Tip-off: Thursday, 8:35 p.m. ET
Line: Los Angeles -1, Total: 212

The Clippers continue their five-game road-trip when they visit the Mavericks on Thursday night.

Los Angeles has been the hottest team in the NBA over the past month and is 13-2 SU (9-5-1 ATS) since Feb. 23. Also during its current hot streak, the club has seen the total go under in 12 of its past 13 contests. The Clippers were unable to handle the Pelicans on Wednesday night on the road though, losing 98-96 as 7.5-point favorites. Their league-best offense shot only 41.3% FG and converted just 17-of-28 (61%) from the charity stripe. Dallas has also been playing solid basketball of late, winning SU in five of its past seven games (4-3 ATS), and is coming off a huge overtime win against the Thunder on Tuesday. Dallas rallied from a five-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter to force overtime then pulled away in the extra period; outscoring the Thunder 17-8 to secure a 128-119 victory as three-point underdogs. The Clippers should not be overly concerned in continuing their five-game road trip, as they have gone 19-16 SU (21-13 ATS) away from home this season. The Mavericks have been very good at home though, compiling a 24-12 SU record, but going only 17-19 ATS. This game will be the third time these teams have faced each other since the beginning of January as L.A. has been able to come away with a win in each game, one away and one at home, while being unable to cover the spread in the latter. They won the barnburner by a score of 129-127, as each team shot better than 50% from the field, but did not cover the five-point spread at home. Going back three seasons, the Clippers hold a 6-2 SU edge (4-3-1 ATS) in this series, but were not always so talented, and are only 20-44 SU (28-32-4 ATS) since 1996. Los Angeles has been a solid bet ATS this season with a 39-32 record (55%) but will be faced with the 31-14 ATS record that the Mavericks have put together over the past two seasons when the line is between +3 and -3. Injuries should not play too much of a factor in this meeting, as the Clippers continue to be without the services of SG J.J. Redick (hip). PG Jose Calderon (face) is probable after playing for Dallas on Tuesday.

Which red-hot team will prevail on Thursday night? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2012-13 season. The experts have posted a profitable 53.4% ATS mark (31-27) since March 9. StatFox Dave has a strong 56% ATS (45-36-1) Best Bets record since Dec. 1, while StatFox Brian remains hot, going 58% ATS (25-18-1) since Jan. 25 and 54% ATS (39-33-1) in Best Bets since Dec. 12. StatFox Gary is also heating up with a 59% ATS mark (16-11) since Feb. 13, while StatFox Zach is on a 9-2 ATS run since March 9.

The Clippers' offense has been prolific this season and is the best in the NBA with 107.4 PPG. Their 96 points scored in their loss to New Orleans on Wednesday is only the second time they have scored less than 100 points over their past 15 games. They also are efficient in their scoring, hitting 47.5% FG (4th in league) this season. The defense has not been quite as good though, allowing opponents to score 100.3 PPG (13th in league). PG Chris Paul (18.5 PPG, 11.0 APG, 2.5 SPG) is coming off his worst shooting performance in recent memory when he failed to hit a shot from the field (0-for-12 FG) while scoring two points with 12 assists against the Pelicans. He will hope to rebound against a Dallas team which he has averaged 21.7 PPG (52% FG), 8.9 APG and 2.4 SPG against over 27 career games. PF Blake Griffin (24.3 PPG, 9.7 RPG) has scored at least 20 points in each of his past 31 contests while increasing his assists (5.6 APG) and blocks (1.8 BPG) over the past five games. He should have no problem hitting for 20 points again as he has netted 24.0 PPG (41% FG) to go along with 11.0 RPG and 6.5 APG against the Mavericks in two games this season. C DeAndre Jordan (10.1 PPG, 13.7 RPG, 2.4 BPG) currently leads the league in rebounds and shooting (66.6% FG), but has failed to break into double-digit points in any of his past four games. His two contests against Dallas this season have been spectacular, as he has scored 16.0 PPG (70% FG) with 15.5 RPG and 2.5 BPG.

With 128 points against the Thunder on Tuesday night, the Mavericks once again proved they can keep up offensively with anybody in the league, averaging 105.0 PPG (8th in NBA) this season. They have actually improved on that number over their past five games, getting 114.0 PPG (47% FG) in that time while allowing their opponents to score 108.8 PPG (45% FG); a number a bit higher than the 102.5 PPG (10th-worst in league) they are giving up on the season. PF Dirk Nowitzki (21.4 PPG, 6.1 RPG) rebounded from one of his worst games of the season on Sunday, when he went 2-for-12 from the field, scoring 32 points (11-of-23 FG) to go along with 10 rebounds, six assists and four steals against Oklahoma City on Tuesday. He’s had a long career against the Clippers (50 games, 48 starts), averaging 21.3 PPG (47% FG) and 7.3 RPG. SG Monta Ellis (19.0 PPG, 5.7 APG, 1.8 SPG) has scored 22+ points in three of his past five contests, but has managed only 13.0 PPG (48% FG) in two games against L.A. this season. He did dish out 11.0 APG and grab 3.0 SPG in those games though, and has done very well (17.9 PPG, 6.4 APG, 1.5 SPG) over 23 career games (20 starts) against them. PG Jose Calderon (11.5 PPG, 4.8 APG) left Sunday’s game in the first minute after a blow to the face, but bounced back nicely on Tuesday, hitting 7-of-10 shots from the field, including 6-for-9 from long range, while finishing with 22 points and eight assists. He has played 16 career games (13 starts) against Los Angeles, dropping 11.3 PPG (49% FG) with 6.5 APG.