Celtics at Heat Game 2: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com
Boston Celtics at Miami Heat (-7.5, 177)
THE STORY: The Miami Heat have one impressive victory in the books and seek a take a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals when they host the Boston Celtics on Wednesday. LeBron James had 32 points and 13 rebounds in the opening game and Miami pulled away in the third quarter en route to a 93-79 victory. A tired Boston squad struggled with Miami’s athleticism and needs a sharp bounce-back performance in Game 2.
ABOUT THE CELTICS: Forward Kevin Garnett posted his 10th double-double of the postseason with 23 points and 10 rebounds but fellow veterans Paul Pierce and Ray Allen had poor showings in the opener. Pierce was just 5 of 18 from the field while scoring 12 points and Allen was 1 of 7 from the field and a shocking 3 of 7 from the free-throw line while tallying just six points. Allen continues to be plagued with an ankle injury that is affecting his ability to push off while shooting. The Celtics scored 35 points in the second quarter and then just 33 in the second half. “I think we believe we can beat them,” Pierce said. “It’s all about making adjustments.”
ABOUT THE HEAT: James hit 13 of 22 shots in Game 1 and also had 13 rebounds and three blocks in a solid all-around performance. He has 19 career 30-point, 10-rebound postseason efforts, which ranks third among active players behind Tim Duncan (31) and Dirk Nowitzki (29). However, James wasn’t all that thrilled with a showing that saw Miami blow a double-digit first-half lead before getting things together in the third quarter. “We didn’t play our best game,” said James, “and we want to just try to continue to get better throughout the series.” Guard Dwyane Wade had a quiet game until scoring 10 of his 22 points in the final quarter. The Heat enjoyed a 48-33 rebounding edge.
TRENDS:
- Over is 5-1 in the last six meetings in Miami.
- Celtics are 4-1 ATS in their last five meetings.
- Heat are 7-1 ATS in their last eight home games.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Miami forward Chris Bosh remains sidelined with a strained lower abdominal muscle.
2. Boston point guard Rajon Rondo had just seven assists in the opener and is averaging just 7.5 over his last four games following a five-game stretch in which he averaged 14.6 against the Philadelphia 76ers.
3. The Heat blocked 11 shots in Game 1, falling one shy of the franchise playoff record set in 2009 against the Atlanta Hawks.
Game 2, Celtics-Heat
By Kevin Rogers
VegasInsider.com
The Heat picked up right where they left off in the second round, as Miami cruised past Boston in the opener of the conference finals, 93-79 on Monday night. Even though the Celtics rallied back from an early double-digit deficit to tie the game at the half, Miami pulled away in the second half to easily cash as eight-point favorites. Boston's backs are certainly not against the wall yet, but the aging Celtics need to put together more than one strong quarter to keep this series competitive.
The C's scored 35 second quarter points, but Doc Rivers' squad tallied just 44 points in the other three periods combined. The Heat shot a blistering 50% from the floor, as LeBron James continued his red-hot postseason with 32 points and 12 rebounds, while Miami out-rebounded Boston, 48-33. The only group of bettors that felt burned was those who took Heat first half (-3½), as the Celtics overcame a 10-point deficit with less than 4 ½ minutes remaining to even things up at 46-46.
Free throw shooting turned into an issue for Boston, as normally-reliable Ray Allen missed four of seven foul shots, while the team converted just 11 of 21 from the charity stripe. Miami wasn't much better from the line, as the Heat knocked down 16 of 23 free throws, missing the 'over' of 178½ by seven points. The two clubs also threw up plenty of bricks from downtown, combining to shoot 9-for-39 from three-point range, including 2-for-15 from Shane Battier and Mario Chalmers.
Miami improved to 4-2 SU/ATS without Chris Bosh in the postseason, as the All-Star forward is expected to miss Game 2 with an abdominal injury. Dwyane Wade proved to be effective once again in the series opener after dropping 41 points and 10 rebounds in the series clincher against Indiana, as the former Marquette star scored 22 points on 8-for-13 shooting. Unfortunately for the Celtics, not one starter besides Kevin Garnett shot better than 37% from the floor in Game 1, as Paul Pierce was held to 16 points or fewer for the third time in four games.
