The LA Clippers (8-6) travel to the American Airlines Center on Tuesday for a road game against the Dallas Mavericks (7-5) on Tuesday.

It’s advantage Dallas in the Western Conference, with the Mavericks holding the sixth and final automatic playoff seed. They are one-and-a-half-games ahead of the seventh-seeded Clippers, who are on course to enter the Play-In tournament as things stand.

Tuesday marks the first of four matchups in this series. The Mavericks hope to extend a five-game winning streak at home and are the 7-point favorites, but the Clippers are no pushovers on the road.

Form Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks snapped out of a two-game losing skid on Sunday by beating the Portland Trail Blazers 117-112 at the American Airlines Center. It was their fifth straight home win, leaving them 6-4 in the past 10 games overall.

Dallas enters their latest matchup with top 10 offensive and defensive ratings in the NBA. The Mavericks are averaging 110.5 points per game and shooting 46.6% from the field. They have also held opponents to 107.2 points on average, which is the fifth-best record in the league, and rank second in steals per game at 8.8.

Form LA Clippers

A 122-106 triumph at the Houston Rockets on Saturday handed the Clippers a third straight road win, leaving the visitors 5-2 on the road this season and 6-4 in their past 10 games overall.

Perhaps the biggest reason Los Angeles enters this contest above .500 is down to the defense. The Clippers rank second in the league’s defensive ratings and fourth for the least amount of points conceded, allowing their opponents just 107.1 points per game this season. Offensively, however, they are far from perfect, scoring the least amount of points on average at 105.2 and making just 21.8 assists.

H2H

Despite entering the last matchup as the 7-point underdogs, the Clippers edged the Mavericks 99-97. They are 6-4 in the past 10 meetings in this series and 4-1 in their previous five visits to the American Airlines Center.

The two teams split last season’s four-game series, claiming one home and road win each. They also covered the spread two times each, while the total went over twice.

Standings

Betting

Moneyline

Take the Dallas Mavericks (-294).

The Dallas Mavericks are a good bet to beat the LA Clippers on the moneyline for two reasons. First, the Mavericks have lost just once in seven games at the American Airlines Center all season and are currently on a five-match winning home streak. Secondly, they are strong on the defensive end of the floor, which may prove to be a problem for a Clippers team that has been a letdown offensively.

Spread

Back the LA Clippers (-105) to cover the spread.

The Clippers may be the 7-point underdogs, but their recent record against the spread is too good to pass up. After all, the visitors are 5-2 ATS in their last seven games overall. They’re also 4-1 ATS in their past five road matches against the Mavericks, who have failed to cover the spread in any of their last six games.

Total

Take the Under (-110).

The Clippers’ combination of a strong defense and abysmal offense has led to many low-scoring games. In their past 16 matches, the total went under 13 times, as well as in six of their last eight on the road. Likewise, the Mavericks have a solid defensive record and have seen the total go under in six of their eight most recent home games against the Clippers.