Game of the Day: Spurs at Pacers
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San Antonio Spurs at Indiana Pacers (+4.5, 190)
Monday's game between the San Antonio Spurs and host Indiana Pacers may be a matchup between conference leaders, but make no mistake: the teams are headed in vastly different directions. San Antonio comes into this one on a franchise record-tying 17-game winning streak and will look to wrap up the second unbeaten complete month in franchise history. The Spurs will look to extend their run against a Pacers team that has lost four of its last five games.
San Antonio's incredible hot streak has allowed it to build a three-game lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the race for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and with just nine games remaining for both teams it would take a major collapse for the Spurs to not finish on top. But Gregg Popovich only needs to look to the other sideline for proof it can happen. The Pacers lead Miami by one game, and will face the Heat in a pivotal showdown April 11.
LINE HISTORY: The Spurs opened as 3.5-point road faves but have been bet to -4.5. The total opened 190.5 and is currently 190.
INJURY REPORT: Spurs: G Danny Green (Questionable, Foot), F Matt Bonner (Early April, Calf). Pacers: G C.J. Watson (Early April, Hamstring), C Andrew Bynum (Out indefinitely, Knee)
WHY BET THE SPURS (57-16 SU, 40-33 ATS, 41-31-1 O/U): It's one thing for San Antonio to own the league's best record; it's another altogether for the Spurs to be so productive despite ranking 20th in the NBA in payroll. At approximately $63 million, the Spurs - through Saturday - have spent roughly $1.11 million per victory, well ahead of the runner-up Houston Rockets ($1.18 million per win). Head coach Gregg Popovich told the San Antonio News-Express: "(General manager R.C. Buford) and his group work very hard at trying to be as frugal as we can possibly yet put a product on the floor that everybody will be proud of."
WHY BET THE PACERS (52-22 SU, 35-38-1 ATS, 29-43-2 O/U): Indiana is fourth on the payroll-dollars-per-victory chart at $1.29 million, but could use some extra cash to buy an offense. Indiana shot just over 37 percent in Sunday's 90-76 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, and has surpassed the 80-point mark just once in the previous five games - an 84-83 win over Miami that makes up Indiana's slim lead over the Heat. "We're losing games at an alarming rate to teams that are inferior to us," power forward David West said. "We can't figure out a way to perform better. We're kind of looking for answers right now."
TRENDS:
* Over is 8-2 in the last 10 meetings in Indiana.
* Spurs are 6-0 ATS in their last six road games.
* Pacers are 0-5 ATS in their last five vs. Western Conference.
* Over is 9-1 in Spurs last 10 vs. a team with a winning S.U. record.
CONSENSUS: 58 percent of wagers are on the Spurs.
Monday's NBA Tips
By Kevin Rogers
VegasInsider.com
Wizards at Bobcats
Washington: 38-35 SU, 37-35-1 ATS
Charlotte: 35-38 SU, 41-29-3 ATS
Two teams in the Southeast Division that have made massive strides this season meet up in Charlotte on Monday playing for seeding in the Eastern Conference. Since a four-game winning streak in mid-March, the Bobcats have won just two of its last six games, while blowing a 16-point lead in Friday’s overtime setback at Orlando. The road team has won each of the first two meetings between the Wizards and Bobcats, as Charlotte topped Washington at the Verizon Center, 98-85 on March 12 as 5½-point underdogs.
Washington is going through a roller-coaster ride of late, splitting their last 10 games, but the Wizards are coming off consecutive home victories over the Pacers and Hawks. Randy Wittman’s club is riding a four-game ‘under’ streak, while limiting each of its last three opponents to 99 points or less. Since a 6-0 ATS run in the role of a road underdog, the Wizards have failed to cover each of their last three when receiving points on the highway.
Spurs at Pacers
San Antonio: 57-16 SU, 40-33 ATS
Indiana: 52-22 SU, 35-38-1 ATS
The Spurs are running away from the rest of the Western Conference by putting together a 17-game winning streak, as San Antonio travels to Indiana. During this hot streak, the Spurs have covered 13 times, including in Saturday’s home blowout of the Pelicans as 14-point favorites. Gregg Popovich’s squad is playing with revenge after falling at home to the Pacers in December, 111-100 as four-point favorites, snapping an 11-game winning streak against Indiana dating back to 2008.
