With their solid play as of late the Suns are now only 1 game behind the Nuggets for the last playoff spot in the Western Conference and they have a good chance to gain more ground facing a Timberwolves’ team that has lost 5 straight. <\/p>\n
Venue\/ Stadium: Target Center, Minneapolis, MN<\/strong> Matchup<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Preview<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Phoenix Suns vs. Minnesota Timberwolves Preview<\/strong><\/p>\n NBA lines have the Suns as 2.5-road favorites with a total of 209.5.<\/p>\n In their last games the Suns beat the L.A. Lakers 125-105 and the T-Wolves lost to the New Orleans Hornets 99-90.<\/p>\n This season the Suns are 30-26 ATS with an O\/U record of 21-35 and the T-Wolves are 27-30 ATS with an O\/U record of 27-28-2.<\/p>\n The Suns are coming off a win and have won 5 of their last 6 games.<\/p>\n It is not only bad that the T-Wolves have lost 5 straight and their last 4 games have come against teams that are not in the playoff race.<\/p>\n The loss of Ricky Rubio was a big blow to Minnesota this season and backup Luke Ridnour is likely out for his 3rd straight game with an ankle injury.<\/p>\n The T-Wolves defense has really been struggling giving up an average of 107.5 ppg in their 5-game losing streak. That is not good facing a Suns’ team that is playing with confidence and has averaged 110 ppg in their last 4 games. [soliloquy id=”82219″]<\/p>\n Steve Nash continues to play well, but the Suns are getting solid play from Michael Redd and Shannon Brown. Redd has averaged 18.3 ppg in his last 4 games and Brown has averaged 17.6 ppg in his last 8 games since taking over for the injured Grant Hill.<\/p>\n The shorthanded T-Wolves will need solid games from Kevin Love and Michael Beasley, who scored 20 points in the Hornets’ loss after missing a few games due to an injury. Nikola Pekovic (13.4 ppg) also has to step up and these 3 guys are key, as the other 2 players averaging in double figures are out.<\/p>\n Marcin Gortat leads the Suns in scoring and rebounding and he will be counted on to keep Love from having a HUGE game on the boards.<\/p>\n In some betting trends for this Western Conference match up the Suns are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games as a road favorite, 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games vs. a team with a losing S.U. record, and they have an Under record of 4-1 in their last 5 games.<\/p>\n The T-Wolves are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 home games, 0-7 ATS in their last 7 games overall, and they have an Under record of 5-2 in their last 7 games.<\/p>\n
\nTime\/Date: 9 PM EST Monday, April 9, 2012<\/strong>
\nNBA Odds From: Bovada<\/a><\/strong>
\nMoneyline: OFF<\/strong>
\nSpread (ATS): Suns -2.5 <\/strong>
\nOver\/Under: 209.5<\/strong><\/p>\n