The second round continues on Tuesday for the top two seeds left in the Eastern Conference, when the Indiana Pacers travel south to take on the Miami Heat in game 2 of their series. The game is scheduled for a 7:00 pm start time and it will be televised live on TNT. Currently the odds have Miami favored by 7.5 points with the total sitting at 185 points for the contest.
Free Analysis: Miami was fortunate to win Game 1 over Indiana (95-86), but now it will attempt to take a 2-0 series lead without PF Chris Bosh. That should allow more freedom for Indiana’s talented frontcourt to shine. Both C Roy Hibbert (17 points, 11 rebounds) and PF David West (17 points, 12 rebounds) posted double-doubles on the interior in Sunday’s loss, but SF Danny Granger had a miserable 1-of-10 shooting day. This was particularly shocking based on how well Granger played in the final three games of the Orlando series, averaging 24.0 PPG on 46.4% FG. But Granger wasn’t the only Pacers player to have a subpar series opener. The starting backcourt of SG George Hill and SG Paul George combined for just 16 points on 5-of-15 FG (3-of-9 threes), four assists and five turnovers. PG Darren Collison provided a spark off the bench with 10 points and six assists, but committed three turnovers with a minus-8 rating in his 23 minutes of action.The Pacers have played some hard-nosed defense in the playoffs, giving up only 85.7 PPG on 40.0% FG, and they have been solid on the road this season, going 21-15 SU and18-18 ATS, while winning seven of their last eight SU away from home. Despite Bosh getting hurt, Miami still won the rebounding battle (45-38) in game 1 and had more points in the paint (52) than the Pacers (40). League MVP SF LeBron James led all players with 32 points and 15 rebounds (six offensive) in Game 1, and will once again be counted on to attack the glass with Bosh on the sidelines. James took plenty of criticism for struggling in the fourth quarter throughout last year's playoffs. So far in 2012, James has been at his best down the stretch. The newly-crowned MVP scored 16 of his 32 points in the final frame on Sunday. The Heat’s backcourt of Dwyane Wade and Mario Chalmers isn’t likely to shoot a combined 8-for-26 (30.8%) like on Sunday. After all, the pair combined for 32.8 PPG on 48% FG in the first round series versus the Knicks. PF Udonis Haslem will likely get some of Bosh’s minutes, and must be more productive than he was in Game 1 with a meager two points (0-for-4 FG) and five assists in 23 minutes. The Heat defense is giving up just 83.3 PPG (41.4% FG) in the 2012 playoffs, and has allowed 100 points just once in the past 16 games dating back to the regular season. In the past three seasons, Miami has been very successful against Indiana, going 10-2 (8-4 ATS) in 12 meetings with the Pacers.
Free Pick: Im Gonna look to the Over in this one. With Bosh out the heat will be missing a Key defensive player and that should allow the Pacers scoring to be up some in this one. The Pacers have the ability to put points on the board, as they did average 99 ppg in their last 4 games vs Orlando and they did score 97.3 ppg overall on the year. We know the Heat can score, as they put up 95 points in game 1, while at home this year they have averaged a solid 100.5 ppg. Both teams have a chance at hitting the mid 90's in this one.
$25 of picks FREE! No Obligation - No Credit Card Required - Becoming a member is Fast and Free!
Betting Strategies: Handicapping NBA PlayoffsHost Marco D'Angelo and Pregame Pro Vegas Runner discuss their strategies about betting the NBA Playoffs and being successful.