The Pacers’ offense has fallen flat of late, scoring 84 points in each of the last five games, including a 90-76 clunker in Sunday’s loss at Cleveland. Frank Vogel’s team has hit the ‘under’ in eight straight contests, while not hitting the 100-point plateau once during this stretch. Indiana has been pointspread poison since the end of February, going 2-16 ATS the last 18 games, including a 1-6 ATS mark at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
Raptors at Heat
Toronto: 42-31 SU, 43-28-2 ATS
Miami: 50-22 SU, 33-37-2 ATS
The Heat returns home after consecutive blowouts at Detroit and Milwaukee, limiting each team to 78 points or less. Miami is just one game behind Indiana for the top seed in the Eastern Conference, as the Heat play the next five contests at the American Airlines Arena. Erik Spoelstra’s club goes for the season sweep of the Raptors tonight, while Toronto hasn’t busted the 100-point mark in any of the three losses to Miami.
The Raptors held off the Magic on Sunday night, 98-93 to push as five-point road favorites, as Toronto threw away a 19-point halftime lead. Dwane Casey’s team is riding a three-game winning streak, but the Raptors have won just one road game since the start of February against a team currently sitting above .500 (Washington on February 18). The Raptors look to win successive away contests for the first time since late December, while posting a 1-5 ATS record the last six times off a road victory.
Clippers at Wolves
Los Angeles: 52-22 SU, 41-32-1 ATS
Minnesota: 36-36 SU, 35-37 ATS
The Clippers are pretty much locked into the third seed in the Western Conference behind the Spurs and Thunder. Los Angeles continues a five-game road swing after knocking off Dallas and Houston the last two contests, as the Clips look to beat the Wolves for the fourth time this season. Blake Griffin is listed as doubtful tonight after suffering a back injury in Saturday’s win over the Rockets, but the Clips still managed to score 118 points at Houston.
The Wolves fell apart late in last night’s 114-99 defeat at Brooklyn as four-point underdogs, the fourth loss in the last five away from the Target Center. Now, Rick Adelman’s club returns home where it has won four of five, but those victories came against the Lakers, Hawks, Kings, and Bucks. Minnesota’s atrocious defense of late has resulted in a 6-1 run to the ‘over’ the last seven games, but the past five home meetings with Los Angeles have finished ‘under’ the total.
Spurs, Pacers clash
By Sportsbook.ag
SAN ANTONIO SPURS (57-16) at INDIANA PACERS (52-22)
Sportsbook.ag Line & Total: San Antonio -4.5 & 188.5
The top teams in their respective conferences clash on Monday night when the smoking-hot Spurs, winners of 17 straight, visit the scuffling Pacers.
San Antonio is 13-4 ATS during its amazing SU win streak that began on Feb. 26. The team is averaging a blistering 111.7 PPG on 49.4% FG and 43.8% threes, and has held opponents to 95.7 PPG on 42.6% FG and 32.5% threes during the 17-game run. Indiana has retained its one-game lead for the top spot in the East over Miami despite a 2-5 SU mark (1-6 ATS) in its past seven contests.
Dating back to the same Feb. 26 timeframe, the Pacers are a pathetic 2-16 ATS (9-9 SU) and have failed to reach 100 points in 14 of its past 16 games. Over the past five contests, they have not tallied as much as 85 points, with an atrocious scoring average of 77.2 PPG on 36.6% FG.
But they had no trouble scoring in San Antonio on Dec. 7, coasting to a 111-100 win thanks to 54% FG, 47% threes and 93% FT in that victory with seven players registering at least a dozen points. But that was a rare result in this series, as the Spurs had prevailed in 11 straight meetings (7-4 ATS) before that defeat this season. S
an Antonio enters Monday with a six-game road win streak (SU and ATS), making the club an astounding 28-8 SU (23-13 ATS) away from home this season. Indiana has won four straight home games SU, but covered in only one of those contests, making the team 33-4 SU (20-16-1 ATS) at Bankers Life Fieldhouse this season. The Pacers suffered an embarrassing 90-76 loss at Cleveland on Sunday, and are a subpar 7-12 ATS with zero days' rest this season.
