Boston Celtics vs Philadelphia 76ers betting tips and predictions for Thursday’s NBA Playoffs game on TNT. The winner of Game 5 takes the lead as the Celtics and 76ers square off with the series being tied at 2-2. Read on for all our free predictions and betting tips.
Boston Celtics
Wasted opportunities are the two words that could sum up Game 4 for the Celtics who fell in overtime 116-115. Marcus Smart had a couple of chances to give them a 3-1 series lead, but first he fell short at the end of regulation and then when he made the shot at the end of OT he was too late.
Boston returns home where they were 32-9 SU during the regular season, ESPN’s Analytics give them 62.1% of a chance to win Game 5. In order for that to happen though, Jaylen Brown needs to stay out of foul trouble early and Jayson Tatum needs to avoid starting the game making just 1 of his first 9 shots in the first half. What should give the Celtics optimism here is the fact that they’ve gone 10-2 SU in their last 12 home games and they’ve won 15 of 20 vs Philadelphia at TD Garden.
Philadelphia 76ers
James Harden’s heroics have reached another level for the 76ers as he was once again unstoppable like he was in Game 1. On Sunday Harden scored 42 points, dished out 9 assists and made the game winning three-pointer towards the end of the game that put Philly up for good. Now the question is can they repeat that performance on the road?
The last time they played in Boston, Philadelphia got destroyed 121-87 so they have a mountain to climb in tonight’s game. The oddsmakers have made them 7.5 point underdogs, in that role the Sixers have covered the spread just twice in 9 games, plus they are only 3-6 SU in the last 9 meetings with Boston. However, with 5 wins in 6 road games to end the regular season and start the Playoffs, the Sixers can hope for an upset here.
I like Boston in this spot, they’ve been dominant at home all year long and although they’ve lost to Philly in Game 1 there, I can’t see that happening twice in the same series. Role players play a lot better at home, so expect the bench to produce a lot more than it did in Games 3 and 4. Take the Celtics to cover.
Boston Celtics vs Philadelphia 76ers Predictions & Odds
As we saw in Game 4 a slower tempo benefits the Sixers, but since the game went into overtime the total went over. The Celtics will try to push the tempo here, in the first 2 home games they put up 115 and 121 points, that recipe has worked well even in Round 1 against the Atlanta Hawks. Boston is one of the deepest teams in the NBA, so I doubt the Sixers will be able to hang with them offensively if they put up a ton of points here.
The total has cashed on the over in 7 of their last 8 games and in 4 of their last 5 vs Eastern Conference opponents. For Philadelphia the over has landed in 24 of 45 road games this season, plus in 11 of their last 15 played on a Tuesday. I think all those trends will carry on tonight, so let’s go with the points in Game 5.
