The Boston Celtics head to the Amway Center to take on the Orlando Magic. The game gets underway at 6:00 pm ET on Sunday, Mar. 8 and will air on CSN-NE and FSN-FL.
The Magic were victorious over the Kings 119-114 on Friday. With 32 points and 10 assists, Victor Oladipo recorded his third double-double this season. The Celtics, meanwhile, are coming off a 104-98 win over the Pelicans on Friday. Isaiah Thomas shot 8-for-13 and led in scoring with 27 points.
Over the last five games, Oladipo has been playing at a high level for the Magic. During that stretch, he has averaged 24.6 points, 5.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.8 three-pointers.
The two teams have split their matchups this season. The Magic had the upper hand in the most recent game, a 100-95 win. In the loss, Tyler Zeller had a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Oddsmakers have deemed this game an even matchup and the Over/Under (O/U) is currently unavailable. The Magic look to improve upon their records of 20-43 Straight Up (SU) and 33-29-1 Against The Spread (ATS). They have gone 12-27 SU and 19-19-1 ATS against teams from the Eastern Conference.
On the other side, the Celtics head into the game with records of 34-26 ATS and 25-35 SU. When traveling to play against teams in the Eastern Conference, Boston has a record of 10-6 ATS, but only 5-11 SU. Defenses have a tough time accounting for every player when up against the Celtics, who are known for distributing the ball with 24.4 assists per game.
Orlando beat Boston in their most recent meeting this season, but the Celtics still lead the head-to-head record over the last 10, 8-2 SU. Additionally, with a 7-3 record, the Celtics have the advantage ATS. When it comes to field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers, Boston held the edge in all three of these categories twice in the last 10 meetings. Orlando never did so in those games.
Predictions: SU Winner – BOS, ATS Winner – BOS
Notes
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Orlando’s last 11 games.
Orlando is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Orlando’s last 10 games at home.
Orlando is 6-13 SU in its last 19 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Orlando’s last 6 games when playing Boston.
Orlando is 2-12 SU in its last 14 games when playing Boston.
Orlando is 3-10-1 ATS in its last 14 games when playing Boston.
Orlando is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Boston.
Orlando is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Boston.
On average, Boston puts up 101.0 points per game (ranked 13th). Orlando ranks 23rd in points allowed per game with 101.3.
Boston scores an average of 100.0 points per away game (ranked 12th). Orlando ranks 25th in points allowed per home game with 101.8.
When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Celtics are 19-5 on the season. When the Magic score fewer than 100, they are an abysmal 6-37.
The Boston Celtics have a subpar 6-30 record in games where they have allowed at least 100 points. The Orlando Magic are 14-6 when they hit the century mark.
The Magic have a defensive rating of 104.9 (ranked 25th), while the Celtics rank 20th for their offensive rating of 101.2.
Orlando has an average field goal percentage of 45.7% (ranked ninth). Boston is an abysmal 3-25 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Orlando Magic rank higher in field goal percentage (ninth) than effective field goal percentage (14th), while the Boston Celtics rank the same for both metrics (20th).
Boston, the third-ranked team in terms of assists, makes an average of 24.4 per game. Orlando ranks lower at 26th with 20.4.
Both the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic fall near the bottom of the league when it comes to blocking. Boston ranks 29th with an average of 3.8 per game, while Orlando ranks last with 3.7 per game.
The Orlando Magic rank 28th in offensive rebounding, while the Boston Celtics rank 11th in defensive rebounding.
The Boston Celtics average 8.0 steals per game. When giving up 7 or more steals, the Orlando Magic have an abysmal record (9-33) this season.
