NBA Best Bets & Player Props: New York Knicks vs. Houston Rockets

The Rockets will host the New York Knicks at the Toyota Center in Houston tonight at 8 p.m. EST. Both are playoff-bound but are still looking to improve their current spot in the NBA standings. Houston is still in danger of falling into the play-in tournament, while the Knicks wouldn’t mind sliding into the No. 2 spot in the Eastern Conference.

(Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images)

With the playoffs drawing near, keeping guys healthy is bound to become a concern. But neither team is expected to have anyone out for “rest” tonight. Let’s take a look at how these teams match up in this NBA Best Bets article.

NBA Best Bets (March 31): New York Knicks vs. Houston Rockets Odds & Prediction

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• Spread: Knicks -1 (-106) | Rockets +1 (-114)
• Moneyline: Knicks -112 | Rockets -104
• TOTAL: O/U 217.5 (-110/-110)

Odds via FanDuel

Houston has struggled to play a consistent game of late, going 5-5 in their last 10 games. But they come home to face the Knicks on a high note after beating the Pelicans in New Orleans Sunday, 134-102.

It was easily one of their best overall performances in months. The 134 points scored are the most since putting up 140 on the Portland Trail Blazers back in November. Kevin Durant had a relatively quiet night with 20 points, but the Rockets didn’t need him to do much with Alperen Sengun going for 36 points and 13 rebounds (5 for 7 from 3-point range).

The defense certainly did its job, holding the Pelicans to less than their season average (115.1), allowing 102 points. After playing to a tie in the first quarter, the Rockets' defense clamped down in the second, holding New Orleans to 18 points while scoring 39.

Winning the rebound battle, 59-36, certainly helped (22-8 on the offensive glass), but that is not going to be nearly as easy to do against the Knicks. Houston does lead the NBA in rebounds this season with 48.3 per game, but the Knicks are not far off that pace (45.1 per game).

The Rockets may be catching New York at the right time as the Knicks have lost two in a row, both on the road, one to Charlotte (114-103) and the other to Oklahoma City (111-100). Prior to those losses, the Knicks had won seven games in a row. However, the competition wasn’t too tough. Five of the games were vs. eliminated teams, and the other was against the Golden State Warriors.

My Tuesday NBA Pick:  Rockets ML (-104)

Houston has not been the most reliable team of late, but the Knicks haven't been too impressive either. Yes, a seven-game winning streak is commendable, but they were knocked off their pedestal once they played better teams (Charlotte and Oklahoma City).

That’s not to say the Knicks are a bad team. They have an impressive core in Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Karl-Anthony Towns. But Houston has a good core of its own, and the Rockets have been one of the better home teams in the league at 25-10. When the Knicks have struggled, it's typically been on the road (20-18).

It should be a close, hard-fought, well-played game by both teams, but I’ve got to go with the home team for this matchup.

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NBA Player Props: Knicks vs. Rockets

• Karl-Anthony Towns, OVER 17.5 Points (-125 via FanDuel)

Towns missed this mark in his last two games, and it didn’t help that he took only 17 shots across both contests. But he had 25 against Houston in February after shooting 10 for 15 and went OVER this TOTAL in seven of his last 10 games.

• Kevin Durant, UNDER 25.5 Points (-114 via FanDuel)

The Rockets acquired Kevin Durant to boost the team’s offensive output; sometimes he does, but sometimes he does not. He’s gone OVER this mark in just six of his last 15 games. Going up against one of the toughest defenses in the league and a Knicks team that loves to slow the tempo down, I wouldn’t count on a big night from KD. He has averaged 24.7 points per game in March.

• Alperen Sengun, UNDER 8.5 Rebounds (-115 via FanDuel)

Sengun did everything right against the Pelicans, but he’s going to have a much tougher time against the Knicks, which is also a solid rebounding team. However, he is averaging nine per game this season and has gone OVER this mark in 37 of 65 games. He went OVER this number in four of his last six contests, but UNDER in nine of his last 15 and 12 of his last 21. He pulled down six against the Knicks on Feb. 21.