Tip off: 7 PM EST
Spread: MIA -11
Total: 183
M/L: MIA -1200, NYK +800
Betting Odds taken from Bookmaker
Heat Lead series 3-1
The Knicks face elimination after avoiding being swept to the Heat on Sunday. They won the game by only two points, as Carmelo Anthony scored 41, and Amar’e Stoudemire, playing with a heavily stitched hand, scored 20 and grabbed 11 boards. The game ended a 13 game Playoff losing streak to the Heat, and Mike Woodson simply said “It’s about time. This team is good enough to win games…”
Correct, they are good enough to win games, but against Miami? NBA oddsmakers have favored the Heat by 11 tonight, and many expect LeBron James and company to come out with a vengeance to avenge the loss. He’s going to want revenge against former high school rival Carmelo Anthony, who tied the game with a three and 54.5 seconds remaining.
“I’m just glad we came together…kept our composure..and won the basketball game,” Anthony said.
Winning this game will prove to be a far greater challenge. The Knicks have historically struggled in Miami (and against the Heat in general) and the Heat are going to want to close this one out and begin looking ahead to their second round matchup against either the Atlanta Hawks or Boston Celtics, neither of whom should present a true challenge for the Heat. But we’ll look at that series when we get there.
The Heat once again got production from their Big Three in game 4, receiving a total of 66 points from the trio of James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. The problem, of course was that no one else stepped up. The rest of the team scored just 21, the average of one of the big three in that game. Mario Chalmers shot 2 of 10 from the floor and few others even attempted shots. No one else shot more than 5 times, and the Heat shot an abysmal 3 of 19 from distance. That will have to improve for them to cover the spread, and dominate this game as most expect. 68% of bettors at the time of this issue had predicted the Heat would cover the spread, so not too many people are pegging this game to be a close one.
Knicks Betting Trends:
New York is 36-33 ATS this season and 16-16 ATS as an underdog. They are 6-4 ATS on two days of rest and 15-20 ATS on the road. They are 19-16 ATS vs teams with winning records and 9-7 vs team with winning records in the second half of the season. The total has gone UNDER in 28 of the Knicks’ 70 games this season and they are 384-344 ATS an an underdog over the last ten years.
Heat Betting Trends:
Miami is 35-35 ATS this season and 34-31 ATS as a favorite. They are 20-15 ATS at home and 12-9 ATS vs Atlantic Division opponents. They are 20-21 ATS vs team with winning records. The total has gone UNDER in only 2 of the 12 games in which the Heat were a home favorite of 9.5 to 12 points and it has gone OVER in 24 of the 35 games at home this season. The total has gone UNDER in 15 of the 20 games against teams with winning records in the second half of the season.
