center
- TV Coverage: NSNW
- Sportsbook Odds: Trail Blazers -3 | O/U 242 (Line History)
- Pelicans vs Blazers Matchup Report
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The game opened with the Trail Blazers as favorites at -3 and the line has moved down to -1 at most books and to -1.5 at a couple of others. The total opened at a whopping 242 and has moved down slightly to 241.5 across the board.
New Orleans News & Notes
The Pelicans lost in heartbreaking fashion Tuesday after Eric Bledsoe fouled Damian Lillard up one point with 1.2 seconds left. Lillard hit both free throws to complete the comeback victory.
It has been a frustrating season for the Pelicans, who sit in 11th place in the West and will be in tough to make the playoffs. The good news is most of the underlying numbers look good as the team ranks third overall in field-goal percentage, ninth in assists per game and fourth in rebounds per game.
The bad news is they don’t shoot the three-pointer particularly well. While the top of the rankings in three-point percentage is littered with the NBA’s best teams, the Pelicans rank 19th.
Brandon Ingram led the way for the Pelicans on Tuesday with 30 points while Lonzo Ball had 11 points and a career-high 17 assists. The Pelicans actually won all four meetings with the Blazers last season, but they are going to need a better defensive effort on Thursday to beat Portland.
Portland News & Notes
The Trail Blazers were down 14 points at halftime and ended up scoring 43 points in the fourth quarter to complete their miraculous comeback Tuesday. The team’s fearless leader, Damian Lillard, led the way with a season-high 50 points, including six treys, and dished out 10 assists. He scored 20 of his 50 in the fourth quarter.
Lillard ranks second in the league in scoring (30.5 ppg) behind Washington’s Bradley Beal. Tuesday’s output marked his fifth game of the season with 40 or more points – the most in the NBA.
The Blazers sit sixth in the Western Conference despite the absence of their second-best player for most of the season. Guard CJ McCollum, who has averaged more than 20 points per game in each of the last five seasons, returned to the lineup Tuesday after missing 25 games with a fractured foot.
Betting Pick: OVER 241.5
The Pelicans have hit the OVER in 72.5 percent of their games (most in the NBA) and the Blazers have hit in 56.4 percent of their games (ninth). These teams have already hit totals of 249 and 250 this season. No reason it can’t happen again.
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Buy Sports Picks Now- The total has gone OVER in 15 of New Orleans’ last 18 games.
- New Orleans is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games vs Portland.
- Portland is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games.
