Houston Rockets vs. Golden State Warriors: Game 2 Odds Preview, Matchup Stats

Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals will tip off Thursday in Oakland, with the home team and heavily favored Golden State Warriors looking to take a 2-0 series lead over the Houston Rockets.

The Warriors are double-digit favorites again after falling short of covering the 10.5-point spread in a surprisingly close 110-106 victory against the Rockets in Game 1 on Tuesday.

Houston led the series opener 31-24 at the end of the first quarter and was up by as many as 16 points in the second at 49-33 before Golden State rallied back for a 58-55 halftime lead. The Warriors took their largest lead at 108-97 with two minutes remaining in the game, but the Rockets then scored nine straight points to ensure the cover.

Golden State got a game-high 34 points from NBA MVP Stephen Curry, who made 13 of 22 shots from the field, including six of 11 from three-point range. However, the Warriors fell to 5-6 against the spread in the playoffs, and they have failed to cover nine of their past 14 games dating back to the end of the regular season, according to the OddsShark's NBA database.

Despite the loss, Houston has covered four straight games after going 0-4 ATS in their previous four. The Rockets had also gone 0-4 versus the line in dropping all four of their regular season meetings with Golden State, and they got a team-high 28 points from James Harden, who finished second in MVP voting behind Curry and also added 11 rebounds and nine assists.

Both teams topped the century mark in scoring for the third consecutive meeting, but that was not enough to push the total over the closing number of 219. Instead, the total finished under for the seventh time in the last 10 games between the teams. The under is 7-1 in the past eight games for the Warriors overall and has cashed in two straight for Houston following a string of six straight over results.

Golden State has split Game 2 of their previous two playoff series straight-up at home with an 0-2 record ATS. The Rockets are 2-0 SU and 1-1 ATS in Game 2 of their first two playoff series as well, but both of those games also took place at home. They are 2-4 SU on the road this postseason, with a 3-3 mark versus the line heading into Thursday's Rockets vs. Warriors betting matchup.