Elimination games on NBA betting board

The Orlando Magic, New Orleans Hornets, and Portland Trail Blazers all must win on Thursday night or their NBA playoff ride is over.

The Magic avoided elimination once already with a win over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 5 on Tuesday. Orlando was a 7-point home favorite and played their most balanced game of the series so far in a 101-76 win. Jason Richardson led Orlando with 17 points, while Dwight Howard took a step back with eight points and eight rebounds. Before Game 5 Howard was averaging 32 points and 17.5 rebounds per game in the series.

While the Magic finally delivered in Game 5 the Hawks barely showed up. Josh Smith had 22 points and 11 rebounds to lead Atlanta, but the rest of Atlanta's big guns all fired blanks. Joe Johnson scored only five points on 2-of-12 shooting, while Jamal Crawford, who was averaging 25 points per game off the bench, was held to only eight points.

In Game 6 the Magic are a 2-point road underdog as they try to snap a four-game losing streak in Atlanta. Totals bettors may want to take note that the last four games in this series have all gone UNDER the total, and the UNDER is 10-1 in the last 11 between Orlando and Atlanta.

In the Lakers/Hornets series Los Angeles took control with a 106-90 win in Game 5 as a 9.5-point favorite. That leaves New Orleans on the ropes trailing 3-2. Kobe Bryant played through an injured ankle and netted a team-high 19 points for Los Angeles. Andrew Bynum added 18 points and 10 rebounds and Pau Gasol had 16 points, as all of the Lakers' starters scored in double figures.

Trevor Ariza led the Hornets with 22 points in Game 5, while Marco Belinelli added 21 points. Chris Paul had a double-double with 20 points and 12 assists, but he could not lead the Hornets to a win like he had earlier in the series.

Anyone hoping the Hornets' home-court advantage will lead them to a win in Game 6 might want to look closer at the numbers. New Orleans is 1-1 SU and ATS at home in the series, and in their last 10 games at home versus the Lakers they are only 3-7 SU and ATS.

Finally, there is Game 6 between Dallas and Portland. The Mavericks hold a 3-2 series edge after winning Game 5 by a score of 93-82 as a 5-point favorite. Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds for Dallas, while Tyson Chandler ruled the glass with 14 points and 20 rebounds. Jason Terry was also a big part of the Dallas win with 20 points off the bench.

The Blazers' leading scorer in Game 5 was Andre Miller with 18 points. Gerald Wallace added 16 points and nine rebounds, while LaMarcus Aldridge netted only 12 points on 6-of-15 shooting.

The Mavs are a 4-0-1 ATS in the series; the Blazers are 4.5-point home favorites for Game 6.