The Atlantic’s top team will be on the road when the Boston Celtics (7-5) head to the Barclays Center to face the division rival Brooklyn Nets (2-11). Action begins at 6:00 pm ET on Sunday, Nov. 22 and can be seen on CNE and YES.
The Nets are hoping for a better outcome after their 120-95 loss to the Celtics on Friday. Brook Lopez had a good outing, recording 14 points, seven rebounds, and two assists for Brooklyn.
Thaddeus Young and Jarrett Jack have been better than usual over the last five games for the Nets. During that stretch, Young has averaged 19.8 points, 9.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 2.6 steals, while Jack has recorded 18.0 points, 3.6 rebounds, 8.6 assists, 0.8 steals, and 1.8 three-pointers a game.
The Nets might struggle to find the bottom of the net as they face off against one of the league’s best defenses. The Celtics rank third in the NBA in defensive efficiency, while Brooklyn ranks 29th in offensive efficiency.
The Celtics take on the Nets as a three-point favorite. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is sitting at 205 points. The Nets come into this game 2-11 Straight Up (SU) and 6-7 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 1-6 SU and 2-5 ATS against the Eastern Conference. Brooklyn will look to take advantage of the Celtics and their propensity to foul. Boston ranks 28th in the league in fouls, averaging 23.6 per game.
Over on the other bench, the Celtics have a record of 7-5 both ATS and SU. Against the Eastern Conference, Boston is 5-3 SU and ATS. The Celtics are an unselfish team with an average of 24.8 assists per game, ranking fourth in the NBA. Moving on to Boston’s defense, the Celtics allow just 90.8 points per road game, ranking them first in the league. The Celtics are a terror in the passing lanes, averaging an NBA-best 11.7 steals per game. Boston is the second-best team in the league at scoring points off turnovers with 23.4 per game.
In their previous meeting this season, Boston beat Brooklyn, bringing the head-to-head record to an even 5-5 SU over the last 10 meetings. They are also even ATS in their last 10 games.
Predictions: SU Winner – Bos, ATS Winner – Bos, O/U – Under
Notes
Brooklyn is 2-13 SU in its last 15 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Brooklyn’s last 9 games.
Brooklyn is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games at home.
Brooklyn is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home.
Brooklyn is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Boston.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Brooklyn’s last 6 games when playing Boston.
Brooklyn is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Boston.
Brooklyn is 4-13 SU in its last 17 games when playing at home against Boston.
Brooklyn is 5-12-1 ATS in its last 18 games when playing at home against Boston.
Boston has a winning 2-1 record against the Atlantic Division, while Brooklyn has yet to win a game against teams in the division (0-1 SU).
Boston ranks sixth in points per game with 103.9, while Brooklyn ranks 23rd in points allowed with an average of 104.6 given up.
Brooklyn ranks 21st in points allowed per home game (102.5 PPG), while Boston ranks 10th in points per away game with 102.0.
When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Nets are 2-1 on the season. When the Celtics score fewer than 100, they are a losing 1-3.
Brooklyn is winless (0-10) in games where it gives up 100 or more points, while Boston is 6-2 when it hits the century mark.
The Celtics have a defensive rating of 95.7 (ranked third), while the Nets have an offensive rating of 96.9 (ranked 29th).
With 98.6 possessions and .969 points per possession, the Brooklyn Nets perform worse on both metrics than the Boston Celtics. Boston averages 102.1 possessions and 1.018 points per possession.
The Boston Celtics average an effective field goal percentage of 48.7% this season. The Brooklyn Nets have an abysmal record of 1-8 when opponents have an EFF% of 48.7% or greater.
Brooklyn has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.48 this season (ranked 16th). Boston ranks higher with an A/TO of 1.54 (ranked 12th).
The Nets rank 17th in rebounds per game with 44.2, while the Celtics rank 13th with 44.8 per game.
The Boston Celtics rank third in offensive rebounding, while the Brooklyn Nets rank 19th in defensive rebounding.
Boston is one of the top teams in forced turnovers, with opponents averaging a TOV% of 18.5% (ranked first). Brooklyn is winless this season (0-3 SU) when its TOV% reaches 18.5% or greater.
