The Houston Rockets (32-17) are set to face the Brooklyn Nets (16-33) at Barclays Center on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, at 7:30 PM EST. The Rockets are favored by 9 points, with an over/under of 209 points.
Halftime Score Prediction: Considering the Rockets’ recent performance and the Nets’ home struggles, a probable halftime score could be Rockets leading 55-48.
Against the Spread (ATS) Prediction: The Rockets are 28-20 ATS this season and 9-5 as road favorites. However, the Nets have covered the spread in 5 of their last 10 games. Given the Rockets’ recent loss to the Nets and consecutive games, the Nets may cover the +9 spread.
Best Bets:
- Houston Rockets -9.5 Rockets playing their third game in four nights, but the Nets have literally seven or eight players injured, they have hospital in their locker.
- Under 212 Total Points: Nine of the last eleven matchups between these teams have stayed under the total. nbcsports.com
Best Prop Bets:
- Alperen ĹžengĂĽn Over 17.5 Points: ĹžengĂĽn averages 19.1 points per game, surpassing this prop line.
- Alperen ĹžengĂĽn Over 9.5 Rebounds: With an average of 10.4 rebounds per game, ĹžengĂĽn is likely to exceed this mark.
RECENT TRENDS
| Houston Rockets | HOU are 15-5-1 ATS in their last 21 road games. Over is 15-5-1 in HOU last 21 road games. Over is 10-4-1 in HOU last 15 overall. |
| Brooklyn Nets | BK are 3-13 ATS in their last 16 home games. Under is 11-4 in BK last 15 vs. NBA Southwest. BK are 8-17-1 ATS in their last 26 Tue. games. |
| Head to Head | Under is 7-1 in the last 8 meetings. HOU are 6-2 ATS in the last 8 meetings. |
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PREVIEW
Typically one of the NBA’s stronger defensive teams, the Houston Rockets are struggling to protect the paint and find themselves on their longest losing streak of the season—despite their rise toward the top of the Western Conference.
Houston looks to snap a three-game skid on Tuesday night as they wrap up a back-to-back with a visit to the Brooklyn Nets. The Nets, though winners of two straight overall, have dropped 11 consecutive home games, with their last win at Barclays Center coming two months ago.
The Rockets allow an average of 108.8 points per game—the sixth-best scoring defense in the league—but over the past three games, that number has ballooned to 118 points. On Monday, they surrendered 80 points in the paint and allowed a 46-point fourth quarter in a 124-118 road loss to the New York Knicks.
Their interior defense has been a recurring issue. On Saturday, Houston allowed 60 points in the paint in a 110-98 home loss to Brooklyn, and on Thursday, they gave up 72 to the Memphis Grizzlies in a 120-119 defeat. Overall, the Rockets are conceding an average of 48.9 points in the paint this season.
These struggles coincide with the absence of center Alperen Sengun, who has missed each of the last three games due to a left calf bruise. Before the injury, sustained in a Jan. 28 win over the Atlanta Hawks, Houston had given up just 46 points inside.
“Very soft and uncompetitive defensively,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said after Monday’s loss to New York. “They’re going at us 1-on-1. We’re complaining about offensive fouls, not boxing out, missing assignments, getting beat on back cuts and off-ball actions. It all adds up to 46 [points in the fourth quarter]. We scored enough to win.”
Sengun may be out again Tuesday, which means Jae’Sean Tate and Steven Adams will handle most of the minutes at center. Tate logged 22 minutes on Monday, while Adams played 26.
Houston will also be without Fred VanVleet, who remains week-to-week after suffering a right ankle injury on Saturday. Tari Eason started in his place on Monday, contributing 12 points, while Amen Thompson led the way with 25 points, 11 assists, and 11 rebounds.
The Nets, meanwhile, aim for their second three-game winning streak of the season and their first home victory since a nine-point win over the Indiana Pacers on Dec. 4. Brooklyn is 7-23 since winning three straight on a western road trip from Nov. 24-27 and returns home for a six-game stretch. The team reached the 110-point mark for the first time since a 132-114 win at Portland on Jan. 14.
Brooklyn’s 11-game home losing streak is the third-longest in franchise history, trailing only a 14-game skid in 2010 and a 16-game slide in 2017. The Nets have been held under 100 points in each of their last nine home games.
They’ll try to break that slump while continuing to give extended minutes to younger players, as Cameron Johnson (right ankle) will miss his fifth straight game and his 13th in the last 16. His name has also surfaced in trade rumors ahead of Thursday’s deadline.
“Everybody handles it in a different way,” Nets coach Jordi Fernandez said. “After [Monday’s] practice, the energy was great, so I didn’t see anything different. I know most of them may be thinking about it, but we’ll get through it together and see what happens.”
Brooklyn hopes to replicate Saturday’s performance, when Ziaire Williams led six players in double figures with 21 points. The Nets shot 49.4 percent from the field in that win over Houston, following a 48.8 percent effort in their 104-83 victory at Charlotte on Wednesday.
