Game 2 Betting Odds: Boston Celtics vs. Indiana Pacers Spread: Celtics -7.5 Over/Under: 204 Time: 7 p.m. ET TV Channel: TNT Series Score: Celtics Lead 1-0 >> All odds as of 10:30 a.m. ET. Download The Action Network App to get real-time odds and live win probabilities on your bets. Game 1 of this series was UGLY with just 158 total points scored in a 10-point Celtics win. Are these teams due for a bounce-back offensive game? Our analysts discuss. Betting Trends to Know The Celtics and Pacers combined to scored 158 points in Game 1, well under the over/under of 210.5. This 52.5-point differential marks the most points a game has gone under since at least the 2005 postseason. In that time, only five previous games had gone under by 40 or more points; in the next playoff game, the over went 3-2. — John Ewing Both the Pacers and Celtics really struggled offensively in Game 1, shooting below 40% from the field. This will be just the fourth Game 2 since 2005 featuring two teams that shot less than 40% from the field in Game 1. The last instance occurred in the first round of the 2015 playoff series between the Raptors and Wizards. The three games prior to tonight went over the betting total by 10.8 points per game. — Evan Abrams The Pacers not only struggled from the field, but they struggled from the free throw line, too, shooting 12-of-21 (57.1%). Since 2005, playoff teams that shot below 40% from the field and under 60% from the line in their previous game have bounced back well, going 12-5 ATS, covering by 6.0 PPG. — Abrams Locky: Why Is This Spread the Same As Game 1? The biggest problem in this series is that, despite Nate McMillan being a good coach and the Pacers overachieving without their star, it’s tough to make adjustments in this spot. The Pacers are going to struggle to score in this series; that’s a given. Sure, they aren’t going to shoot as abysmally as they did in Game 1 (especially considering how many open shots they missed in the third quarter), but they don’t really have a singular player who can create a mismatch and force a defense to make adjustments. I guess that could be Tyreke Evans if he gets hot, but that’s about it. While Bojan Bogdanovic is a nice player, he isn’t controlling a game. Let’s also remember that there are many things for the Celtics to improve on going forward, as well. Their effort level in the first half was poor. They didn’t make many shots — only one of their players (Jayson Tatum) shot better than 50% from the field — and they also turned the ball over 17 times. It was a lackluster, bad performance, and they still completely steamrolled Indiana in the second half with a better defensive effort. What happens if the Celtics even play competently for four quarters? Now, that’s something Boston fans have been asking for a few months, but I think this number is low considering what we saw in Game 1, combined with what these teams have been for months. The Celtics closed -7.5 in Game 1 and remain -7.5 in Game 2. Really … no adjustment? I like Boston to put out a better offensive effort in Game 2, having played what will most likely be its worst game of the series in a win. — Ken Barkley Mears: How I’m Handicapping Tonight’s Game With just a cursory look at the data, it seems like the Pacers might be a good candidate to bounce back in Game 2. They were egregiously bad in Game 1, but they actually took the most shots classified as “wide open” by NBA.com (defender six-plus feet away) of any team in a series-opening game. On those, they were shockingly inefficient, posting a miserable 26.1% field goal rate and 34.8% effective field goal mark. On wide-open 3-pointers, Indiana shot just 26.7%. Those marks are sure to go up. That said, Boston did a good job limiting Indiana’s best players. Bogdanovic, Indy’s best shooter at 42.5% from behind the arc this season, got just one wide-open shot. Doug McDermott got just one, as well. Wesley Matthews and Myles Turner — capable shooters but ones the Celtics aren’t scared of in a series — were left open much more often. Jaylen Brown, starting for Marcus Smart, did a good job bothering Bogdanovic: Again, the Pacers will shoot better regardless, but who is shooting is much more important, and the Celtics were excellent in that regard. And it’s not like the Celtics were awesome on offense and should regress. They actually shot