The NBA Playoffs continue on Wednesday night as the Indiana Pacers travel to take on the Orlando Magic in Game 3. The game is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start time and it will be televised nationally on NBA.tv. Currently the odds for this game have the Pacers favored by 3 points with the total sitting at 183.5 points.
Free Analysis: The two teams split the first few games of this series with each team picking up a win in Indiana. The Magic shocked the NBA world by winning the opening game and stealing away home court advantage despite not having center Dwight Howard for the rest of the season. It was a tale of two games, literally, as the Pacers played into their strengths in the second game and picked up a 15-point victory. Ryan Anderson said the team is looking forward to playing at home tonight. Part of playing in Orlando will help the team play more focused than they did in the second game. The Magic were able to steal Game 1 by playing good, tough defense. In both games the Magic held leads at halftime, but in the second game the Pacers were able to use their conditioning to the team's advantage. Pacers starters Danny Granger and David West both played more than 40 minutes, which was well above their average for the regular season. The two teams have played five times this season and each team knows what the other wants to do. Orlando is going to want to run the floor and knock down shots, especially 3s, to win the game. Indiana is going to want to slow the game down and be a bruising offense. In the second game Orlando shot just 8 of 25 from downtown, which isn't playing into their game plan. The Pacers held an impressive 50-28 edge inside the paint and also outrebounded the Magic 46-38. There's not a whole lot of mystery to these teams and what they want to do.
Free Pick: Let's take the Magic here as a home underdog, which is always a tough spot to get in the playoffs. I think the Magic are in a positive spot here, especially after winning one of the first two games in Indiana. Stealing home court advantage is huge in the playoffs and Orlando has a chance to build a massive lead in this series with a win here tonight. Going up 2-1 in the series with one more game at home looks intriguing enough and I believe the Magic will get it done.
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