Event of the Day: Oklahoma City Thunder versus Houston Rockets

Our event of the day is the NBA clash between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Houston Rockets at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma. The Rockets are leading the Western Conference and the entire league with a 49-13 record. They have won their last 15 games and hold the second best NBA record on the road with 24-7. The Thunder are 7th in the Western Conference table with a 37-28 record, but due to the incredibly tight nature of the Western Conference between 3rd and 10th position, they are only 1.5 games behind the third placed Portland Trail Blazers.

However, in their last game, OKC lost to the Trail Blazers, 108-100, on Saturday in Portland. The teams met back on Boxing Day for the only time this season and the Thunder outscored the Rockets 112-107. Tonight is a match-up between some of the best players in the NBA. For the Rockets, James Harden is averaging 31.2 points per game, the best in the league and 8.9 assists - 4th best in the league while his teammate Chris Paul averages 8.1 assists, which is fifth best. The Rockets are 34-3 when both Harden and Paul are in the line-up. For the Thunder, Russell Westbrook has a league leading 10.2 assists per game and his teammate Paul George has 2.1 steals per game, which is 2nd best in the league. A Rockets win will equal the Boston Celtics 16 game winning streak from earlier in the season. It should be a thrilling matchup at the Chesapeake Energy Arena tonight.

Honourable mentions around the globe go to the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 as Real Madrid travel to Paris for the second leg of their tie against Paris Saint-Germain. Real Madrid won the first leg 3-1 at the Bernabeu, so it will be a tough task for PSG particularly as they are without their key man Neymar. Elsewhere in the Champions League, Liverpool will be expecting to seal their spot in the quarter-finals as they host FC Porto and are already up 5-0. The EFL Championship sees four teams chasing play-off spots doing battle as Preston North End host Bristol City at Deepdale while Fulham play Sheffield United at Craven Cottage. In the NHL, the Dallas Stars play at Nashville against the Predators whilst the Las Vegas Golden Knights visit the Blue Jackets in Columbus. In cricket, India are in Columbo to play Sri Lanka as they kick off their T20 Tri Series, with Bangladesh also taking part in the 2018 Nidhas Trophy in Sri Lanka.

Whatever you’re watching, enjoy!

Fixture

Photos by NBA