The Boston Celtics (25-21) will be at home when they face the Denver Nuggets (17-28). Action begins at 7:30 pm ET on Wednesday, Jan. 27 and can be seen on CNE and ALT.
The Celtics enter this game hoping for similar success after blowing out the Wizards 116-91 on Monday. Isaiah Thomas was the game’s leading scorer with 23 points on 8-for-14 shooting. The Nuggets, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their 119-105 loss against the Hawks on Monday. Will Barton led the team in scoring with 21 points.
The Celtics defense could make it difficult on Denver’s shooters. They rank fourth in the NBA in forcing misses (opponents’ effective field goal percentage of 47.3%), while the Denver offense is 27th with a mark of 47.9%.
This one isn’t expected to be close when the Celtics, a substantial 10-point favorite, take on the Nuggets. The matchup has an estimated Over/Under (O/U) of 206 points. The Celtics come into this game 25-21 Straight Up (SU) and 24-20-2 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 6-7 SU and 7-5-1 ATS against the Western Conference. Boston is one of the best passing teams in the league with an average of 24.3 assists per game. The Celtics have really locked down opponents, ranking fourth in the league with a .431 opponent field-goal percentage. Boston’s defenders rank second in the NBA in steals with 9.6 per game. Boston is one of the league’s top scoring teams off turnovers with an average of 19.2 points per game.
Over on the other bench, the Nuggets have 17-28 SU and 22-20-3 ATS records. Denver performed well ATS during its last 10 games, earning a 7-3 record. One advantage for the Nuggets could be Boston’s league-high fouls per game average of 23.0.
These two meet for what will be their first head-to-head battle of the season. Boston won the last game in the matchup, bumping its SU record to 6-4 over the Nuggets in their last 10 meetings. With a 7-3 record, the Celtics also have the advantage ATS.
Predictions: SU Winner – Bos, ATS Winner – Bos, O/U – Under
Notes
Boston is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Boston’s last 7 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston’s last 6 games when playing Denver.
Boston is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Denver.
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Denver.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Boston’s last 5 games when playing at home against Denver.
Denver is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Boston.
Boston ranks sixth in points per game with 104.3, while Denver ranks 23rd in points allowed with an average of 103.8 given up.
On average, Boston scores 103.4 points per home game (ranked 16th), while Denver allows 101.8 points per away game (ranked 11th).
In its last game, Boston won by a 25-point margin. Denver is 1-3 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. Boston has a 6-2 record in blowouts.
When Denver allows fewer than 100 points, it has a poor 6-11 record this season. Boston also has a subpar record when it puts up fewer than 100 (4-10).
The Denver Nuggets have a poor 11-17 record in games where they have allowed at least 100 points. The Boston Celtics are 21-11 when they hit the century mark.
The Nuggets have an offensive rating of 102.2 (ranked 21st), while the Celtics rank second for their defensive rating of 99.3.
Boston has an average field goal percentage of 43.6%. Denver is a losing 9-21 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
Boston attempts an average of 27.0 three pointers per game, and Denver attempts 23.0 per game. In games where the teams have 25 or more three point attempts, the Celtics have a 16-17 record while the Nuggets have a 9-12 record.
The Boston Celtics, with an assist to turnover ratio of 1.71, rank sixth in the NBA. The Denver Nuggets have a lower A/TO (1.58), ranking 15th.
The Celtics rank ninth in rebounds per game with 45.0, while the Nuggets rank 10th with 44.3 per game.
The Denver Nuggets rank third in offensive rebounding, while the Boston Celtics rank 16th in defensive rebounding.
Boston is one of the top teams in forced turnovers, with opponents averaging a TOV% of 16.1% (ranked fifth). Denver has a subpar record of 5-10 SU this season when its TOV% reaches 16.1% or greater.
