This will be the second straight meeting between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Houston Rockets at the Moda Center. The hosts came out on top in the first meeting, picking up a 1-point win over the Rockets, and they will be confident they can do the same once more. The visitors will remain without the services of Alperen Sengun tonight. The Turkish center leads the team in assists this season, and without him, the offense could really stutter. Without Sengun, the Rockets have failed to put up more than 104 points in any of their last 3 games, and similar offensive struggles tonight could put them in the loss column again. Their road record has been far from great as it is, standing at 11-10 this season.

Deni Advija has started the month in terrific form, averaging 34.3 points per game for the hosts. He has also been able to lead the Trail Blazers to wins in 6 of their last 7 games. His 41-point outing in his last game was also his season high. He was able to exploit the likes of Steven Adams and Clint Capela in pick-and-roll situations, with the pair of centers unable to stay in front of Advija when switching. With Donavan Clingan being one of the elite offensive rebounders in the NBA, the Rockets will not be able to go small here, so look for Advija to continue dominating.

The Trail Blazers are just outside of the top 10 in the league over the last 10 games in 3-pointers made per game. With the Rockets down in 22nd, look for the hosts to be able to not only keep pace with their offense, but perhaps even push for another win.

Rockets vs Trail Blazers prediction: Portland Trail Blazers +6.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to Trail Blazers +5.

Source: https://www.pickswise.com/nba/best-bets/

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