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It’s a battle of Eastern Conference leaders on Tuesday night as the #3 Indiana Pacers visit the #1 Milwaukee Bucks at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.
Hanging On To Third Spot
The 3rd ranked Indiana Pacers have seen their lead over the 4th placed Philadelphia disappear after losing three of four games. In their last game though, Indiana beat the Chicago Bulls 105-96 to build a temporary one-half game lead over the Sixers in the Eastern Conference team standings.
Bogdan Bogdanovic leads the Pacers in scoring with 17.7 points per game. Domantas Sabonis is averaging 14.3 points and 9.3 rebounds per game while Darren Collison is scoring 11.0 points and issuing a team-high 6.0 assists per game. Myles Turner is also contributing 13.1 points and 6.9 rebounds plus new addition Wesley Matthews is chipping in 13.6 points per game.
The Pacers are the top defensive team in the league when it comes to scoring defense as they allow just 103.7 points per game. Indiana is only 21st in team scoring at 108.7 points per game. They are also ranked 7th in passing at 26.1 assists per game and are 24th in rebounding at 43.1 boards per contest.
Pacers
+475
Bucks
-600
Odds from betonline.ag as of 3/07/19
Two Straight Losses
The Milwaukee Bucks saw their seven game winning streak snapped by the Utah Jazz on Saturday night. Then the Bucks got ambushed by the Phoenix Suns, owners of the NBA’s worst record, on Monday night for their second straight loss, the first time this season that they have lost two in a row. Despite that, Milwaukee still holds a 2.5 games lead over the Raptors for the best record in the NBA.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has been spectacular for the Bucks this season. The Greek Freak is averaging 27.0 points, 12.6 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.5 blocks per game this season. First-time All-Star Khris Middleton is scoring 17.4 points and grabbing 6.0 rebounds for the Bucks while guards Malcolm Brogdon and Eric Bledsoe are helping out with 16.2 and 15.9 points per game, respectively. Brook Lopez is adding 12.2 points while leading the team with 2.2 blocks per game.
The Bucks are 2nd in the NBA in scoring at 117.3 points per game. Milwaukee is also ranked 8th in assists with 26.0 dimes per contest and are the #1 rebounding team in the league at 49.2 boards per contest. Milwaukee has the 9th best scoring defense at 108.2 opponent points per game allowed.
Who Wins?
Indiana is 6-4 SU in its last 10 games played and the Pacers are 1-2 SU in their last three road games. Milwaukee is 7-3 SU in its last 10 games played and the Bucks are 2-1 SU in their last three games at home. Head to head, the Pacers are 4-2 in their last six meetings against the Bucks.
After passing out two assists in Tuesday's #PacersWin, @Darren_Collison moved into eighth on the Pacers' all-time leaderboard with 1,447, passing Detlef Schrempf 👏👏 pic.twitter.com/FUZrkGUcy8
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) March 6, 2019
The Pacers are 17-14 SU on the road this season but the Bucks have the NBA’s best home record at 25-5 SU so far during this campaign. Indiana hits the road after going 2-1 SU in a three-game homestand hile Milwaukee is coming home after going 3-2 during a five-game road trip. Indiana has lot two in a row on the road while the Bucks are 17-2 SU at home against Eastern Conference teams.
Injuries may be the key to this game aside from Milwaukee’s home court advantage as Indiana, who is already without Victor Oladipo, will be without Domantas Sabonis who has an injured ankle.
I’m picking the Milwaukee Bucks to beat the Indiana Pacers on 3/7/19.
Other Bets To Make
The Pacers are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games played and are also 1-2 ATS in their last three games played on the road. The Bucks are 5-5 ATS in their last 10 games but are a winless 0-3 ATS in their last three home games. Head to head, Indiana is 4-2 ATS in their last six games versus Milwaukee.
Pacers
+10.5 (-103)
Bucks
-10.5 (-117)
Odds from betonline.ag as of 3/07/19
Indiana is 16-34-1 ATS in their last 51 games played on a Thursday. The Pacers are 0-4 ATS when playing on one day rest and they are also 3-10 ATS in their last 13 road games. The Bucks are 3-0-2 in their last five games when playing on two days rest, 1-5 ATS in their last six road games but 11-5 ATS in their last 16 games overall. The Bucks are also 4-1 ATS in their last five head to head meetings in Milwaukee and the home team is 7-2 ATS in the last nine meetings between these two teams. I like the plus points on Indiana but I just can’t ignore the fact that the Bucks are winning at home by an average of 12.38 points per game and that they are 13-9 ATS when favored by at least nine points.
Prediction: Bucks -10.5
The over is 5-2 in the Pacers’ last seven games played. The total has gone over in two out of Indiana’s last three road games. The over is 4-2 in Milwaukee’s last six games played and the Bucks have seen the total go under in two out of their last three home games. Head to head, the under is 7-3 in the last 10 meetings between these two teams.
Pacers
O 222 -110
Bucks
U 222 -110
Odds from betonline.ag as of 3/07/19
The over seems to trend in the last few outing of both teams but if you take a look at their season numbers, the under is 36-29 for Indiana and 33-31 for Milwaukee. Both teams have top 10 defenses including Indiana who is the top defensive team in the league. I think defense sets the tone for this game.
Prediction: Under 222
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