NBA Basketball
2012-04-17 - Boston Celtics at New York Knicks
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States: NBA Basketball
Tuesday 17 April 2012 - Tip Off 8pm ET
1am (British Standard Time)
Preview
A few weeks ago, this had the potential of being a game between two teams challenging for the Atlantic Division, but things have changed drastically. The Boston Celtics (36-25) look set to win the Division with a win and a loss for the Philadelphia 76ers, and they are almost certainly locked into the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference.
Even though the Division is all but secured, the Celtics will not take it easy against their rivals, the New York Knicks (31-29), a team that still has not secured their berth in the post-season. Injuries have really taken their toll on the Knicks, but they still lead the Milwaukee Bucks by two games for the Play Off spots.
Doc Rivers is making sure his big players are getting their rest, but it is expected that the likes of Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett will all be back in the rotation after being rested in the win at Charlotte on Sunday night. With a game against Orlando tomorrow, very much a potential First Round opponent in the Play Offs, I expect Rivers will play his big guns tonight and then not show too many looks tomorrow.
Rajon Rondo continues playing at a high-level and recorded his 22nd consecutive double-double against the Bobcats.
New York are already missing Amare Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin for this game, but could also have Tyson Chandler sidelined when he was limited in the loss to the Miami Heat last time out. All that means is that there will be even more resting on the shoulders of Carmelo Anthony.
Anthony scored 42 points in the loss to Miami to improve his average to 31.7 points per game over his last 7 contests.
Head to Head
Boston lead the season series 2-1, both straight up and against the spread, although the one loss came at Madison Square Garden.
The Celtics have now improved to 22-3 in the last 25 games in the series.
New York have lost their last 4 home games against the spread against Boston and they had lost 4 in a row straight up here before the win on Christmas Day.
New York are 19-12 against the spread at home this season, Boston are 15-16 on the road.
New York are 17-15 against the spread as the favourite, Boston are 13-10-1 as the underdog.
Other Interesting Trends
New York are 11-4 against the spread in their last 15 games as the home favourite of between 0.5 and 4.5 points.
They have won their last 6 games against the spread against a team with a losing record on the road.
Boston are 6-1 against the spread in their last 7 games as the road underdog given between 0.5 and 4.5 points.
They are 8-2-1 against the spread in their last 11 games against teams from the Eastern Conference.
Prediction
I am going to back the Boston Celtics to win this game straight up for the following reasons:
First, I think Boston have been in better form of the two teams recently and are only being given underdog status because New York 'have' to win.
Second, the big 3 for Boston should all be back tonight, while the Knicks may be missing the third big piece of their starting rotation if Tyson Chandler is rested or limited.
Third, both have had differing results within the Division; Boston are 8-5 against the spread, New York are 4-7.
Fourth, Boston's record against the Knicks cannot be under-estimated at all and I think the fact that this is a Divisional game against a rival will at least motivate the players now that the Number 4 seed is all but secured.
The Pick :
New York Knicks 85-88 Boston Celtics