Both teams have positive betting trends for Monday, as the Spurs are 28-14 ATS (67%) versus poor foul drawing teams (attempting 24 or fewer free throws per game this season), outscoring these clubs by a hefty +11.4 PPG margin. But Indiana benefits from the fact that cold teams (ATS losses in 12+ games in a 15-game stretch) facing opponents on a 4-1 ATS run are a hefty 39-13 ATS (75%) since 1996.
Both clubs are dealing with a couple of injuries, as San Antonio will be without PF Matt Bonner (calf) and possibly SG Danny Green (foot). The Pacers continue to miss the services of two reserves -- C Andrew Bynum (knee) and PG C.J. Watson (hamstring).
San Antonio has the NBA's best record because it doesn't have a glaring weakness. On offense, the club scores 105.6 PPG (6th in NBA) on 48.9% FG (2nd in league) and an NBA-best 40.1% threes. These high shooting percentages are a result of a league-high 25.5 APG. The Spurs are also an excellent defensive team, limiting opponents to 97.4 PPG (4th in league) on 44.2% FG (7th in NBA) and 35.3% threes (9th in league). The only disadvantage they have in this matchup is on the glass, where they have a pedestrian +1.1 RPG margin (13th in league), while Indiana ranks second in the NBA with a hefty +3.9 RPG margin.
The Spurs' 17-game win streak has been all the more impressive considering PG Tony Parker (17.0 PPG, 6.0 APG) hasn't been himself lately. Hampered by an Achilles injury, he has tallied a paltry 5.3 PPG on 29% FG in 26.2 MPG over his past three contests. Parker had only two assists in 26 minutes in that December home loss to Indiana, posting a minus-18 rating.
PF Tim Duncan (15.3 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 3.1 APG, 1.9 BPG) also had a minus-18 rating in that Dec. 7 loss, scoring a mere 10 points on 3-of-10 shooting. But lately, Duncan has been outstanding, averaging 20.0 PPG (63% FG), 8.5 RPG, 4.3 APG and 2.0 BPG in just 26.9 MPG over his past four contests.
SF Kawhi Leonard (12.4 PPG, 6.2 RPG) has also stepped up his game recently, averaging 15.0 PPG (49% FG, 44% threes) and 6.3 RPG over his past seven contests. He scored a team-high 18 points in the earlier loss to the Pacers, but he didn't do much on the defensive end with only three rebounds and a game-worst minus-25 rating.
Indiana continues to struggle on the offensive end of the court, averaging only 97.0 PPG (23rd in NBA) on 44.8% FG (18th in league) and 35.0% threes (23rd in NBA). The team is not very efficient either, as its 1.37 Ast/TO ratio (20.0 APG, 14.6 TOPG) ranks fifth-worst in the league. But the reason the Pacers have the best record in their conference is rebounding and an outstanding defense. They lead the league in scoring defense (91.7 PPG) and shooting defense (41.7% FG), while placing third in three-point defense (34.1% threes).
For Indiana to get back on track offensively, SF Paul George (21.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.9 SPG) has to shoot much better. In the past seven games, he has made a pathetic 31% FG with more turnovers (24) than assists (23). But George was clearly the best player on the court when these teams first met back in December, pouring in a game-high 28 points (9-of-14 FG, 4-of-4 threes) with six assists, four rebounds and a +25 rating. PF David West (13.8 PPG, 6.7 RPG) also came up big in many facets against San Antonio with 20 points (9-of-12 FG), eight boards, four assists, three steals, two blocks and a game-high rating of +33.
Two other frontcourt players loomed large on Dec. 7 as well, as C Roy Hibbert (11.1 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 2.4 BPG) and PF Luis Scola (7.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG) each contributed a double-double of 12 points and 10 boards. Hibbert has been a non-factor during his team's current 1-4 skid though, averaging only 8.4 PPG (33% FG) and 3.2 RPG in these five games. SG Lance Stephenson (14.1 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 4.6 APG), who had 15 points, four assists and a +24 rating against the Spurs, continues to carry this offense. Over the past 10 games, he has scored 14.9 PPG (47% FG) with 7.9 RPG.
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