Two Western Conference playoff teams will go head-to-head when the Oklahoma City Thunder host the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night. Entering the match-up, the Rockets sit at third in the West, while the Thunder occupy the sixth spot. 

The meeting between the two teams is the fourth - and final - of the regular season. The Thunder have won two of the previous three meetings, so they can take the season series with a win, while the Rockets will tie the series at 2-2 with a victory. 

How to watch Rockets vs. Thunder

  • Date: Tuesday, April 9
  • Time: 9:30 p.m. ET
  • Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena -- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
  • TV: TNT
  • Streaming: fuboTV (try it free)
  • Live stats: GameTracker
  • Odds: Rockets -2

Who wins Thunder vs. Rockets? And which side of the spread can you bank on in well over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the Thunder vs. Rockets spread you should be all over Tuesday, all from the model that's up more than $4,500 on NBA picks this season. 

Odds and analysis

Check Sportsline's NBA pick sheet for all your daily odds. 

Storylines

Rockets: After a shaky start to the 2018-19 campaign, the Rockets have climbed all the way up to third in the West and with just two days left in the regular season they could still potentially move up to second. In order to do that though, they have to win, so the game against Oklahoma City isn't a throwaway for Houston. 

Thunder: Though the Thunder sit in sixth place in the standings entering Tuesday night, they're only a half game out of the eight spot - and a first round match-up with the defending champion Golden State Warriors; something they would probably like to avoid. So, like the Rockets, the Thunder still have something to play for at this late point in the season. 

Game prediction, pick

The Rockets are taking this game pretty seriously. 

"It's big for us," Rockets All-Star guard James Harden said of the game. "But we've been playing well so it'll be great to end the season the right way."  

The Rockets (8-2 over their last 10 games) have also been playing better basketball recently than the Thunder (5-5 over that same span). With those factors considered, the Rockets (-2) are the smart pick in this one.