Tip-off: Friday, 8:05 p.m. ET
Line: Dallas -7, Total: 206

The Mavericks will be going for their fourth straight victory when they host the Bulls on Friday night.

Chicago has been struggling lately, but it should enter Friday with a ton of confidence after a 104-81 victory as a 5.5-point home underdog against the Spurs on Thursday night. The Bulls had allowed more than 100 points in five straight games before facing San Antonio, so perhaps they are going back to their roots and focusing on playing excellent defense rather than just scoring. The Mavericks, meanwhile, went into Minnesota on Wednesday night and beat the Timberwolves 98-75 as 9.5-point road favorites. Dallas has won three straight games and four of the past five. In their past three games, the Mavericks have held their opponents to just 86.3 PPG. The Bulls last faced Dallas on Dec. 2, when Chicago lost 132-129 as a 1.5-point home favorite. That game went to triple overtime and prevented a third straight Under in this head-to-head series. The Bulls have won two of their past three games in Dallas SU and have covered in six straight meetings. The last time the Dallas covered at home against Chicago was Nov. 14, 2006. The Bulls are also 24-14 ATS on Friday nights over the past three seasons. The Mavericks, however, are a good January team with a record of 26-15 ATS over the past three seasons. PG Derrick Rose (rest) will likely play in the second night of this back-to-back for Chicago, while SG Mike Dunleavy (ankle) will be a game-time decision, and C Joakim Noah (ankle) is doubtful to suit up and expected to miss his fifth straight game.

Can the Mavericks extend their winning streak with a comfortable victory? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2014-15 season. StatFox Forecaster has a strong 56% ATS record (111-88-1) in featured games this season. In terms of Best Bets, the experts have a stellar 68% ATS (52-25) record since Jan. 2, led by StatFox Scott, who is a sizzling 70% ATS (16-7) in Best Bets since Dec. 21, improving his record to 56% ATS (35-28) for the season. StatFox Brian is 63% ATS (25-15) in Best Bets since Nov. 29, and is now 57% ATS (35-27) in season Best Bets, while StatFox Gary is 69% ATS (11-5) in NBA Best Bets since Jan. 1, and 57% ATS (36-27) this season. StatFox Zach is 69% ATS (11-5) in NBA Best Bets since Jan. 2, while StatFox Dave is 64% ATS (9-5) since Jan. 2.

The Bulls have been struggling recently, but there should be plenty of optimism after the performance of PG Derrick Rose (18.2 PPG, 5.1 APG, 3.0 RPG) on Thursday night. Rose played what might have been his best game of the season, as his athleticism was on full display with 22 points, five assists and two steals in just 27 minutes. He’s had games with bigger numbers this season, but he was attacking the basket with the confidence that NBA fans were used to just a few years ago. Rose will need to carry that momentum into this game, as matching up with Rajon Rondo will not be easy. PF Pau Gasol (18.6 PPG, 11.5 RPG, 2.6 APG, 2.1 BPG) has been playing at an extremely high level this season and will need to keep it up against a very good Mavericks frontcourt. In the Dec. 2 meeting, Gasol exploded for 29 points and 14 rebounds. He also had 12 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks in just 31 minutes against San Antonio on Thursday, and was very efficient on offense (5-of-6 FG). SG Jimmy Butler (20.5 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 3.2 APG, 1.8 SPG) hit a rough patch about two weeks ago, but he has found his game recently. Butler had 17 points (4-of-9 FG, 7-of-7 FT) against the Spurs and it followed up a 20-point, 7-rebound performance against the Cavaliers on Monday. The Bulls need him to play like the All-Star he’s become against the Mavericks, and his matchup against Chandler Parsons could go a long way in determining who ends up winning this game. In last month's meeting, Butler poured in 23 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in the 2-OT loss to Dallas.

The Mavericks are hot recently and one player that is really playing well over the course of their winning streak is SF Chandler Parsons (15.6 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 1.0 SPG). The forward is averaging 18.3 PPG over the past three games and when he is hitting shots, this team is extremely hard to stop. Parsons played 45 minutes in last month's marathon at United Center and produced 24 points, seven rebounds and three steals. SG Monta Ellis (20.0 PPG, 4.5 APG, 1.7 SPG) also played 45 minutes in that Dec. 2 win, and hoisted up 35 shots, finishing with 38 points on 16-of-35 FG. Ellis had just seven points (3-of-12 FG) and three assists in the win over Minnesota on Wednesday, but the Mavericks really didn’t need him to score in order to win that contest. Ellis had 25 points (9-of-18 FG) and seven assists in a win over the Grizzlies just two nights before, and this game on Friday should be very similar. Dallas will need him to score points against a team that is thin at the shooting guard position without Mike Dunleavy, who averages 9.6 PPG and dropped 20 points on the Mavs last month. PF Dirk Nowitzki (18.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG) had been in a shooting slump over the past few weeks, but he’s snapped out of it in recent games. Nowitzki is averaging 20.7 PPG over the past three contests and the Mavericks will really need him to shoot the ball well in this one. Nowitzki had a double-double in Chicago last month with 22 points and 10 assists, while also contributing seven rebounds and a game-high rating of +18. One guy who must turn things around for Dallas is PG Rajon Rondo (9.2 PPG, 9.4 APG, 1.6 SPG), who has really struggled recently. Rondo has gotten himself in foul trouble in four of the past five games and he must stay on the floor for this team. He’s averaging just 7.5 PPG and 2.0 APG over the past two games, and that is just not going to cut it, especially considering the fact that the Mavericks gave up a lot of assets to acquire him in December.