Posted on 3/10/2008 4:02:51 PM

NBA Betting Furious Free Picks – What Has Gotten In To Philly?

By Tim Furious

Boston Celtics (49-12) vs. Philadelphia 76ers (30-33)

Monday, March 10th --- Wachovia Center, Philadelphia --- 7:00pm EST

NBA Betting Line: Boston -6.5 (193.5)

Say what you will about Boston, but Philadelphia has not been going quietly in to the nights. They have been throttling opponents during an eight-game home winning streak where they are running teams out of the building by a margin of 18.9 points on average. Whoever slept on Thaddeus Young, who had 22-points in the 119-97 win over Milwaukee on Sunday, is wide, wide, wide awake now.

Thaddeus has keyed on offense that revolves around the hyper-aggressive play of Andre Igoudala, who has 19.6 points per game. Andre Miller has been outstanding, dishing out 6.8 helpers per game while playing much better defense. And of course, the presence of Sammy Dalembert’s 11.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, has given the poor fan base in Philly something to smile about (for once).

Boston has returned to being a stifling defensive force in the NBA. Over the past three games, they have locked their opponents to 89.0 points against. Their stalwart defense has brought them to a 14-7 ATS record in their past 21 road games, along with a five-game winning streak. Those wondering why the line is so tight against Philly have to understand that the Sixers have been playing out of their minds recently, but face a Celtics team that has gone 5-0-1 ATS in the past 6 games when playing in Philly.

Philadelphia is well aware that they need to win this game, or at least keep it very close, to be taken seriously in the Eastern Conference. The problem is that a team like the Sixers, which has been riding on momentum, will hit a brick wall against Boston. They simply do not matchup well against the Celtics. The Celtics have averaged a 50+ shooting percentage against the Sixers this season and that trend is a glaring weakness for these surging Sixers.

When Boston shuts them down offensively early on, the Sixers will get frustrated leading to mistakes and foul trouble. They can’t match the combination of Perkins-Garnett in size, and barely draw even at the perimeter positions. Even on a good night, the Sixers can’t hold a candle to the Celtics. I like Boston with a handicap of -8.0 or less.

What’s more important for Philly is how it rebounds from this loss after barreling through the competition for so long. This game will be a stark reminder of the parity in the Eastern Conference. There’s Cleveland, Detroit, Boston, Toronto, Orlando…and then the rest.

NBA Free Pick: Boston -6.5 (UNDER)

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