The Boston Celtics went off the board as -370 favorites at online sportsbooks to defeat the division rival Philadelphia 76ers entering Game 1. After taking the first two games both SU and ATS, oddsmakers now have Brad Stevens’ squad tagged as hefty -2700 chalk to seal the deal and punch their ticket into the Eastern Conference semis. For one reason or another, the betting public sided with the Sixers in Game 2 pushing the +5.5 opener down to +4.5 at the tip. Though Philly finds itself in an 0-2 hole, market makers opened Game 3 up with Boston installed 4.5-point favorites and the total lined a full point higher at 216. An interesting stance considering Philadelphia sleepwalked through a majority of Wednesday’s tilt.
This game will take place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, FL. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET on Friday, August 21, 2020, and the game will be broadcast live on TNT. You can bet on NBA odds at BookMaker.eu the remainder of the playoffs.
NBA Playoff Odds at BookMaker.eu
Boston Celtics -4.5
Philadelphia 76ers +4.5
Over/Under 216
Head-To-Head Results
Philly held the upper hand in the regular season by winning and covering three of the four overall matchups; but it’s been all Boston in the second season to this point of the series. Though the Sixers held the lead going into the fourth quarter of Game 1, the Celtics rose to the occasion outscoring their rivals 34-22 over the final 12 minutes to log the 109-101 win and cover as 6.5-point favorites. Game 2 was competitive for a quarter with the Sixers getting out to a 33-27 lead, but it was all Boston the rest of the way as it went on to outscore Philadelphia 101-68 to secure the impressive 128-101 win and cover as 4.5-point chalk. The O/U split to move the under to 4-2 in the six overall confrontations.
Game 2 Recap
Marcus Smart might have only scored 10 points on 3-of-11 shooting, but his defense, rebounding and ability to get his teammates involved helped make up for the absence of Gordon Hayward who is expected to miss the next four weeks with an ankle sprain sustained in the series opener. But it was once again the Jayson Tatum show with the former Duke Blue Devil turning into one of the league’s shining stars. After scoring a team-high 32 points in Game 1, he followed it up with another 33 points to go along with five rebounds and five assists. Kemba Walker and Jaylen Brown also combined for 42 points with each shooting better than 50 percent from the field. The offensive onslaught was simply too much for Joel Embiid and his game-high 34 points to contend with considering he got very little support from the rest of this teammates.
Player to Watch
Tobias Harris: If the 76ers are to have any shot of getting back into this series, it’s going to need someone other than Embiid to rise up and start filling the hoop with basketballs. Having been the team’s second leading scorer over the course of the regular season, it has to be Harris. He must step up and start earning that paycheck! If not, Philly will be forced to sit back and watch their hated rivals bust the brooms out on them in the playoffs. Harris averaged a tick under 20 points and nearly seven rebounds per game before the coronavirus shut the season down. In the bubble, Harris has done a fine job on the glass in averaging 9.5 caroms per game, but his scoring average has dropped to just 14 per in shooting a wretched 33.3 percent from the field. Though Boston held him to just 16 PPG on average in the regular season, he must dig down deep and find a way to come up with a huge scoring tally. If not, Philly’s cooked!
NBA Odds Pick
When breaking this series down initially, I had Boston winning it in six games. After taking the first two games, I’m seriously starting to question that foresight. However, linemakers opening this game a full point lower than it did for Game 2 even taking that matchups end result into account has me thinking Philly puts forth a “Circle The Wagons” type effort in this must-win Game 3. The Sixers have shown they can hold their own and some at times throughout this series, but failed to sustain over four quarters. Now in an 0-2 hole and getting thoroughly embarrassed last time out, I fully expect the Sixers to put forth a determined effort at both ends of the floor and find a way to get back into the series.
Prediction: 76ers 104, Celtics 100
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