The Boston Celtics welcome the Miami Heat to TD Garden. Action begins at 7:30 pm ET on Wednesday, Mar. 25 and can be seen on Sun Sports and CSN-NE.
The Celtics played well in their last game, blowing out the Nets 110-91 on Monday. Boston received a boost from Evan Turner, who finished with 19 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds. This gave him his second triple-double of the year. The Heat, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after the deflating 93-75 loss against the Thunder on Sunday. Hassan Whiteside led the team in scoring with 13 points.
Goran Dragic has upped his play for the Heat, averaging 17.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 6.6 assists, and 1.6 steals over the past five games.
It will be a showdown of conflicting tempos, as the fast-paced Celtics (ranked fifth in the NBA in possessions per game) will look to push the slow-paced Heat (29th in possessions per game).
The Heat lead the season series against the Celtics two games to one, but fell short in their most recent game, 100-90. Dwyane Wade was the top overall scorer in the game with 34 points.
The odds for Boston and Miami are even, while the Over/Under (O/U) is unavailable as of now. The Celtics come into this game 31-39 Straight Up (SU) and 41-29 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have had success covering the spread (7-3). Boston is one of the most disciplined teams in the league with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.8.
In the other locker room, the Heat have 32-37 SU and 32-34-3 ATS records. Against the Eastern Conference, Miami is 20-20 SU and 20-18-2 ATS. The Heat allow just 96.0 points per road game, ranking them second in the league.
With the Celtics’ last win against Miami, Boston moved closer to evening up its record against Miami. It now stands at 4-6 SU over the last 10 meetings. With a 7-3 record, the Celtics have the advantage ATS. Boston held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers two times, while Miami was never able to do so in their most recent 10 games.
Predictions: SU Winner – BOS, ATS Winner – BOS
Notes
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Boston’s last 9 games.
Boston is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Boston’s last 6 games at home.
Boston is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games at home.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Boston’s last 5 games when playing Miami.
The total has gone OVER in 11 of Boston’s last 16 games when playing Miami.
Boston is 4-8 SU in its last 12 games when playing Miami.
Boston is 17-4 SU in its last 21 games when playing at home against Miami.
Boston puts up 100.9 points per game (ranked 13th), but Miami typically allows only 97.0 points per game (ranked third).
On average, Boston puts up 101.5 points per home game (ranked 16th), while Miami allows 96.0 points per away game (ranked second).
The Boston Celtics won their last game by 19 points. In games decided by a margin of 18 points or more, the Miami Heat are 2-9. Boston is 5-3 in blowouts this season.
When allowing fewer than 100 points, the Heat are 28-13 on the season. When the Celtics score fewer than 100, they are an underachieving 8-21.
Miami is a subpar 4-24 when it allows 100 or more points. Boston has a 23-18 record when it hits triple digits.
The Heat have an offensive rating of 101.6 (ranked 17th), while the Celtics rank 13th for their defensive rating of 101.9.
The Miami Heat have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking ninth in the league with a FG% of 45.8%. When their opponents record a similar or higher FG%, the Boston Celtics have a subpar 4-27 record.
On average, Boston attempts 24.5 three pointers and Miami attempts 20.2 per game. In games where the teams have 25 or more three point attempts, the Celtics have a 14-17 record while the Heat have a subpar 4-7 record.
Boston has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.82 this season (ranked fifth), while Miami ranks lower at 24th with an A/TO of 1.45.
The Miami Heat are one of the worst rebounding teams in the league with just 38.8 per game. Ranked 10th, the Boston Celtics average 44.1 rebounds.
Boston is ranked 10th in defensive rebounds, while Miami ranks 29th in offensive rebounds.
Miami is one of the top teams in forced turnovers, with opponents averaging a TOV% of 15.2% (ranked eighth). Boston has a losing record of 5-13 SU this season when its TOV% reaches 15.2% or greater.