worse than the Pacers on wide-open shots, hitting just 23.5% of them — 26.7% from beyond the arc. Al Horford, an awesome mid-range shooter, was the main culprit, but the Pacers did allow Kyrie Irving to get a team-high seven open attempts. The Celtics could definitely get better, too. The Celtics covered Game 1 as an eight-point favorite, and now they’re right there again at -7.5 for Game 2. My biggest piece of advice is to don’t buy into the zig-zag theory on the Pacers. I’d lean Boston again. — Bryan Mears Moore: Why I’m Passing Here’s me looking at this game: The Celtics are at home, they have sizable matchup advantages and they played better than the margin showed in Game 1. However… the Pacers tied the Celtics in the first quarter and won the second and fourth quarters. They just had a monstrous, nightmare-ish stretch in the third quarter that sealed the game. With the line holding at -7.5, I don’t feel good about Boston. But the Celtics also played really well and made mistakes they are unlikely to repeat, especially in the turnover department. The Pacers can’t create separation coming off screens or hand-offs with how Boston is slamming across the screens and contesting from behind. The Celtics can’t generate space with the hands and bigs coming at them. The under seems likely, but with points off turnovers and Kyrie Irving involved that doesn’t feel safe, either. I’ve got no sense for this series yet, and I want one more game to make sure all of our assumptions about Boston are proven true. I’ll pass. – Matt Moore Editor’s note: The opinions on this game are from the individual writers and are based on their research, analysis and perspective. They are independent of, and may not always match with, the algorithm-driven Best Bets from Sports Insights.<doc-sep>FALLING APART In Game 1, the Celtics used a strong third quarter to give them the advantage they needed to earn the victory. In Game 2, they turned in a simply dreadful effort, and it led to them getting outscored 29-16 in the frame, resulting in 79-68 score heading into the fourth. Already ahead by two, the Pacers used a 10-0 run over 2:39 to go up by 12 just before the midway point. That stretch featured some disturbingly poor ball control and defensive effort by the Celtics. That spurt gave Indy quite a bit of momentum, allowing it to keep Boston at an arm’s reach the rest of the quarter. Irving’s had a game-high 10 third-quarter points. STELLAR FOURTH The Celtics quickly erased the deficit, outscoring the Pacers 31-12 in the fourth to earn the win. Following a lifeless third, the Celtics started to turn things around in the fourth. They kicked off the first 3:27 on a 10-3 run, trimming the deficit to four before Pacers head coach Nate McMillan called timeout. Irving was subbed in soon after the timeout and started going scorched earth, ultimately capping the C’s comeback by draining a triple with 5:25 left to put the hosts up 84-82. WE REPEAT, KYRIE IS ????? pic.twitter.com/2SlBKPyxqc — Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 18, 2019 Trailing by two with under a minute left in regulation, the Celtics took control once and for all. Tatum knocked down a baseline trey with 50 seconds left to put the C’s ahead 92-91. Boston responded in the defensive end by forcing Wesley Matthews to take a bad 3-pointer, which he missed. After getting the rebound, the Celtics killed some clock and found Hayward under the basket for an easy two. With 12 seconds left in the game, Matthews fired an awful inbound attempt that didn’t find anyone (other than the Celtics bench). That gave the Celtics the ball back, and resulted in Tatum getting an and-one upon getting fouled on a dunk. The second-year swingman knocked down his free throw to put Boston up 97-91 with 8.8 seconds, putting the game out of reach. PLAY OF THE GAME Sheesh. TATUM BRINGS THE CROWD TO ITS FEET! ??? pic.twitter.com/mpSyepXH8j — Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 18, 2019 UP NEXT The Celtics and Pacers will meet for Game 3 of the series Friday. Tip from Bankers Life Fieldhouse is set for 8:30 p.m. ET. Thumbnail photo via Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports Images<doc-sep>Kyrie Irving scored 37 points and the Boston Celtics rallied late in the fourth quarter to beat the Indiana Pacers by 99-91 on Wednesday night. The win gave Boston