NBA Thursday Recap, March 10
Road teams swept the small betting card
There were two games on the NBA Thursday card, but they were entertaining affairs between four of the best teams in the association.
The marquee matchup between the Brooklyn Nets vs Philadelphia 76ers was all about the James Harden rivalry with his former teammates and it didn’t disappoint. Harden largely put on a disappearing act, but Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid got into it. NBA betting lines had the 76ers as -4 favorites, but it was clear from the outset that the Nets had turned up to play.

Durant was on fire and he helped the Nets take a 40-23 first-quarter lead. The 76ers were never in the game and the 129-100 result reflected how easy it was for the Nets. Durant finished with 25 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists. It all came too easily as the 76ers barely put up a fight on the defensive end. Harden looked disinterested despite playing against his old team. He missed 14 of his 17 shot attempts, which is a dismal effort.
Despite the Nets dropping 129 points, the under cashed by 7½ points. The sportsbook had predicted a higher scoring game and set the total at 236½.
In the final game of the day, the Golden State Warriors welcomed back Steph Curry, who dropped 34 points in the 113-102 victory over the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets had won the previous meeting when Curry was rested, but the repeat wasn’t to be as the Warriors rallied from a nine-point halftime deficit.
“It was a great second half, terrible first half, so I’m proud of the way the guys responded,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “It was a much-needed win and hopefully we can put together a little streak here.
“The first half, we were taking lousy shots. I’m going to continue to stress to all of our guys, including Klay, got to get good shots. It gives our games a balance. We have about 15 games left and we have to get better from here.”
NBA odds had the Warriors at -1½, so it was a comfortable cover in the end after outsourcing the Nuggets 62-42 in the second half. Over bettors were left wanting as the game went under by 14½ points, to make it a 2-0 day for the under.