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Boston Celtics – Denver Nuggets Preview – 02.21.2016

The Denver Nuggets will host a battle against the Boston Celtics at the Pepsi Center. The game starts at 5:00 pm ET on Sunday, Feb. 21 and will air on CNE and ALT.

The Nuggets enter this game hoping for similar success after topping the Pistons 103-92 the last time they played. Will Barton led all scorers on the team with 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting. The Celtics, meanwhile, are coming off a 139-134 win against the Clippers in their last outing. Isaiah Thomas had a good game and claimed his sixth double-double of the season, posting 36 points and 11 assists.

The top-notch Celtics defense should have a clear edge in terms of effective field goal percentage. They rank fourth in the league in forcing misses (opponents’ effective field goal percentage of 47.8%), while the brick-laying Nuggets offense is 26th with a mark of 48.3%.

This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Celtics winning the first matchup 111-103. In the victory, Avery Bradley led all scorers on the team with 27 points.

The Nuggets come into this game 22-33 Straight Up (SU) and 30-22-3 Against The Spread (ATS). They have a record of 22-33 SU and 30-22-3 ATS versus the Eastern Conference. The Nuggets have seen an uptick in scoring as of late, averaging 111.2 points during the last 10 games compared to their season average of 100.7 points per game. Denver will look to take advantage of the Celtics and their propensity to foul. Boston has committed the most fouls in the league, averaging 23.3 per game.

Over on the other bench, the Celtics have 32-24 SU and 30-24-2 ATS records. Most recently, Boston is 8-2 ATS over the last 10 games. Offensively, they average 105.5 points per game, which is good for fourth in the league. Boston is one of the top foul-shooting teams in the league, converting .790 of their shots from the line. The Celtics are a top-five team in the league at finding the open man with an average of 24.7 assists per game. The Boston defense has been a problem for competitors, allowing .435 shooting from the field to its opponents. Teams with weak ball handling have not fared well against the Celtics, who rank second in the league with 9.5 steals per game. Boston makes opponents pay for turning the ball over, ranking third in points off turnovers with an average of 18.9 per game.

Boston won the last meeting this season between these two teams, bringing its SU record in the past 10 games to 6-4. Furthermore, the Celtics lead the matchup ATS with a record of 6-4.

Predictions: SU Winner – Bos

Notes

“Denver is 8-2 ATS in its last 10 games “.

“Denver is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games at home”.

“The total has gone OVER in 7 of Denver’s last 9 games at home”.

“Denver is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Boston”.

“Denver is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Boston”.

“Denver is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games when playing at home against Boston”.

“Denver is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Boston”.

“The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Denver’s last 5 games when playing at home against Boston”.

“The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Boston’s last 5 games when playing on the road against Denver”.

Boston ranks fourth in points per game with 105.5, while Denver ranks 22nd in points allowed with an average of 103.7 given up.

Boston is one of the top scoring teams on the road, averaging 104.9 points per game (ranked fifth). Denver, on the other hand, gives up 105.3 points per home game (ranked 27th).

When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Celtics are 24-3 on the season. When the Nuggets score fewer than 100, they are a subpar 2-17.

Boston is a poor 8-20 when it allows 100 or more points. Denver has a 20-15 record when it puts up triple digits.

The Nuggets have a defensive rating of 106.0 (ranked 22nd), while the Celtics rank 12th for their offensive rating of 103.8.

Denver has an average field goal percentage of 43.6%. Boston is an underachieving 6-16 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.

Denver attempts an average of 23.0 three pointers per game, and Boston attempts 27.0 per game. In games where the teams have 25 or more three point attempts, the Nuggets have a 9-13 record while the Celtics have an 18-19 record.

The Boston Celtics are among the best in the league with an assist to turnover ratio of 1.76 (ranked fourth). Ranking 15th, the Denver Nuggets have an A/TO of 1.58.

The Nuggets rank 10th in rebounds per game with 44.6, while the Celtics rank seventh with 45.1 per game.

The Boston Celtics rank fifth in offensive rebounding, while the Denver Nuggets rank 18th in defensive rebounding.

Boston is one of the top teams in forced turnovers, with opponents averaging a TOV% of 15.9% (ranked fifth). Denver has a losing record of 6-12 SU this season when its TOV% reaches 15.9% or greater.

Written by GMS Previews

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