a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven, first-round series Coming out of a timeout and with a chance to tie, the Pacers’ Wesley Matthews threw an inbounds pass into the bench on the other side of the court with 12.1 seconds left. On the ensuing play, the Celtics’ Al Horford passed to Jayson Tatum, who was fouled on a two-handed dunk. He completed the three-point play to make it 97-91 with 8.8 seconds left. The Pacers turned it over again and the Celtics were able to close out the game at the free throw line. Tatum scored 26 points, including a thunderous dunk down the stretch to help punctuate a 10-0 run by Boston over the final five minutes.<doc-sep>
Game 1 Betting Odds: Indiana Pacers vs. Boston Celtics Spread: Celtics -7 Over/Under: 209.5 Time: 1 p.m. ET TV Channel: TNT >> All odds as of 10:45 a.m. ET. Download The Action Network App to get real-time odds and live win probabilities on your bets. Brad Stevens and the Celtics will start their trek toward a title with a first-round series against the pesky Indiana Pacers. Can Boston cover the big number at home? Our analysts discuss. Betting Trends to Know No. 4 seeds have struggled to cover the spread in the playoffs since 2005, going 73-88-4 (45.3%) against-the-spread (ATS) in the opening round. It has been even worse since 2010, as 4-seeds are just 34-57-4 (37.4%) ATS. — John Ewing The Celtics-Pacers’ over/under opened at 210.5 and has been bet down to 209.5. Since 2005, in playoff games with high totals (200 or more points), it has been profitable to bet the under when the line decreases one or more points: 76-58-1 (57%). — Ewing The over is 19-7 (73.1%) in Celtics home games this season when they are facing a conference opponent; they’re the most-profitable team to the over in this spot in the league. The over/under in the Pacers/Celtics game is 209.5, which would be the second-lowest total in a Celtics home game against an Eastern Conference opponent this season. — Evan Abrams Mears: How I’m Handicapping Today’s Game Finish reading this entire article absolutely FREE in our app GET OUR FREE APP I wrote the Celtics-Pacers series preview here, and I think this is the most compelling argument for Boston: On the year, these teams are fairly even. But since Jan. 23 — the day Victor Oladipo went down with an injury — the Pacers haven’t been playing at the same level… Before Oladipo injury: 32-15, +5.9 Net Rating (4th), 110.6 ORtg (15th), 104.7 DRtg (4th) 32-15, +5.9 Net Rating (4th), 110.6 ORtg (15th), 104.7 DRtg (4th) After Oladipo injury: 17-19, -1.1 Net Rating (18th), 109.3 ORtg (22nd), 110.3 DRtg (12th) They’re largely playing the same in terms of scheme, but without Dipo to provide efficient scoring. That’s concerning, as are their offensive sets. They’re a very mid-range-heavy team, which is going to be challenging to have success with against a motivated Boston defensive unit at home. Speaking of being at home, Brad Stevens and his Celtics have pretty extreme playoffs splits there vs. on the road. Historically, Stevens is 10-11 ATS on the road in the playoffs vs. 17-9 at home. He’s easily the most-profitable home playoff coach since his first appearance in 2014. He’s also the most-profitable coach to the moneyline at home. Some analysts will make the argument that Marcus Smart’s injury will hurt the Celtics in the playoffs. I don’t necessarily disagree with that sentiment — Smart is one of the best perimeter defenders in the world — but I’m just not sure it matters that much in this series, as the Pacers offense doesn’t have enough to take advantage. This series will really come down to whether the Pacers can score against the Celtics. I’m a little skeptical: Indiana will run a lot of pick-and-rolls, and the Celtics will gladly counter by dropping a big and allowing the Pacers’ ball-handlers to fire away from beyond the arc (they won’t) or from mid-range (they will, which is tough). Thus, I’m interested in betting the Celtics, but if you’re worried about a seven-point spread in what could be a slow-paced, defensive affair, the moneyline of around -300 is worth a look. — Bryan Mears Editor’s note: The opinions on this game are from the individual writers and are based on their research, analysis and perspective. They are independent of, and may not always match with, the algorithm-driven Best Bets from Sports Insights.