After an epic 140-137 win in four overtimes (tying an NBA Playoffs record), the Portland Trail Blazers host the Denver Nuggets in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals on Sunday night.
Sunday, May 5 at 7:00 PM ET
Moda Center
Coverage: TNT
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Bookmaker
- Denver Nuggets vs. Portland Trail Blazers (-2.5 at -113)
- Over/Under: 210 at -110
Hood Becomes the X-Factor Again
CJ took over in crunch time 🤫
McCollum finished with a game-high 41 PTS in 4OT
Jamal Murray had a big night for the Nuggets with 34 points, nine rebounds and five assists, Nikola Jokic added a triple-double of 33 points, 18 rebounds and 14 assists in 65 minutes and former Trail Blazer Will Barton scored 22 points off the bench but they just couldn’t put the home team away.
CJ McCollum led the Trail Blazers with 41 points, eight rebounds, four assists and four steals, Damian Lillard had 28 points, eight assists, six rebounds and two steals and Enes Kanter finished with 18 points, 15 rebounds and three steals but it was Rodney Hood who once again provided a spark with 19 points off the bench.
After averaging 9.6 points per game 24.4 minutes over 27 regular season games with the Trail Blazers and 3.2 points per game in the first round against the Thunder, Hood’s production has increased significantly and he’s averaging 17.0 points per game in this series with a 71.6 true shooting percentage.
RODNEY HOOD STEALS GAME 3 IN 4OT
PORTLAND GOES UP 2-1
Hood has been the X-Factor in this series, in Game 3 he was leading the bench with 12 points on 3 of 5 shooting in regulation and the seven points he added in the fourth overtime made a big difference. Head coach Terry Stotts put him in the game for a cramping Maurice Harkless with 1:59 to play in the fourth overtime and he lifted the Trail Blazers by making two mid-range pull-up jumpers and the go-ahead 3-pointer.
Nuggets vs. Trail Blazers Trends and Prediction
The Denver Nuggets are:
- 6-13 ATS in their last 19 games playing with one day of rest
- 2-6 ATS in their last eight games after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game
- 1-4 ATS in their last five games following an ATS win
The Portland Trail Blazers are:
- 4-1 ATS in their last five games after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game
- 20-7-1 ATS in their last 28 games after scoring more than 125 points in their previous game
- 26-10 ATS in their last 36 games when their opponent allows 100 points or more in their previous game
- 15-6-1 ATS in their last 22 games following an ATS loss
Rodney Hood’s stint in Portland has revitalized his career and him and Enes Kanter have proved to be massively important to the team’s recent success. Having them, along with potent scorers like Lillard and McCollum has helped them because when someone is having an off night another player can step up and keep them afloat.
Damian Lillard didn’t have his best game and CJ McCollum helped carry the load, playing in 60 of the game’s 68 minutes to become the first Trail Blazer to log an hour of action in a single contest and he scored 18 of his 41 points in the four overtimes.
“How tired are you?”
CJ: “I’m good. This is what I’m built for.” 🔥
The outcome of this game gave a huge boost to the Trail Blazers. Road teams that won Game 2 to tie a series and then win Game 3 at home have prevailed in their series 58.1 percent of the time. The Trail Blazers have more playoff experience and they’ve won 12 straight home games dating back to March 9.
Pick: Trail Blazers -2.5
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Nuggets vs. Trail Blazers Game 4 Prediction: Betting Odds, Line & Pick