Thunder the Pacers Lurking in Middle of Pack for NBA Playoff Spots
With the playoffs rapidly approaching, both the Indiana Pacers (45-29 SU, 37-37 ATS) and the Oklahoma City Thunder (43-31 SU, 37-37 ATS) could use a win when they meet this Wednesday at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
TV: ESPN, 8 PM ET. LINE: Thunder -6.5; O/U: 217.5.
The Pacers are in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. They are fighting off the Boston Celtics for home-court advantage in the opening round. They’ve been remarkably successful despite the loss of All-Star guard Victor Oladipo with a ruptured quad. Indiana is also 5-9 SU and ATS over the past month. They did beat the Thunder 108-106 on March 14 as a pick’em at home.
Oklahoma City is one of the four teams currently holding down the bottom seeds in the Western Conference playoff hunt. They’re likely to finish anywhere between third and eighth. The Thunder are also in a prolonged slump at 6-11 SU and 4-13 ATS since Valentine’s Day. Paul George’s shooting has been affected by ongoing shoulder issues. Markieff Morris has struggled since he was jettisoned by the Washington Wizards and plucked from the waiver wire on February 20th.
This, That, and a Dart Throw
The Pacers‘ Bogdanovic poured in a team-high 35 points on 13-of-16 shooting in Sunday’s win. He was 5-of-6 from beyond the arc despite sitting out the fourth quarter. The Pacers head into play tonight with a three-game cushion over the fifth-place Boston Celtics. Indiana’s last win in Oklahoma City was a 115-111 overtime triumph on Nov. 20, 2016.
The Thunders‘ Russell Westbrook managed 16 points on 6-of-20 shooting in Monday’s loss and blamed himself for the team’s struggles. Backup point guard Dennis Schroder was one of the bright spots Monday with 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting. C Steven Adams, who is shooting 59.4 percent on the season, is 7-of-23 from the floor over the last three games.
Prediction: Thunder 108, Pacers 101
NBA Betting Odds & Trends
| Indiana Pacers |
|---|
| Indiana is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games |
| Indiana is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Indiana’s last 10 games |
| Indiana is 1-7 ATS in its last 8 games on the road |
| Indiana is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games on the road |
| The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Indiana’s last 7 games on the road |
| Indiana is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Oklahoma City |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Indiana’s last 5 games when playing Oklahoma City |
| Indiana is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Oklahoma City |
| Indiana is 3-10 SU in its last 13 games when playing on the road against Oklahoma City |
| The total has gone OVER in 10 of Indiana’s last 15 games when playing on the road against Oklahoma City |
| Oklahoma City Thunder |
|---|
| Oklahoma City is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games |
| Oklahoma City is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games |
| Oklahoma City is 1-7 ATS in its last 8 games at home |
| Oklahoma City is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games at home |
| The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Oklahoma City’s last 7 games at home |
| Oklahoma City is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Indiana |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Oklahoma City’s last 5 games when playing Indiana |
| Oklahoma City is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing at home against Indiana |
| Oklahoma City is 10-3 SU in its last 13 games when playing at home against Indiana |
| The total has gone OVER in 10 of Oklahoma City’s last 15 games when playing at home against Indiana |
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