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Spurs look to retain dominance of Wizards Tuesday
By: Zach Cohen - StatFox
Published: 1/13/2015  at  5:29:00 AM
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SAN ANTONIO SPURS (23-15)

at WASHINGTON WIZARDS (25-12)

Tip-off: Tuesday, 7:05 p.m. ET
Line: Washington -2, Total: 195

The Spurs look to win their third straight game when they visit the nation's capital Tuesday night to take on the Wizards.

San Antonio opened a three-game road trip in Minnesota on Saturday and crushed the Timberwolves 108-93 as 10-point favorites, marking just its fourth win-and-cover in the past 14 contests. The Spurs are 4-1 SU, but just 2-2-1 ATS, in their past five games. Washington played its last game in Atlanta on Sunday and was clobbered 120-89 as four-point road underdogs against a red-hot Hawks team. The Wizards had won three straight prior to that loss, but those are their only three wins in their past seven games. These two teams met 10 days ago on Jan. 3, when San Antonio prevailed 101-92 as five-point home favorites. The Spurs have won an eye-popping 17 straight games in this series SU and they’ve covered in 15 of those contests. The last time Washington beat San Antonio was a 110-95 victory on Nov. 12, 2005. The Spurs are 17-14 ATS after two straight games giving up 10 or less offensive rebounds over the past two seasons, and 70-39 ATS against Southeast Division opponents since 1996. However, the Wizards are 25-11 ATS revenging a loss where their opponent scored 100+ points over the past two seasons. SGs Manu Ginobili (back) and Marco Belinelli (groin) are both questionable for San Antonio in this one, while SF Kawhi Leonard (hand) remains out indefinitely. There are no injury concerns for Washington on Tuesday.

Can the Spurs finish the series sweep of Washington on Tuesday? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2014-15 season. StatFox Forecaster has a strong 55% ATS record (96-79-1) in featured games this season. In terms of Best Bets, the experts have a stellar 74% ATS (29-10) record since Jan. 2, led by StatFox Scott, who is a sizzling 73% ATS (11-4) in Best Bets since Dec. 21, improving his record to 55% ATS (30-25) for the season. StatFox Brian is 64% ATS (21-12) in Best Bets since Nov. 29, and is now 56% ATS (31-24) in season Best Bets, while StatFox Gary is 6-2 ATS in NBA Best Bets since Jan. 1, and 56% ATS (31-24) this season.

The Spurs are coming off of a dominant victory in Minnesota and they got a surprisingly excellent performance from SF Austin Daye (4.0 PPG, 2.4 RPG) in that game. Daye, who had not played in the previous four games, finished the contest with 22 points and 10 rebounds in 36 minutes. With this team, it’s possible he doesn’t see the floor again for another two weeks, but his scoring would be a welcoming addition to a club that is thin at the small forward position with SF Kawhi Leonard (15.2 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 2.0 SPG) injured. PF Tim Duncan (15.3 PPG, 10.3 RPG, 2.0 BPG) really struggled in the last meeting with the Wizards, finishing with just four points, nine rebounds and four assists in 31 minutes of action. Washington has a strong frontcourt, so Duncan will need to be a lot better this go around. PG Tony Parker (15.1 PPG, 4.8 APG) is slowly regaining his form after injuring his hamstring and missing five games from Dec. 26 to Jan. 3. Parker had just 10 points total (3-of-12 FG) in his first two games since returning from the injury, but he had 12 points (5-of-11 FG) and five rebounds in Saturday's win over Minnesota. With injuries to SGs Manu Ginobili (12.5 PPG, 5.0 APG) and Marco Belinelli (9.7 PPG, 37% threes) leaving the Spurs shorthanded in the backcourt, SG Danny Green (12.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG) will be a huge X-factor in this one. He’s averaging 11.4 PPG and 6.0 RPG over the past five games and his long-range shooting (41% threes) could give the Spurs a huge boost in this game.

The Wizards haven’t beaten the Spurs in 17 straight games, so they’ll come into this game with plenty of fire. PG John Wall (17.1 PPG, 10.3 APG, 4.4 RPG, 2.1 SPG) had 15 points and eight assists in a loss to the Hawks on Sunday. He put up the same exact numbers in the Jan. 3 loss to the Spurs, and he will really need to be better on Tuesday. Tony Parker is dealing with a hamstring injury that is far from 100 percent healed, so Wall should be able to use his speed to really dominate San Antonio from the point guard position. SG Bradley Beal (15.1 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 3.1 APG) should also be able to have a big game in this one. The Spurs are going to be very weak at the shooting guard position, so Beal should have a major advantage over Danny Green. Beal had just 12 points and five rebounds in a loss to Atlanta, but is in prime position to take over in this one, scoring 15 points (6-of-12 FG) in the meeting with San Antonio 10 days ago. C Marcin Gortat (12.4 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 1.4 BPG) gave Tim Duncan some trouble the last time these teams played, finishing with 12 points (6-of-10 FG) and five rebounds in 32 minutes, and if he can hold Duncan to under 10 points again, the Wizards should have a great opportunity to end this nearly decade-long losing skid against the Spurs. SF Paul Pierce (12.6 PPG, 4.3 RPG) will need to assert himself more offensively for Washington. He’s averaging just 7.4 PPG despite 50% FG (6-of-12) over the past five contests, and the team is relying on him to hit big shots and play tough.


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