Milwaukee Bucks at Boston Celtics
The Bucks will be coming off a disappointing 116-108 loss in Game 4 at home. They started well with a 25-18 first quarter. But their defence faded in the 4th quarter as they allowed 43 points. Giannis didn't have his best shooting night as he finished 14 of 32 from the field but he still finished with 34 pts. He has also struggled in Boston during this series, falling below 50% from the field. The same can be said for Jrue Holiday as he made just 6 of 28 shots in Game 4. However, Brook Lopez is showing some form with an average of 15 pts in his last 2 outings. Wesley Matthews also stepped up with 12 pts and hit 3 of 4 threes. Without Middleton on the court, the lesser likes on the Bucks will need to continue to support Giannis.
Boston rallied to win a crucial Game 4 on the road and will head back home with a lot of confidence. Tatum bounced back from a shocker in Game 3 as he scored 30 pts and collected 13 boards. But the story of the Game 4 victory was veteran Al Horford. He finished with 30 pts as well and was on fire from beyond the arc with 5 threes. As a team, they shot 50% from the field and also were more efficient at the line compared to the Bucks. The only concern is an ongoing knee injury for Robert Williams and he missed Game 4. However, he should be right to play on Thursday after a few day's rest.
Boston are the warm favourites in Game 5, mainly due to home-court advantage. But this should be another tight contest between these two teams. Instead, there's a better chance of the Under saluting. It's 2-0 in this series when the Celtics are the home team. The Under is also 5-2 when the Bucks play at TD Garden. Meanwhile, the Bucks are 8-1 against the Under in their last 9 games and 4-1 away from Milwaukee.
Stadium Record
The Celtics are 5-1 in their last 6 home games. The Bucks have struggled at this venue with a 1-5 record.
Head to Head Record
The series is tied at 2-2 and the head to head is square at 5-5 in the last 10 meetings.
Best Bet
Golden State Warriors at Memphis Grizzlies
The Warriors held off the Grizzlies in Game 4 and are now just one win away from a berth in the next round against the Suns or Mavs. Steph Curry comes off another 30 point outing as he finished with 32 in Game 4 and he's now hit the 30 point mark in 2 straight games. Wiggins scored 17 and Thompson/Poole both finished with 14 pts. But overall, the Warriors met a tougher Grizzlies defence after scoring 142 pts in Game 3. So the Warriors will look to grind out another win on Thursday as they'll want to end this series quickly.
While the Grizzlies went down in Game 4 by 3 points, they showed improvement after a crushing 30 point defeat in Game 3. It's also a challenging time without their best player - Ja Morant - off the court with a knee injury. He's considered doubtful to return in this series so the Grizzlies will need to step up without him to get past the Warriors. In Game 4, their defence was excellent for 3 quarters as they kept Golden State to 62 pts. However, the Warriors got away in the 4th quarter and that was a major difference. Without Morant, Tyus Jones got the start and scored 19 pts. Steven Adams also got a spot start and crushed it with 15 boards / 10 pts.
Memphis showed some fight in Game 4 so we like their chances of keeping this series going for at least one more game. They have a nice record at home as they've covered in 16 of their last 21 and also have a 5-0 ATS record at home against Golden State.
Stadium Record
The Grizzlies have won 13 of their last 16 at home. The Warriors have a 1-4 record in their last 5 at this venue.
Head to Head Record
The Warriors lead this series 3-1 but the head to head is locked at 3-3 this year.
Best Bet
