The Houston Rockets look to put the finishing touches on a first-round series win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday. Game 6 tips off at 9 p.m. ET at Advent Health Arena in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Houston enters with a 3-2 series lead after winning 114-80 Saturday. We analyze the Rockets-Thunder Game 6 betting odds and lines, with NBA picks and best bets.
Rockets vs. Thunder: Key injuries
Rockets
- SF Luc Mbah a Moute (knee) out
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Rockets vs. Thunder: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips
NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 10:35 a.m. ET.
Prediction
Thunder 114, Rockets 111
Moneyline (ML)
Take the value with the THUNDER (+180); the lopsided score in Game 5 has skewed the moneyline prices. This series was tied just one game ago, but the Rockets are now prohibitive -223 favorites while looking to advance to Round 2.
The Rockets got 31 points from G James Harden, 22 points from F Robert Covington, and 20 points from G Eric Gordon in Game 5. PG Russell Westbrook went for 7 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists in 24 minutes in his return to the lineup. The Thunder were led by G Dennis Schroder‘s modest 19 points Saturday.
OKC won Games 3 and 4 by 12 and 3 points, respectively. Take advantage of a moneyline skewed by recency bias and back the Thunder to even this series 3-3 with a better offensive effort.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on the Thunder to win would return a profit of $18.
Line/Against the Spread (ATS)
AVOID the Thunder +5 (-110) on the spread and stick with them to pull the outright upset. The Rockets’ three victories in this series have been by margins of 15, 13 and 34 points.
OKC can win a tight game, but Houston has shown a clear ability to shut down the Thunder and cruise to victory. If you like the Rockets to close the Round 1 series with a win Monday, the -110 odds to cover -5 and win by at least 6 points offers a much greater profit.
Over/Under (O/U)
There’s a slight lean to the UNDER 226.5 while following the Thunder as the outright pick to win. Their two victories in this series have played to totals of 226 and 231 points. Overall, three of five games have finished below 227 total points.
Esten’s NBA betting record: 20-10
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