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Eric Moody, ESPN
The Eastern Conference finals between the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers continue Thursday night. Game 1 was exhilarating as Indiana had victory within its grasp before letting it slip away in overtime because of numerous miscues.
It will be interesting to see how the Celtics perform in Game 2. Boston has won Game 1 in each of its past two playoff series this year but failed to win Game 2 at home.
Let’s dive into some best bets for Game 2 (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET).
Basketball Power Index by ESPN Analytics. Injury aggregation by Rotowire.com. Odds by ESPN BET
Best bet: Boston Celtics over 116.5 points.
The Celtics haven’t had any issues scoring, leading the NBA in points scored per 100 possessions during the regular season and ranking second in the playoffs. Boston has cleared this line in 65% of its games this season, including five of their past six games against the Pacers. The Celtics scored 117 points in regulation on Tuesday and there’s room for improvement in Game 2, especially if Boston can have better shot selection and take better care of the basketball.
Best bet: Jrue Holiday over 4.5 assists.
Holiday was absolutely phenomenal in Game 1, scoring 28 points and adding seven rebounds and eight assists. Holiday has played well against the Pacers all season, but I see him shining as a facilitator in Game 2 and this line seems way too low to pass up. While the Pacers stepped up defensively in the playoffs, they finished the regular season ranked 24th in points allowed per 100 possessions. Despite its efforts, Indiana is still allowing a ton of points during the postseason. Meanwhile, Holiday has eclipsed this line in six of his past 10 games and I expect him to keep racking up the assists to set up Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
Best bet: Myles Turner over 16.5 points.
Turner took advantage of a favorable matchup in Game 1 against a Celtics team missing Kristaps Porzingis. While Boston made adjustments in the second half, Al Horford is not a great defender at this stage of his career. The Celtics might adopt a committee approach to guarding Turner in Game 2, but he should still be successful. He has attempted 10 or more field goals and scored 16 points in each of his past four games.
Best bet: T.J. McConnell over 9.5 points.
McConnell has been huge for the Pacers this postseason, surpassing this line in seven of his past 10 games. He has been particularly effective penetrating the paint, especially in the semifinals, where he averaged 9.0 points in the paint per game. He played 24 minutes as the Pacers’ sixth man in Game 1 and should be in a great spot to shine in Game 2.
Indiana Pacers at Boston Celtics
East finals – Game 2
8 p.m. TD Garden, Boston
Records (Against the Spread)
Pacers: 47-35 (44-36-2)
Celtics: 64-18 (43-35-4)
Line: Celtics (-8.5) Total: 224.5
Money Line: Pacers (+300), Celtics (-400)
BPI Projection: Celtics by 5.5, straight up 68%, 230.6 total points.
Injury report:
Pacers: Bennedict Mathurin, (OUT – Shoulder)
Celtics: Xavier Tillman, (GTD – Personal); Kristaps Porzingis, (OUT – Calf)