The defending champion Miami Heat welcome the Boston Celtics to the AmericanAirlines Arena in South Florida tonight. The once bitter Eastern Conference rivals are scheduled to tip off at 7:30pm ET; their meeting will be broadcast live on NBA TV. The latest NBA Betting Odds from offshore bookmaker Sportsbook.ag have the Heat listed as a -9 against the spread home favorite and the Over/Under set at 197.5 points.
The Heat's just concluded six game road swing was anything but kind to them as they dropped games to the Knicks, Nets, Wizards, and Hawks. Miami did score wins over the 76ers and Bobcats, but they required overtime to slip past Charlotte.
The Heat's most recent slip up took place last night at the Philips Arena in Atlanta. Miami, which played without Dwyane Wade, did more than enough offensively to get a win, but its defense was lacking as the Hawks hit on 42 of their 81 field goal attempts.
Despite their recent troubles, the Heat, who dropped to 29-12 after yesterday's loss, have far fewer problems than the Celtics. Boston enters tonight's contest with a 14-28 record and it suffered its 11th loss in its last 12 games on Sunday in Orlando.
The Magic, who have just 11 wins this season, scored a 93-91 win after limiting the Celtics to 36.7 percent from the field and 23.1 percent from beyond the arc. Only three Boston players scored in double figures and the recently returned Rajon Rondo tallied six points on 3-of-10 shooting in 21 minutes of action.
Tonight's game marks the second meeting between these two teams this season. Boston, shockingly, topped Miami 111-110 when they hooked at the AmericanAirlines Arean on November 9th. The Heat shot 57 percent from the field in the loss, but they attempted 18 fewer field goals than Boston.
Notable Trends: Miami is 1-6 against the spread in its last seven games as a home favorite against an Atlantic Division team.
NBA Betting Odds Boston Celtics vs Miami Heat:
Boston Celtics +9 (-110), Over 197.5 (-110), +360 (Moneyline)
Miami Heat -9 (-110), Under 197.5 (-110), -460 (Moneyline)
The Myth Regarding Sharps vs Squares
Brady Kannon and host Steve Fezzik from Pregame.com, discuss the myths regarding the Sharps vs the Squares theory.
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