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Tuesday’s Tip Sheet

VegasInsider Staff
VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert
5 minute read
ATS Rankings | Totals Report | Injuries

Game of the Night: Hornets at Clippers – 10:35 PM EST

The Clippers (23-16 SU, 23-16 ATS) started the season on fire, but have cooled off significantly since the start of December by going 8-10 the last 18 games. Los Angeles has built a trio of two-game winning streaks, but hasn’t made it to three since the end of November. The Clippers are coming off back-to-back victories over the Suns and Magic, as L.A. snapped a 14-game stretch of allowing more than 100 points in Sunday’s 106-96 triumph over Orlando as 6 ½-point favorites.

The Hornets (19-20 SU, 20-19 ATS) ended a four-game road slide in Sunday’s 119-113 victory at Phoenix. Kemba Walker paced Charlotte with 29 points, as Charlotte improved to 4-9 ATS the last 13 games. The Hornets have won back-to-back road games only once this season, coming back in mid-October at Miami and Orlando. Charlotte is in the midst of an eight-game OVER streak on the highway, while allowing at least 113 points in seven of those contests.

Los Angeles has captured seven of the past eight matchups with Charlotte since the start of the 2014-15 season, including a 4-0 mark at Staples Center. Each of last season’s two games finished UNDER the total, as the Hornets seek their first road win over the Clippers since February 2009.

On the Road Again

The Nuggets (26-12 SU, 21-17 ATS) had their five-game winning streak snapped in Monday’s 125-113 setback at Houston. Denver cashed the OVER for the fifth straight contest in spite of the loss, as the Nuggets allowed their most points since giving up 132 against the Clippers on December 22. Nikola Jokic paced the Nuggets with 24 points and 13 rebounds, but the Nuggets lost for the second time against the Rockets this season.

Denver travels to Miami tonight as the Nuggets own a 4-1 SU and 3-2 ATS mark with no rest this season. The Heat (19-19 SU, 21-17 ATS) look to rebound after getting rolled by the Hawks, 106-82 on Sunday as 6 ½-point road favorites. Atlanta outscored Miami in the third quarter, 41-21 to bust things open after leading the Heat by one at halftime. The Heat converted only 5-of-34 attempts from three-point range, as Miami’s six-game OVER streak was snapped. The home team split the two meetings last season, as Miami outlasted Denver, 149-141 in double-overtime at American Airlines Arena.

Not So Teen Wolf

Following a tumultuous 2 ½ season run as the head coach of the Timberwolves (19-21 SU, 21-19 ATS), head coach Tom Thibodeau was fired after Minnesota blew out the Lakers, 108-86 on Sunday. The man replacing Thibs is assistant coach Ryan Saunders, who not only is 32 years old, but also the son of the late Flip Saunders, who is the winning coach in Minnesota franchise history.

The Wolves bounced back from a pair of road losses at New Orleans and Boston to take care of the Magic and Lakers by double-figures each at Target Center. Minnesota travels to Oklahoma City tonight looking to beat the Thunder for the second time this season. The Wolves held off the Thunder on December 23 as 6 ½-point road underdogs, 114-112, highlighted by 30 points from Andrew Wiggins, while Minnesota knocked down 14 three-pointers.

The Thunder (25-14 SU, 22-17 ATS) suffered their worst home loss of the season in Sunday’s 116-98 setback to the Wizards as 10-point favorites. OKC fell into a letdown spot after beating the Lakers and Blazers on the road, as the Thunder shot 43% from the floor, while cashing the UNDER for the fifth time in the last six games. OKC dropped to 2-4 ATS the last six home games as a single-digit favorite, while the Thunder have lost four of the past five matchups with the Wolves since the beginning of last season.

Waving the Wand

Although they still have a long way to reach the .500 mark, the Wizards (16-24 SU, 16-24 ATS) have suddenly covered four straight games. Washington has won three of its past four games, including Sunday’s wire-to-wire rout of Oklahoma City as 10 ½-point underdogs, 116-98. Bradley Beal led the Wizards with 24 points, as Washington avenged a 23-point home defeat to OKC from November. The Wizards continue a tough stretch as they begin a home-and-home set with the 76ers, followed by visits from Milwaukee and Toronto this weekend.

Washington heads to Philadelphia tonight as the 76ers (26-14 SU, 19-21 ATS) look to improve on a 17-3 mark at Wells Fargo Center this season. Philadelphia failed to cash in Saturday’s 106-100 win over Dallas as 6 ½-point favorites thanks to the Mavericks outscoring the Sixers by 11 points in the fourth quarter. Jimmy Butler missed that victory due to an illness, as the Sixers’ swingman is expected to return tonight with Philadelphia trying to pick up its seventh cover in the last eight chances off an ATS loss.

Tired Legs

The Knicks (10-30 SU, 18-21-1 ATS) managed a cover as 11-point underdogs in Monday’s 111-101 setback at Portland. New York is riding a three-game ATS hot streak as the Knicks close out their six-game road swing at Golden State tonight, trying to avenge a 128-100 defeat at the Garden to the defending champions on October 26. New York led Golden State, 84-81 after three quarters as a 12-point underdog, but the Warriors crushed the Knicks in the fourth quarter, 47-16 to grab the cover.

The Warriors (26-14 SU, 16-24 ATS) are in the midst of a rare three-game home skid, as Golden State squandered a 17-point halftime lead to Houston in last Thursday’s 135-134 overtime setback. Golden State bounced back two nights later with a 127-123 victory at Sacramento, but the Warriors failed to cash as 7 ½-point favorites. The Warriors look to bust out of a 1-9 ATS slump at Oracle Arena since November 24, while Golden State is laying its most points of the season tonight as 18-point favorites over New York.

You can reach Kevin Rogers via e-mail at rogers@vegasinsider.com

Kevin Rogers can be followed on Twitter at virogers.

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