Amazingly, it took five chances for the Heat to finally cash against the Celtics, as Miami beat Boston for the first time since December 27 at the American Airlines Arena. Miami didn’t cover as 9½-point favorites in that post-Christmas matchup, while the ‘under’ in Game 1 hit for the first time in six meetings in South Florida. The Heat have taken care of business at home against the Celtics in the short James/Wade/Bosh era by posting a 6-2 SU and 5-3 ATS mark, as all six straight-up victories are by eight points or more.
A continuing trend throughout a majority of the conference semifinals and the beginning of the conference finals has been the domination by favorites. Heading into Wednesday’s battle in Miami, the ‘chalk’ is 15-0 SU and 12-2-1 ATS the last 15 games, including four consecutive victories by the Heat in the favorite role.
Sportsbook.ag has provided a handful of player props for Game 2, including a pair for Boston’s veteran scorers. Pierce’s total points is set at 19 (-115 each way), while Garnett’s over/under on points in Game 2 is listed at 18½ (-115 each way). It was noted earlier about Pierce’s recent struggles to score consistently, but the All-Star forward has put up at least 24 points in three of four playoff games after shooting below 35% from the floor this postseason.
VegasInsider.com’s Chris David breaks down the totals perspective, “Even though the total on Game 1 was bet down and the ‘under’ came through, the result could’ve easily been an ‘over’ ticket. The Celtics had a horrible first quarter, but rebounded with a solid second and then faded again in the final 24 minutes. Miami was consistent throughout all four quarters, but it could’ve and probably should’ve busted triple digits.”
Heading into Wednesday, David isn’t concerned about the Heat keeping up their high-scoring ways, “The total on Game 2 opened between 177 and 178 points and its held steady. Outside of Game 2 against Indiana when Miami scored 75 points, which was the first game without Chris Bosh, the team has averaged over 102 PPG in the other six playoff contests. With that being said, it’s safe to say that Miami will get their points. But can Boston?”
The Heat are listed as 7½-point favorites on Tuesday, while the total is set at 177. The game will tip off at 8:30 PM EST and can be seen nationally on ESPN.
NBA Preview
Celtics @ Heat (1-0) -- Spurs covered last night, so Game 1 losers are 9-4 vs spread in Game 2's in playoffs this year; Celtics should give a better effort here, but still are playing third game in five nights- they scored 35 points in second quarter of Game 1, but only 44 points total in other three quarters, with Allen just 1-7 from floor in 39:00 on floor. Miami is still just 2-3 vs Boston this year; if they want short series to stay rested for Finals, they need this game. James/Wade combined to shoot 21-35 (60%) from floor in Game 1; when they shoot 50%+, very difficult to beat, especially for an older team. Fact of matter is that over in Celtics' eight playoff wins, over is 5-3- they only scored 79 points in Game 1. Under is 4-1-1 in Boston's six playoff losses.
Armadillosports.com
BOSTON (47 - 33) at MIAMI (55 - 23)
Top Trends for this game.
BOSTON is 15-30 ATS (-18.0 Units) after 3 or more consecutive unders over the last 3 seasons.
BOSTON is 11-2 ATS (+8.8 Units) in road games against Southeast division opponents this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
BOSTON is 14-8 against the spread versus MIAMI over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON is 14-8 straight up against MIAMI over the last 3 seasons
12 of 22 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
BOSTON vs. MIAMI
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Boston's last 6 games when playing on the road against Miami
Boston is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Miami
Miami is 6-1-1 ATS in its last 8 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Miami's last 12 games at home
Boston at Miami
Boston: 0-6 ATS off BB games scoring 85 points or less
Miami: 6-1 Under off 3+ ATS wins as a favorite