Jan 8 NBA Betting: Celtics vs Pacers Prediction & Pick Insights

Boston Celtics (28-7 SU, 17-16 ATS) vs. Indiana Pacers (20-15 SU, 20-15 ATS)

When: Monday, January 8th, 7:00 PM (ET)

Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, IN, Indianapolis

TV: NBCS

Point Spread: Bos -3.5/Ind +3.5

Total: 244.5

Money Line: Boston Celtics -163/+135

Notable Injuries

Celtics

• Kristaps Porzingis (Questionable) Eye
• Jayson Tatum (Questionable) Injury Management
• Sam Hauser (Questionable) Right Shoulder

Pacers

• Bruce Brown (Questionable) Knee
• Isaiah Jackson (Questionable) Finger
• Andrew Nembhard (Questionable) Back

Recent Form

As the Celtics get ready to take on the Pacers, they are sitting in 1st place in the Eastern Conference. Overall, Boston is 28-7 and has put together back-to-back wins.

Coming into today’s game, the Celtics are favored by 3.5 points on the road. So far, they have an average scoring margin of +6.8 on the road compared to +15.0 at home.

Out of their 35 games, Boston has been the favorite 33 times and has gone 26-7. When favored, their average scoring margin is 10.4 points per game. This season, in two straight games, they have both won and covered the spread.

The over/under record in their games is sitting just below .500 for the season at 19-16. So far, the majority of their games have had lower over/under lines than today’s line of 244.5. The average over/under line in their games has been 229.6.

Heading into today’s game vs. the Celtics, the Pacers are 3.5-point underdogs at home. If they are able to pull off the win, they will also snap their two-game losing streak.

Overall, the Pacers are 7th in the Eastern Conference standings and sit 3rd in the Central Division on a record of 20-15. Against other teams in the East, the Pacers have gone 17-11 compared to 3-4 in non-conference matchups.

When playing at home, Indiana has been the betting favorite in 19 of their 29 games and has a scoring margin of +7.3 points per contest. Their average ATS record for the season is 20-15, and they have each of their last three games vs. the spread.

So far, the Pacers have an over/under record of 24-11 in their games, and the over has gone 10-6 in their previous games with lower over/under lines than today’s line of 244.5. On average, their games have finished with 251 points this season.

The Historicals

In terms of betting, Boston has an ATS record of 3-2 in the previous five matchups vs Indiana. This mark has come on an average scoring margin of +17 points per game in favor of the Celtics. In these contests, they averaged a combined 241 points per game, leading to an over-under mark of 2-3.

Analysis

In their most recent game, the Celtics’ offense finished with 118 points, which is right around their season average of 120.9 points per game. Jayson Tatum had a game-high 38 points for the Celtics in their last game, while Jaylen Brown added 31 points.

This season, the Celtics defense has been impressive, holding the 3rd position in the league while permitting an average of 110.1 points per contest. Boston’s defense is currently forcing 12.6 turnovers per game, which is 10th in the league. Additionally, they enter the game ranked 2nd in blocked shots, with an average of 6.4 rejections per game.

In the Pacers’ last game vs. the Celtics, they put up 101 points. They shot 41.3% from the field and hit eight three-pointers. Bennedict Mathurin was the Pacers’ leading scorer vs. the Celtics with 20 points. Tyrese Haliburton also added 17 points in the game.

Coming into the game, the Pacers’ defense is giving up an average of 124.2 points per game. So far, they have given up more points than the NBA league average in 74.3% of their games. In terms of takeaways, the Pacers are causing 12.7 turnovers per game, ranking 12th in the league. They also enter the matchup ranked 5th in rejections, averaging 6.3 blocked shots each game.

Betting Trends

• Across their last three road contests, Boston has been good against the spread posting a mark of 2-1. Their overall mark in these games was 2-1, while averaging 125 points per game.
• The Pacers are 3-0 ATS in their last three home games and 3-0 straight-up.
• Going back to their previous ten games as the underdog, Indiana has an ATS mark of 5-5 while going 5-5 straight up.
• The Celtics have played well in their last five games as the betting favorite, going 4-1 straight up and 3-2 against the spread.

Joes Pick To Cover The Spread

These two squads just met up on Saturday, with the Celtics easily taking down the Pacers. But with Porzingis and Tatum listed as questionable, the Celtics are only favored by +3.5 today. Look for Indiana to make this one more competitive and cover the spread tonight. I’m taking the Pacers at +3.5.