The Chicago Bulls head to the Amway Center to take on the Orlando Magic. The game starts at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Mar. 2 and will air on CSC and FxF.
The Magic lost to the Mavericks 121-108 on Tuesday. Nikola Vucevic was the team’s high scorer, finishing with 18 points. The Bulls, meanwhile, are coming off an ugly 129-111 loss at the hands of the Heat on Tuesday. Pau Gasol stood out for Chicago, recording 15 points, nine rebounds, and six assists.
Points at the line might be difficult to come by for the Magic in this contest. They are 30th in the league in free throw attempt rate (22.4), while Chicago is among the league’s least foul-prone teams (allowing a free throw attempt rate of just 24.9, fifth in the NBA).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Bulls won the first game 92-87. Jimmy Butler was a top performer in the victory with 14 points, four rebounds, five assists, four steals, and two blocks.
The Magic are looking to improve on their records of 26-32 Straight Up (SU) and 33-25 Against The Spread (ATS). They have a record of 26-32 SU and 33-25 ATS versus the Eastern Conference. Orlando’s defense is doing poorly against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, allowing an average of 109.9 points per game, well above their season average of 102.4.
Across the court, Chicago has a SU record of 30-29 and an ATS record of 23-36. Although they’ve done very well in road games against divisional foes (1-3), Chicago sports a lackluster 1-3 record ATS. Chicago has been playing better lately, averaging 109.2 PPG, significantly more than their season average of 101.8. The Bulls are shooting very well so far with a .365 three-point field-goal percentage that ranks fourth in the NBA. The last 10 games have really brought the worst out of the Bulls on the defensive end. They allowed 110.1 points per game during that span, which is higher than their season average of 102.8. Teams don’t seem to hit many three-pointers against the Bulls, who are fifth in the league in terms of three-point field goals allowed at 448 this season. The Bulls have established a reputation of cleaning up the defensive glass with an NBA-best 36.1 defensive rebounds per game.
The Bulls’ win over Orlando in their last clash brought their SU record in the past 10 games to 7-3. The Magic hold the advantage ATS with a record of 8-2.
Predictions: SU Winner – Chi
Notes
“Orlando is 6-15-1 SU in its last 22 games “.
“Orlando is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games at home”.
“Orlando is 4-9 SU in its last 13 games at home”.
“The total has gone OVER in 4 of Orlando’s last 5 games at home”.
“Orlando is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Chicago”.
“Orlando is 4-14 SU in its last 18 games when playing Chicago”.
“Orlando is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Chicago”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Orlando’s last 15 games when playing at home against Chicago”.
Chicago ranks 18th in points per game with 101.8, while Orlando ranks 16th in points allowed with an average of 102.4 given up.
Orlando ranks 19th in points allowed per home game (102.0 PPG), while Chicago ranks eighth in points per away game with 102.3.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Orlando Magic are a solid 19-8. In games where they fail to hit triple digits, the Chicago Bulls have a losing record of 10-16.
The Orlando Magic have an underachieving 7-25 record in games where they have allowed at least 100 points. The Chicago Bulls are 20-13 when they hit triple digits.
The Magic have an offensive rating of 102.4 (ranked 22nd). The Bulls rank 12th for their defensive rating of 103.3.
Orlando averages fewer possessions per game than Chicago, with 98.5 compared to 99.9. However, the Magic score an average of 1.024 points per possession, more than the 1.018 that the Bulls score.
Orlando has an average effective field goal percentage of 49.6%. Chicago is an abysmal 4-13 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, the Orlando Magic make 23.3 assists per game and the Chicago Bulls make 22.2. Orlando is ranked seventh, while Chicago is ranked 14th.
The Chicago Bulls are one of the best rebounding teams in the league, earning 47.6 rebounds per game (ranked second). The Orlando Magic rank 15th, rebounding 43.9 times each contest.
The Chicago Bulls rank sixth in offensive rebounding, while the Orlando Magic rank 16th in defensive rebounding.
Chicago has forced an average turnover percentage of 11.2% this season. Orlando has a subpar 18-29 record when its TOV% is 11.2% or higher.
