The Boston Celtics (27-36) will be at home when they play the Orlando Magic (21-45). Action begins at 7:30 pm ET on Friday, The Celtics played well in their last game, barely hanging on to beat the Grizzlies 95-92 on Wednesday. Jae Crowder played a pivotal role with 16 points, three rebounds, and three assists. The Magic, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after the 97-91 loss against the Bucks on Wednesday. Orlando still lost despite the best efforts of Nikola Vucevic, who recorded his 36th double-double of the season with 19 points and 14 rebounds.
Over the last five games, Isaiah Thomas has taken his game to another level for the Celtics, averaging 21.0 points, 2.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 0.6 steals, and 2.4 three-pointers. Victor Oladipo has upped his play for the Magic. In the same five-game span, he is averaging 23.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 3.2 steals, 0.6 blocks, and 2.2 three-pointers.
The Magic lead the season series against the Celtics two games to one, including a 103-98 win the last time these two teams met. Brandon Bass had a double-double in the loss with 19 points and 17 rebounds.
The odds for Boston and Orlando are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is currently not available. The Celtics have gone 27-36 Straight Up (SU) and 36-27 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have had success covering the spread (7-3). Boston is one of the best passing teams in the league with an average of 24.3 assists per game.
As for their opponent, the Magic have a record of 35-30-1 ATS and 21-45 SU. Against the Eastern Conference, Orlando is 13-29 SU and 21-20-1 ATS.
In their previous meeting this season, Orlando beat Boston, but the win was not enough to overtake Boston in the recent head-to-head series. Its record is now 3-7 SU over the last 10 meetings. The Celtics also lead the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3. Boston held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers twice in the last 10 matchups. On the other side of the court, Orlando never accomplished this feat in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – BOS, ATS Winner – BOS
Notes
Both Orlando and Boston rank 25th in points per game and points allowed per game respectively. Orlando scores 95.7 points per game, while Boston gives up 102.0.
Orlando puts up an average of 94.3 points per away game (ranked 26th), while Boston allows 101.0 points per home game (ranked 22nd).
When giving up fewer than 100 points, Orlando has a 15-18 record. When Boston scores fewer than 100, they are a subpar 6-19.
Orlando is an abysmal 6-27 when it gives up 100 or more points. Boston has a 21-17 record when it hits triple digits.
The Magic have an offensive rating of 99.2 (ranked 27th), while the Celtics rank 14th for their defensive rating of 102.5.
Boston has an average field goal percentage of 44.0%. Orlando is an abysmal 9-36 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
On average, the Boston Celtics attempt 24.4 three point field goals per game and the Orlando Magic attempt 19.5 per game. In games where they attempt at least 25 threes, Boston has a 12-15 record and Orlando has a 4-5 record.
Boston has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.82 this season (ranked sixth), while Orlando ranks lower at 25th with an A/TO of 1.42.
Orlando ranks 27th in rebounds per game with 41.1, while Boston ranks 12th with 43.8.
Boston is ranked 12th in defensive rebounds, while Orlando ranks 28th in offensive rebounds.
Boston has forced an average turnover percentage of 14.3% this season. Orlando has a poor 10-27 record when its TOV% is 14.3% or higher.
