Thanks to wins in three straight and 10 of their last 12, the Indiana Pacers continue to raise eyebrows in the Eastern Conference and have moved up to the third spot at 23-12 SU as a result. The Pacers welcome the Detroit Pistons to Bankers Life Fieldhouse tonight, where sportsbooks opened Indy as a 6.5-point home favorite with a total of 206.
- The total has gone UNDER in the Pistons’ last three games vs the Pacers (avg. combined score: 199.67).
- The Pacers are 9-2 ATS in their last 11 games.
- The total has gone UNDER in 13 of the Pacers’ last 15 games (avg. combined score: 207.4).
Pacers are getting scoring from across the board
Indiana had eight players in double figures in Wednesday’s 129-191 triumph over the Atlanta Hawks while handing out 35 assists on 46 made field goals. The Pacers shot 55.4 percent from the floor and scored over 30 points in each quarter vs the struggling Hawks. Tyreke Evans returned from a brief two-game absence and didn’t show any signs of rust en route to 19 points in as many minutes while shooting 7-for-9 from the floor and 4-for-4 from three-point range.
Detroit hasn’t won back-to-back games since December 3 but has a chance to tonight after collecting a 106-95 victory over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday. The Pistons committed 12 of their 24 turnovers in the fourth quarter and nearly coughed up a 22-point lead as a result. Blake Griffin had a team-high 23 points in the win, while center Andre Drummond has now recorded a double-double in each of his club’s last 10 games.
Pacers, Pistons going UNDER with ease
Both the Pacers and Pistons have been lights-out UNDER bets this month. Indiana has gone UNDER in 13 of its last 15 with an average combined score of 207 points, while Detroit has cashed UNDER bets in 11 of its past 14 with an average combined score of 211 points. Based on those trends alone, expect the UNDER to get plenty of traction at sportsbooks tonight.
Indiana has long dominated this series, evidenced by the Pacers going 27-10 SU in the past 37 meetings between the Eastern Conference teams. The Pistons have gone 7-2 SU in their last nine against divisional opponents, though.
My pick: take the UNDER
These squads have proven to have what it takes to be consistent UNDER bets of late, and I’m not expecting that to change any time soon. After all, they’ve gone UNDER in each of their previous three matchups with an average combined score of 200 points. That’s good enough for me.
