Posted on
3/5/2008 2:24:31 PM
NBA ATS Showdown – Orlando Magic at Washington Wizards
By Eric Williams
While the Orlando Magic, (39-23 SU, 39-22-1 ATS, 30-30-2 O/U), are trying to wins as many games as possible while trying to secure the highest seed possible in the eastern conference playoffs, the Washington Wizards, (29-30 SU, 35-24 ATS, 28-31 O/U) have just been trying to keep their collective head above water while dealing with injuries to two of the team’s all-star players in point guard Gilbert Arenas and small forward Caron Butler.
"They are still playing great basketball without me and Caron," Arenas said. "And that shows a lot."
The Wizards, who are about to get Arenas back, likely inside the next two weeks, have managed to maintain the sixth-seed in the eastern conference, despite playing over 50 games without Arenas and the last month without Butler. Arenas underwent his first full-court practice with the Wizards on Tuesday.
"It felt good. I was surprised about my wind - I wasn't as tired as I thought I was going to be," Arenas said. "I was just excited to get out there and play basketball. ... My knee is fine so far. We'll see how it acts tomorrow after a day of rest."
Both team enter tonight’s matchup having won two straight games, with the Wizards jumping all over the New Orleans Hornets, 102-84 on Sunday and the Magic beating the Toronto Raptors 102-87 last night to cover as 9.5-point favorites as predicted in the BetUS.com Locker Room yesterday.
Washington’s other all-star, forward Antawn Jamison gave the Hornets fits, scoring 28 points and pulling down nine rebounds.
The Magic took another step toward winning the Southeast division, winning for the fifth time in their last six games while increasing their division lead to 8 1/2 games over the Wizards.
Orlando got 24 points from Hedo Turkoglu, 22 from Rashard Lewis and 19 from Dwight Howard in beating the Raptors.
Both teams have covered the spread in two consecutive games and five of their last six.
Here is a look at tonight’s key trends, followed by my analysis and NBA Betting Free Picks:
The Magic are 9-1 ATS in their last 10 games vs. a team with a losing S.U. record.
The Magic are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games as a favorite.
The Wizards are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 vs. NBA Southeast.
The Wizards are 7-0 ATS in their last 7 games playing on 2 days rest.
The Under is 4-0 in Magic last 4 games following a S.U. win.
The Under is 6-0 in Wizards last 6 games as an underdog.
The Magic are 5-1 ATS in the last 6 meetings in Washington.
The Under is 5-1 in the last 6 meetings in Washington.
Analysis: While the Wizards have done an excellent job of keeping their postseason hopes alive without two of their top three players, they have no answer for stopping Dwight Howard in the low post tonight. Take the Magic to win outright and cover on the road, though I actually think the best wager for this contest is to take the ‘Over’.
NBA Free Picks: Over 201 Total Points/Orlando -3 Points
07:05 PM EST NBA Betting Odds
Orlando Magic -3 -110
Washington Wizards +3 -110
Over 201 -110
Under 201 -110
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