Brooklyn Nets will be looking to even their opening-round playoff series with Atlanta when they take on the top-seeded Hawks on Wednesday night as heavy 9.5-point underdogs in NBA betting at Coral.
The Nets fell behind early in Game 1 and came up short in their fourth-quarter comeback attempt, dropping a 99-92 decision to Atlanta, but covered the spread as heavy 11.5-point underdogs.
Small forward Thaddeus Young and center Brook Lopez led a Nets’ offense that went 45.6 per cent from the floor, with both recording double-doubles. Five Hawks reached double-digits in points, including all-star center Al Horford, who tallied 10 points and 10 rebounds despite suffering a dislocated finger during the game.
For Atlanta, the victory extended their current SU win streak over the Nets to six games, but marked the second time in their last three that the Hawks failed to cover when pegged as double-digit favourites over Brooklyn.
This win also ended the Hawks’ brief three-game SU losing streak, after the club had clinched the Southeast Division title and the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Nets slipped into the playoffs on the final day of the NBA regular season, posting a win over Orlando Magic to draw even in wins and losses with the Indiana Pacers, and earning the No. 8 seed on the strength of the tiebreaker.
However, Brooklyn struggled in the final days of the regular season, going 3-4 SU and ATS in their last seven regular season contests. The club’s struggles followed a solid 10-2 SU run, going 7-3-2 against the spread.
The point total also finished OVER in eight of the 12 games during the Nets’ recent hot streak. But it is the UNDER that has prevailed in five of their last eight outings.
San Antonio Spurs will be looking to bounce back from a 107-92 loss when they meet Los Angeles Clippers late Wednesday night in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series, pegged as slim one-point underdogs with Coral.
The Spurs came out flat in Game 1 on Sunday, disappointing punters with their fourth straight ATS loss after hitting the court as 1.5-point underdogs. This SU defeat was also San Antonio’s third straight against LA, who have averaged over 110 points per game during their current win streak against the defending champions.
San Antonio still remains a solid wager to repeat, with 6/1 odds, trailing only Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors, who lead the way in NBA futures betting at Coral, with odds of 21/10 and 9/4, respectively.
In other NBA Playoff action on Wednesday night, the Memphis Grizzlies are six-point favourites in their Game 2 match-up with Portland Trail Blazers.
The No. 5 Grizzlies dominated No. 4 Portland in Game 1, taking home a 100-86 victory, and easily covering as 5.5-point favourites.
That loss spells big trouble for the Blazers, who have now lost five straight, SU and ATS, marking the second time in five weeks that the club has suffered five straight defeats. Portland is also a dismal 4-8 ATS in their last 12, and has surrendered double-digit point totals in 12 of their last 13 SU losses, and over 110 points in five of those losses.
