Philadelphia 76ers AT Atlanta Hawks
Feb 8, 2011 at 7:00 PM EST
Opening Line: Atlanta -4.5
Current Line: Atlanta -4.0
Opening Total: 193
Current Total: 192
Opening Moneyline: Atlanta -190 / Phila +160
Current Moneyline: Atlanta -175 / Phila +155
The Hawks have been very good at home as winners of 14 of their last 16 home games. They may be playing without All Star big man Al Horford tonight, though, as he bruised his back and sat out last game, their victory over Washington. Joe Johnson and Josh Smith didn’t practice, but are both expected to play. With Horford sidelined, Josh Smith went on to score 29 points and commented, “We have so many weapons on the team, it can be anybody’s night at any given time, Coach was running plays for me and I was able to execute.”
Philadelphia has continued to surge and had won 6 of their last 7 before dropping last game to New York. “…We had a great streak and we’re playing really well, so we need to regroup and get on to Atlanta,” said forward Elton Brand who scored an average of 30.5 over the two game session against the two game home and home vs. Knicks. Bettors will be interested to know that Philadelphia is 1-16 when allowing 100 points or more.
Some betting trends:
Philadelphia is 6-2 SU in their last 8 games and the total has gone OVER in 4 of their last 6 games. The total has also gone OVER in 5 of their last 6 road games. Philadelphia is 2-6 SU in their last 8 road games and 1-4 SU in their last 5 against the Hawks. The total has gone OVER in 6 of the last 9 road meetings against the Hawks and Philadelphia is 2-5 SU in their last 7 road games against Atlanta.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Atlanta’s last 7 games and they are 4-1 SU in their last 5. Atlanta is 14-2 SU in their last 16 home games and 2-4 ATS in their last 6 at home. The total has gone UNDER in 8 of the last 12 Hawks’ home games. Atlanta is 4-1 SU in their last 5 against the Sixers and 2-5 ATS in their last 7 against them. The total has gone OVER in 6 of Atlanta’s last 9 home games against Philadelphia and they are 5-2 SU in their last 7 against the Hawks.
Key Matchups:
Jodie Meeks vs. Joe Johnson
Meeks will have to do all he can to slow Johnson. Johnson has been playing exceptional basketball and is once again an All Star in the Eastern Conference. Meeks has been a pleasant surprise for the Sixers and is averaging 12.6 points per game over the last 5 games. It won’t be enough to match Johnson, but Meeks has to look to score and give Johnson something to worry about on defense. Johnson has scored 27 points or more in 3 of his last 5 games and is averaging 17.8 points, 5.2 assists, and 4.0 rebounds in his career against Philadelphia.
Jrue Holiday vs. Mike Bibby
Bibby has absolutely no defense against the lightning quick 6’5″ Jrue Holiday. There would have been a time in Bibby’s career that his offense would have made up for that defecit, but Bibby is in his twilight years now and only averages 9.4 points per game this year in 30 minutes of action a night. Holiday won’t score a ton (13.7 ppg), but he is great at getting into the paint and creating for himself and teammates. He averages 6.5 assists per game and also boards well for a point guard with 4.0 rebounds per game. He might get even more boards against Bibby if Bibby can’t keep Holiday from getting long rebounds on offense.
Given Philadelphia’s recent play, this should be a good game, but the Hawks are extremely tough to beat at Philips Arena and thus are favored by 4 in this game.
