The Indiana Pacers will host the Milwaukee Bucks at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse on Thursday night. It’s time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Bucks-Pacers prediction and pick.
Milwaukee has been surging of late and will be extremely motivated to pick up another win as they fight for better seeding come playoff time. The middle of the east is loaded with talent, so moving up to the two seed is crucial for this team. Indiana is tied with Charlotte and would love to pass them to enter a win-and-in situation come play-in time.
Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Bucks-Pacers NBA odds.
NBA Odds: Bucks-Pacers Odds
Milwaukee Bucks -8 (-110)
Indiana Pacers +8 (-110)
Over 243.5 Points (-110)
Under 243.5 Points (-110)
Why The Bucks Could Cover The Spread
The Milwaukee Bucks have been returned to form as they've won six of their last seven games. Despite the recent success, I wouldn't say that this team is all the way back, yet. Following a blowout loss against San Antonio, the Bucks allowed Orlando to stick around for most of the game on Tuesday night. It's clear that the Bucks are loaded with talent, but have some kinks that need to be worked out with the postseason just around the corner. Despite this, the NBA odds favor them on the road in this one.
Milwaukee really struggled to do what they do best against the Magic, which is shoot the ball from deep. They've been one of the best long-ball shooting teams in the league this year, but only shot 24.2% from beyond the arc in their 12-point win against Orlando. Milwaukee has the second-best three point percentage in the league and will need to start hitting at a high clip again to make a run.
The best rebounding team in the league has continued to dominate the boards, which is sustainable and promising. Giannis leads the way for this group with 11 rebounds per game this season. Shooting at a high volume and creating second-chance looks is why this team is the highest scoring team in the NBA to date.
Why The Pacers Could Cover The Spread
The Indiana Pacers have been playing good basketball lately, winning three of their last four games coming in. Their only loss during that stretch was by one point to the surging Washington Wizards. Indiana is doing a great job of building momentum as they head into the first ever play-in tournament.
The Pacers are coming off of a solid nine-point victory against the east-leading 76ers in their last game. Indiana played very well throughout and pulled away in the fourth quarter to secure the victory. Despite the injuries, this team seems to be coming together at the perfect time.
Indiana does have a glaring weakness right now, which is the play off their bench. The second-unit for this club has been getting outscored in ways that are hard to come back from. For some reason, these struggles seem to increase on their home court. Indiana has the worst home court record of all postseason teams this year, which certainly won't help their case come playoff time. It's a big factor in the NBA odds for this matchup.
Final Bucks-Pacers Prediction & Pick
The Milwaukee Bucks should and will win this game by double-digits against the depleted Pacers. Milwaukee has been scrapping together wins and will look to get their offense back on track against an Indiana team that has struggled on the defensive end. It's strange to say that a team has “away-court advantage,” but that's what Milwaukee has in this game. Indiana is 11-23 ATS at home, which is glaring, confusing, and beneficial to all road teams this season.
FINAL PICK: Milwaukee Bucks -8 (-110)
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