Tip-off: Monday, 8:05 p.m. ET
Line: Philadelphia -11.5, Total: 213.5

The Sixers will be looking to pick up their second win of the season when they face the Rockets on Monday.

The Sixers won their first game of the season against the Pacers on Friday night, but they followed it up with a 117-96 loss in Atlanta on Saturday. They’ll now be looking to get back on track with a win in Houston, but the Rockets are 4-0 SU when facing the Sixers over the past three seasons and Philly hasn’t won in Houston since 2011. The Rockets also happen to be playing well coming into this one, as the team has won-and-covered in two of its past three games. Their only loss in that span was a 106-100 defeat at the hands of the Spurs on Sunday night. One trend that seriously favors the Sixers in this game is the fact that Mike D’Antoni is just 14-35 ATS as a home favorite of 9.5 to 12 points in all games he has coached since 1996. The Sixers are also 21-8 ATS versus teams that are allowing 103 or more PPG over the past two seasons. Fortunately for Houston, though, the Rockets are facing a Philly team that is just 18-35 ATS when playing against a marginal wining team (Win % of 51 to 60) under head coach Brett Brown. PG Jerryd Bayless (Wrist), PF Ben Simmons (Knee) and C Nerlens Noel (Knee) remain out indefinitely for the Sixers, and PG Patrick Beverley (Knee) is out for the Rockets on Monday.

The Sixers have just one win this season, but they have been a lot more competitive than they were the past few year. The main reason for that has been the emergence of C Joel Embiid (18.8 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 2.3 BPG) as a superstar. Embiid led the Sixers to a win over the Pacers on Friday, scoring 25 points with seven boards in 26 minutes of action. He’s still playing limited minutes for Philadelphia, but he makes his impact when he’s on the floor and he should be able to have his way with Houston on Monday. Two other guys to watch out for are PG Sergio Rodriguez (9.2 PPG, 7.1 APG, 3.7 RPG, 1.0 SPG) and SF Dario Saric (9.6 PPG, 6.0 RPG). Rodriguez has done a very nice job of running the point for Philly this season, and that’s a position that really didn’t produce for the Sixers last year. Look for him to have a very good game against the Rockets, as Rodriguez is a very good transition player and Houston doesn’t necessarily play hard on the defensive end. Saric, meanwhile, should also dominate this Rockets team. His ability to play multiple positions will really help in an up-tempo game like this one, and he should get plenty of open looks from the outside. That has been a good spot for Saric this year, as he has buried 48% of his threes.

The Rockets are still playing some of the best offensive basketball in the league and SG James Harden (30.0 PPG, 13.0 APG, 8.0 RPG, 1.1 SPG) has a legitimate case to be the NBA MVP this season. Over the past five games, Harden is averaging 14.0 APG and he has not sacrificed his ability to score the ball. He is still averaging a career-high in points per game, which makes his ability to get his teammates involved even more impressive. Harden should have a field day on Monday, as the Sixers do not have anybody that is capable of guarding him. Another guy that should go off against the Sixers is SG Eric Gordon (16.7 PPG). Gordon is on fire for Houston lately, as he is shooting 44.4% from the outside over the past five games. Harden gets him wide-open looks, so it’s hard to imagine him going cold any time soon. The same goes for PF Ryan Anderson (13.6 PPG, 6.9 RPG), who is shooting 43.9% from three this season. He did, however, go 1-for-13 from the field against the Spurs and the Rockets need him to get back on track fast.