The Boston Celtics will be at the Barclays Center to square off against a division foe in the Brooklyn Nets. The game starts at 7:30 pm ET on Monday, Mar. 23 and will air on CSN-NE and YES.
The Nets beat the Pacers 123-111 on Saturday. Brook Lopez was the game’s high scorer with 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting. The Celtics, meanwhile, are coming off a 101-89 loss at the hands of the Spurs on Friday. Jae Crowder stood out for Boston, recording 14 points, six rebounds, and two steals.
Lopez has really been playing well as of late for the Nets, averaging 18.8 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 2.6 blocks over the last five games.
The Celtics have won two out of three against the Nets this season, including an 89-81 victory in their last matchup. Tyler Zeller was a top performer in the victory with 18 points, six rebounds, four assists, one steal, and one block.
The odds are even for this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is presently unavailable. The Nets enter the game with records of 29-39 Straight Up (SU) and 32-35-1 Against The Spread (ATS). They have a record of 8-5 both SU and ATS against their division at home. Brooklyn has been struggling as of late. The Nets have given up an average of 108.1 points to opponents in their last 10 games, well over their defense’s season average of 100.7 PPG.
On the other side, Boston has a SU record of 30-38 and an ATS record of 40-28. Boston has done particularly well ATS over its past ten matchups, going 7-3. The Celtics are a top-five team in the league at finding the open man with an average of 24.4 assists per game.
Boston won the last meeting this season between these two teams, but the Nets still lead the head-to-head record, 6-4 SU, over the last 10 matchups. Additionally, with a 6-4 record, the Nets have the advantage ATS. Both Brooklyn and Boston have led in three key areas (field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers) once over the last 10.
Predictions: SU Winner – BOS, ATS Winner – BOS
Notes
Brooklyn ranks 23rd in points per game with 97.4, while Boston ranks 24th in points allowed with an average of 101.7 given up.
Brooklyn ranks 25th in points per home game with 97.1 points, while Boston ranks 22nd in points allowed on the road with 103.2.
In contests where it has given up fewer than 100 points, Brooklyn has a 20-15 record. When Boston scores fewer than 100, it is a poor 8-20.
At 9-24, the Brooklyn Nets have a subpar record when their opponents score at least 100 points. The Boston Celtics are 22-18 when they put up triple digits.
The Nets have an offensive rating of 101.1 (ranked 21st). The Celtics rank 13th for their defensive rating of 102.1.
With 96.4 possessions and 1.011 points per possession, the Brooklyn Nets perform worse on both metrics than the Boston Celtics. Boston averages 99.6 possessions and 1.012 points per possession.
The Brooklyn Nets average an effective field goal percentage of 49.0% this season. The Boston Celtics have an abysmal record of 8-29 when opponents have an EFF% of 49.0% or greater.
Brooklyn makes an average of 20.5 assists per game (ranked 24th). Boston ranks higher in assists with 24.4 (ranked fourth).
The Nets average 4.2 blocks per game (ranked 25th), while the Celtics rank last in the league with just 3.7.
The Brooklyn Nets rank 23rd in offensive rebounding, while the Boston Celtics rank 11th in defensive rebounding.
The Boston Celtics average 8.0 steals per game. When giving up 8 or more steals, the Brooklyn Nets have a poor record (12-24) this season.
