Who’s playing
Houston Rockets @Portland Trail Blazers
Current records: Houston 27-13, Portland 13-27
How to watch
- When: Saturday January 18, 2025 at 10 p.m. ET
- Or: Moda Center at Rose Quarter – Portland, Oregon
- TV: KATU 2.2 ABC
- Follow: CBS Sports app
- Online broadcast: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket cost: $9.00
What you need to know
The Rockets will play the full four quarters on Saturday, but they should have things wrapped up well before then. Their road trip will continue as they take on the Portland Trail Blazers at 10 p.m. ET at the Moda Center in the Rose Quarter. The Rockets defense has only allowed 108 points per game this season, so the Trail Blazers offense will have its work cut out for it.
The Rockets’ usually dominant defense will look to make up for Thursday’s miss, when the Kings’ offense easily overwhelmed them. The Rockets fell to the Kings 132-127. Houston’s loss marked the end of a five-game winning streak.
Despite their defeat, the Rockets saw several players rise to the challenge and make remarkable plays. Amen Thompson, author of a double-double with 20 points and ten rebounds, was perhaps the best of all. Alperen Sengun was another key player, posting a double-double with 21 points and ten rebounds.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers’ recent rough patch got a little tougher on Thursday after their fourth straight loss. They found themselves the reluctant recipients of a punch in the gut 118-89 against the Clippers. Portland trailed 86-66 at the end of the third quarter, and things only got worse from there.
Even though they lost, the Trail Blazers broke the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds (they are ranked fifth in total offensive rebounds per game). This strong performance was nothing new for the team: they have now pulled down at least 13 offensive rebounds in five straight games.
Houston’s loss ended a six-game road winning streak and brought them to 27-13. As for Portland, their loss dropped their record to 13-27.
The Rockets fell short against the Trail Blazers in their previous matchup in November 2024, losing 104-98. Can the Rockets avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We’ll know soon enough.
Odds
Houston is a big 11-point favorite against Portland, according to the latest NBA Odds.
The line drifted a bit toward the Rockets, as the game opened with the Rockets as 9.5-point favorites.
The over/under is 223.5 points.
See NBA Pick for every game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get Picks Now.
History of the series
Portland and Houston both have 5 wins in their last 10 games.
- November 23, 2024 – Portland 104 vs. Houston 98
- November 22, 2024 – Houston 116 vs. Portland 88
- April 12, 2024 – Houston 116 vs. Portland 107
- March 25, 2024 – Houston 110 vs. Portland 92
- March 8, 2024 – Houston 123 vs. Portland 107
- January 24, 2024 – Portland 137 vs. Houston 131
- February 26, 2023 – Portland 131 vs. Houston 114
- December 17, 2022 – Portland 107 vs. Houston 95
- October 28, 2022 – Portland 125 vs. Houston 111
- March 26, 2022 – Houston 115 vs. Portland 98
