The Indiana Pacers continue to be the most surprising team in the NBA as everyone has been waiting for the ship to sink since Victor Oladipo was lost for the season, but they refuse to go away. The Pacers are fourth in the Eastern Conference standings and have gone 26-9 SU in 35 home games. They’ll be in tough to get their 27th win with the Oklahoma City Thunder in town but OKC may be on tired legs after playing last night and has failed to cover in its last three games in that spot.
The Pacers opened as 1-point favorites with a total of 220.5.
STANDOUT STATS
- The Pacers are one of the best defenses in the NBA. They only allow 103 points per game and that goes down to 100.1 in home games. At home, they allow opposing teams to shoot only 43.1 percent from the field (rated first) on 86.7 attempts (rated fifth) and 33.1 percent from behind the arc (rated second) on 31.8 attempts (rated 15th).
- The Thunder are on the second game of a back-to-back and have failed to cover the spread in their last three games in that spot while being favored in all three of those games. They lost outright to the Kings and Clippers.
- In the Pacers’ last 10 home games, the average combined score was 213 points and the total has only gone OVER 220 three times. The UNDER hit in six of those 10 games. The UNDER has also hit in eight of the Thunder’s last 10 games with an average combined score of 221 points per game.
- The Thunder are 3-8 ATS in 11 games since the all-star break and 2-5 SU and ATS in their last seven games on the road. But they have covered the spread in their last three trips to Indiana.
- The Pacers are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games at home and 9-4 ATS in 13 home games vs Western Conference teams.
My Best Bet for Thunder vs Pacers
UNDER 220.5
This game has essentially come down to a pick’em and while I lean to Indiana if I had to pick a winner, the total appealed to me more. That’s why I love the UNDER given how good the Pacers’ defense has been this season. The Pacers continue to be ranked in the top five in all the major defensive categories and I think with the Thunder playing last night, they might be a bit gassed from the challenge the Nets posed. The Thunder’s offense has struggled lately due to Paul George’s shoulder injury and I think the total is right at the sweet spot to sweat out an UNDER.
