The Oklahoma City Thunder (45-22) travel to Boston to take on the Celtics (39-28) in a matchup that pits the second-ranked offense against the fourth-ranked defense. The game starts at 7:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Mar. 16 and will air on ESP, CNE and FxK.
The Celtics were beaten by the Pacers 103-98 on Tuesday. Isaiah Thomas was the team’s high scorer, finishing with 21 points. The Thunder, meanwhile, are coming off a 128-94 win over the Trail Blazers on Monday. They relied on Russell Westbrook who recorded his 12th triple-double of the season. He rose to the occasion with 17 points, 16 assists, and 10 rebounds.
Over the last five games, Thomas has been playing at a high level for the Celtics. During that stretch, he has averaged 26.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.4 steals, and 3.2 three-pointers. On the other side, the Thunder have been led by Enes Kanter. He has been on fire, averaging 17.2 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 0.8 steals in the same time frame.
It will be a battle of strength versus strength, as the high-octane offense of the Thunder (second in the NBA with an offensive efficiency of 110.0) take the court against the stingy defense of the Celtics (fourth in the league with a defensive efficiency of 100.8).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Celtics won the first game 100-85. Marcus Smart was a top performer in the victory with 26 points, eight rebounds, three assists, one steal, one block, and three three-pointers.
The Celtics enter the game with records of 39-28 Straight Up (SU) and 35-30-2 Against The Spread (ATS). They have gone 39-28 SU and 35-30-2 ATS against teams from the Western Conference. Few teams in the league have a higher assist-to-turnover ratio than Boston, which ranks third at 1.81. Transitioning to the Boston defense, teams really have to fight for three-pointers against the Celtics, who have allowed only 7.0 three-pointers to opponents per game. The Celtics are the second-best team in the league at taking the ball away from their opponents, averaging 9.5 steals per game. Something to watch out for is if Boston can force its opponents into turnovers and convert them into baskets. They’ve done an excellent job of that all year with an average of 18.8 points off turnovers per game.
On the other side, Oklahoma City has a SU record of 45-22 and an ATS record of 27-37-3. When traveling to play against teams in the Eastern Conference, Oklahoma City has a record of SU, but only 10-20-1 ATS. Oklahoma City is one of the top foul-shooting teams in the league, hitting 19.0 shots from the line per game. When it comes to defending the rim, the Thunder are one of the best in the league with an average of 6.1 blocks per game. The Thunder are in for a physical game against Boston. The Celtics are not afraid to send opponents to the free throw line, averaging 22.7 fouls per game.
With the Celtics’ last win against Oklahoma City, Boston is still behind in the head-to-head record over the last 10 meetings, 2-8 SU. Additionally, the Thunder lead the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3.
Predictions: SU Winner – OKC
Notes
“Boston is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games “.
“Boston is 17-7 SU in its last 24 games “.
“The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Boston’s last 8 games “.
“Boston is 11-4 ATS in its last 15 games at home”.
“Boston is 14-1 SU in its last 15 games at home”.
“The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Boston’s last 6 games at home”.
“Boston is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Oklahoma City”.
“Boston is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing Oklahoma City”.
“Boston is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing at home against Oklahoma City”.
“Boston is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Oklahoma City”.
Oklahoma City’s offense and Boston’s defense are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per game and points allowed per game respectively. Oklahoma City puts up an average of 0.0 points per game, while Boston allows 0.0 points per game.
Oklahoma City and Boston are well matched, ranking zeroth in points per away game and points allowed at home respectively. Oklahoma City scores an average of 0.0 points on the road, while Boston gives up 0.0 points at home on average.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Boston Celtics are a formidable 28-3. In games where they fail to hit triple digits, the Oklahoma City Thunder have a subpar record of 3-11.
When allowing 100 or more points in a game, the Celtics are just 11-25 this season. Oklahoma City is a superb 42-11 when it hits the century mark.
The Celtics have an offensive rating of 104.1 (ranked 12th). The Thunder rank 10th for their defensive rating of 103.2.
The Boston Celtics average 101.8 possessions per game and 1.041 points per possession, while the Oklahoma City Thunder earn fewer possessions (99.8) but more points per possession (1.100).
The Oklahoma City Thunder have one of the best effective field goal percentages this season, ranking third in the league with an EFF% of 52.2%. When their opponents record a similar or higher EFF%, the Boston Celtics have an underachieving 2-13 record.
The Boston Celtics, ranked fifth in the NBA, average 24.5 assists per game. The Oklahoma City Thunder make 22.8 assists (ranked ninth)
The Boston Celtics average 4.3 blocks per game for a rank of 23rd. The Oklahoma City Thunder rank higher (third), earning 6.1 blocks each contest.
The Celtics and the Thunder are well matched when it comes to rebounding. Boston is ranked third in offensive rebounding, and Oklahoma City is also ranked third in defensive rebounding.
Making 9.5 steals per game, Boston is ranked second in the NBA. Oklahoma City has a winning 21-13 record when it allows at least 9 steals.
