The Young and the Talented – Blazers at Thunder

The Portland Trail Blazers (30-18 SU, 24-23 ATS, 22-25 O/U) had their five-game winning streak snapped on Wednesday, losing to the Dallas Mavericks 104-99 while failing to cover the spread for NBA sports betting backers as a 3.5-point home favorite.

The Oklahoma City Thunder (11-38 SU, 31-18 ATS, 26-23 O/U) have dropped three straight games, the last two in a narrow, heart-breaking fashion after competing valiantly.

Tonight, both teams will look to get back in the win column when they meet at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City.

Portland got a team-high 26 points from shooting guard Brandon Roy and 21 points from LaMarcus Aldridge but allowed the Mavericks to shoot a blistering 55.1 percent in a losing effort.

The Thunder fall in a thriller to the Denver Nuggets, losing 114-113 on Wednesday, but covered the spread in the BetOnline Sportsbook as 1.5-point underdogs at home while the 227 combined points made it OVER the posted O/U total of 210.

Gifted shooting guard Kevin Durant finished with 31 points, eight rebounds and seven assists while forward Jeff Green added 24 points and rookie point guard Russell Westbrook, 20 points.

Here is a look at tonight’s key trends, followed by my in-depth analysis and NBA Free Pick.

The total has gone OVER in 5 of Portland’s last 5 games on the road

The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Portland’s last 7 games when playing Oklahoma City

Portland is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games

Portland is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games

The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Oklahoma City’s last 7 games when playing Portland

Oklahoma City is 11-2 ATS in its last 13 games at home

Oklahoma City is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Portland

Oklahoma City is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Portland

NBA Odds

Portland Trailblazers -5 -110

Oklahoma City Thunder +5 -110

Over 201 -110

Under 201 -110

Analysis: I really like the way the Oklahoma City Thunder are playing right now, but I can’t pick them to win or cover the spread in this contest with the Blazers playing at home and coming off a loss their last time out.

While I expect the Thunder to put up another courageous effort tonight, I say the Blazers take them down forcefully to win and cover with room to spare.

NBA Free Picks: Portland -5½ Points/Under 201 Total Points