Utah Jazz vs. Sacramento Kings Betting Odds & Picks: February 6th 2009

Utah Jazz vs. Sacramento Kings - Friday, February 6th 2009
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An ugly blowout loss has a way of bringing out the best in teams the next time they hit the court. In this game, Sacramento is coming off as ugly a blowout as you’ll ever see. They trailed by 21 after one quarter in Phoenix on Tuesday night. They gave up 73 points in the first half, down by 30 at the break. The second half was even worse – the Kings were down by 48 after three quarters and lost by the biggest margin of any team in any game in the ’08-’09 campaign.
 
That loss was even worse because it came less than 72 hours after a player’s only team meeting. The team responded well to that meeting, snapping an eight game losing streak with a home win (and cover) against the Thunder. Rookie center Spencer Hawes had this to say about the meeting, and its effect on the team’s internal chemistry: “I think it helped.” Well, that helpful meeting didn’t have much of a carryover effect for the next game.
 
Now we’re getting the Kings back home at Arco Arena after a couple of days off. If the team chemistry here really was helped by that meeting, this is their chance to show it. Center Brad Miller, one of the few veteran leaders on this squad, could be back on the floor after missing the last two games. If Sacramento has any sort of heart or character, they’ll respond with a much better effort this time around. And with three home wins in their last four tries against the Jazz, the matchups here aren’t too bad for the home underdog.
 
Meanwhile, Utah is faced with their two worst roles. The Jazz have been awful all year on the second night of back-to-backs, a woeful 3-9 ATS when playing without rest. The Jazz enjoyed a laugher at home against Dallas on Thursday night, beating the Mavs by 28 in a game that was over well before the fourth quarter even started. Even though the Jazz weren’t pushed to the limit against Dallas, we’ve seen them fail repeatedly in this role before. Utah continues to play shorthanded without CJ Miles and Andrei Kirilenko. Even in Thursday’s blowout, head coach Jerry Sloan played all of his starters for more than 30 minutes.
 
The other role that Utah has struggled with on a consistent basis this season is their ability to win games on the road. The Jazz have failed in every way as a road team. They are 8-16 straight up, 10-14 against the spread and 4-7 ATS as a road favorite. Those certainly aren’t the numbers I’m looking for when supporting a road team on the second night of back-to-backs against a motivated foe.
 
Recommendation: Take Sacramento +2.5 - Courtesy of Ted Sevransky