I was correct on my last Raptors free pick tip as the Raptors (-5) notched a 102-92 home victory versus the Heat on Friday night. I am now 24-27 in Raptors free betting picks. Tonight the 39-26 Toronto Raptors host the 43-20 Portland Trail Blazers.
(43-20) Portland Trail Blazers @ (39-26) Toronto Raptors
Probable starting line-ups:
Portland – PG – Damian Lillard SG – Arron Afflalo C – Robin Lopez SF – Nicolas Batum PF – LaMarcus Aldridge
Toronto – PG – Kyle Lowry SG – DeMar DeRozan C – Jonas Valanciunas SF – Terrence Ross PF – Amir Johnson
Stats Leaders:
Portland – PPG – LaMarcus Aldridge 23.3 RPG – LaMarcus Aldridge 10.5 APG – Damian Lillard 6.2
Toronto – PPG – DeMar DeRozan 18.9 RPG – Jonas Valanciunas 8.6 APG – Kyle Lowry 6.9
Team Scoring: (with league ranking in parentheses)
Portland – PF – 102.7 (8th) PA – 97.5 (6th)
Toronto – PF – 104.4 (5th) PA – 101.2 (22nd)
Overview:
The Portland Trail Blazers have won 2 in a row and 7 of their 8 last games. On Friday they were victorious 118-99 at home versus the Detroit Pistons. Point guard Damian Lillard led the way with 28 points on 9 of 12 shooting in 29 minutes. He was 5 of 7 from the 3 point line and 5 of 6 from the free throw line. He also had 9 assists. Power forward LaMarcus Aldridge scored 22 points on 9 of 16 shooting in 28 minutes. He also had 7 rebounds. Shooting guard Arron Afflalo netted 15 points on 5 of 9 shooting in 27 minutes. He was 2 of 4 from the 3 point line and 3 of 3 from the foul line. He also had 4 rebounds. Backup center Meyers Leonard contributed with 15 points and 7 rebounds. He was 6 of 7 from the field in 20 minutes off the bench. Backup center Chris Kaman chipped in with 14 points and 6 rebounds. He was 7 of 10 from the field in 18 reserve minutes. The team shot 57.5% from the field, 52.4% from the 3 point line (11-21) and 88.2% from the free throw line (15-17). They out-rebounded the Pistons 43-36. They took an 18 point lead in to halftime. Portland is 15-14 on the road this season. Tonight is the first game of a back to back. They are 6-7 in the 1st game of a back to back so far this season. Tonight is also the beginning of a 5 game road trip. Tomorrow night they play at Washington.
The Toronto Raptors put a halt to their 4 game losing skid with a 102-92 win at home versus Miami on Friday. It was only the 2nd in their last 11 games. Point guard Kyle Lowry led the team with 19 points, 8 assists, 8 rebounds, and 6 steals. He was 7 of 12 from the field and 5 of 8 from the 3 point line in 37 minutes. Shooting guard DeMar DeRozan netted 18 points on 3 of 12 shooting in 38 minutes. He was 12 of 13 from the free throw line. He also had 6 assists and 6 rebounds. Backup shooting guard Louis Williams chipped in with 14 points on 4 of 12 shooting in 23 minutes off the bench. Power forward Amir Johnson contributed with 13 points on 5 of 8 shooting in 25 minutes. The team shot 43% from the field, 36.4% from the 3 point line (12-33), and 71% from the free throw line (22-31). They were narrowly out-rebounded 44-43. The Raptors brought a 15 point lead in the 4th quarter. Toronto is 22-11 at home this season. Tonight is the first game of a back to back. They are 11-2 in the 1st game of a back to back so far this season. Tomorrow night they play at the Indiana Pacers.
In their first meeting this season Portland escaped with a 102-97 home win in overtime versus Toronto. The Blazers have won the last 3 meetings with the Raptors. Tonight is the final meeting of the season between the 2 teams.
Prediction:
The Blazers are without shooting guard Wesley Matthews the rest of the season but the recently acquired Arron Afflalo will be a suitable fill-in. I’m sure they are now very grateful they made the trade at the deadline to get him. The Raptors broke free from their losing skid but they still aren’t looking like the same team that was dominating the East in the top half of the season. I think the Blazers will get it done tonight on the road. Take the Trail Blazers +2 (1.86) (Bet365)
Tagged With : Toronto Raptors betting
