Thunder vs. Wizards Betting Line – January 21
Carrie Stroup here with your Thunder vs. Wizards betting line for January 21. Place your 1st bet, get your 2nd bet free.
Sportsbook.ag Line: Oklahoma City -1, Total: 205
The Thunder seek a fourth straight victory when they head to Washington on Wednesday and take on a Wizards team that has won two straight.
Oklahoma City won a third straight game on Tuesday, as it went into Miami and came away with a 94-86 victory as a 7.5-point road favorite. The team has now won-and-covered in three straight games and won four of the last five SU. The Wizards are hot as well, winning-and-covering in four of their past five games after a 111-76 blowout victory as 13.5-point home favorites against the 76ers on Monday. The Wizards have also won seven of their past nine games SU.
These teams last met on Jan. 2, when the Thunder won 109-102 as 7.5-point home favorites. Oklahoma City is 3-2 SU against Washington over the past three seasons, but the Wizards are 4-1 ATS in those games. The Thunder have won seven of the past 10 games in this series SU as well, but Washington has won-and-covered in the past three when playing at home. The Wizards are 1-10 ATS in home games after covering five or six of their previous seven games over the past two seasons. Meanwhile, Oklahoma City is 30-15 ATS in road games after playing two straight road games since 1996. Yet, Washington is 27-11 ATS revenging a loss where the opponent scored 100 or more points in the past two seasons. There are no new injuries for either team in this matchup.
The Thunder have now won three straight games and they’ll need to keep it up if they are going to make up ground in the Western Conference playoff race. SF Kevin Durant (25.0 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.9 APG) and PG Russell Westbrook (24.9 PPG, 7.4 APG, 6.0 RPG, 2.4 SPG) each had 19 points against the Heat on Tuesday. They’ll be relied on to score a lot more than that going forward, just like they did on Jan. 2 versus Washington when the dynamic duo combined for 56 points on 20-of-41 FG (4-of-10 threes). But it was a good performance all around by Oklahoma City on Tuesday, as five players scored in double-digits, and the team turned the ball over just 11 times compared to 19 times by Miami.
Westbrook will have a really tough matchup in this game against John Wall in this one, so he’ll need to be ready to play on both ends of the court. PG Reggie Jackson (14.8 PPG, 4.7 APG) had a big game off the bench for Oklahoma City on Tuesday, scoring 16 points against the Heat. Jackson and SG Dion Waiters (10.8 PPG) are relied on to give this team some punch off the bench, and they should be able to do so against the Wizards’ slower backup guards.
PF Serge Ibaka (14.4 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 2.2 BPG) had just nine points against Miami and will need to be a lot better for this team going forward. He’s settling for too many outside jumpers and must get himself back to playing near the basket.
The Wizards have won two straight games and C Marcin Gortat (12.3 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 1.3 BPG) had one of his better games of the season against the Sixers on Monday. Gortat played just 29 minutes, and finished with 20 points (9-of-11 FG), eight rebounds and two blocks. He should be able to really impact this game against a Thunder team that is thin at the center position.
The play of PG John Wall (17.0 PPG, 10.0 APG, 4.2 RPG, 2.0 SPG) is going to be crucial for this team on Wednesday. Wall is the engine that keeps this team running, but he will be matched up against Russell Westbrook, and that is one of the few point guards in basketball that can match his athleticism. Wall had a double-double of 14 points and 12 assists the last time these teams met, and he must be just as effective this time around.
SF Paul Pierce (12.5 PPG, 4.3 RPG) will also need to be at his best if the Wizards are going to pull this one out. Pierce will be matched up against Kevin Durant for a large portion of this game and he’ll need to be effective defensively and also knock down his open looks from three.
SG Bradley Beal (14.8 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.4 APG) is averaging just 12.8 PPG over the past five contests and he’ll need to be a lot better going forward. Beal is supposed to be this team’s most reliable scorer after John Wall and he’s been very inconsistent with his shot this season, as he is much more accurate from three-point range (46% threes) than from inside the arc (41%). But Beal was outstanding in the Jan. 2 loss to Oklahoma City with 21 points (7-of-15 FG), 10 rebounds and six assists.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
