A mouth-watering encounter is in the cards this coming Saturday as the second-seeded Toronto Raptors square off with the No. 7 Indiana Pacers in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference First Round series. The Raptors have been unstoppable at home of late, winning each of their last four games at Air Canada Centre. Dwane Casey’s men will look to protect their home court against an Indiana side that has lost three of its four meetings with Toronto this season.
Line: Indiana Pacers (+6.5) at Toronto Raptors (-6.5); total: 195.0 – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Betting on the Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers will enter the 2016 NBA Playoffs with momentum on their side after edging past the Milwaukee Bucks, 97-92, on Wednesday night. It was the third straight win for the Pacers who finished the season with a 45-37 slate. The Pacers, who are pegged at +5,000 to win the Eastern Conference, have now won six of their last seven games.
Key to Indiana’s late-season charge has been its excellent play on the defensive end. The Pacers are allowing an average of just 99.7 points over their last seven games. The Pacers are eighth in the NBA in scoring defense this season, surrendering just 100.5 points per contest. The Pacers will have their work cut out for them, however, against a Toronto team that averaged 102.0 points against them in four meetings this season.
For the Pacers to record a major upset in Game 1, they will need Paul George to continue his outstanding play. He turned in one of the better comeback seasons of the past 20 years, nabbing a career-high 23.1 points with seven rebounds, while playing in 81 games. George also tied career highs in the assists (4.1 APG) and steals (1.9 SPG) departments. He averaged 16.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.75 steals in four meetings with the Raptors this season.
The Pacers are 6-4 SU and 5-5 ATS in their last 10 road games.
The Toronto Raptors will head to their first-round clash with Indiana with a spring in their step after eking out a 103-96 win over the Brooklyn Nets in their final regular-season game on Wednesday night. With the victory, the Raptors established a new mark as they finished the season with a franchise-record 56 wins.
Much of the credit for the Raptors’ rise this year should go to their talented backcourt duo of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan. Lowry reaped the benefits of his rigorous offseason training, averaging 21.5 points and a team-high 6.4 assists per game this season. DeRozan, on the other hand, led the Raptors in scoring this campaign, averaging 23.5 points per contest.
They will fancy their chances of extending that excellent form against the Pacers as they have fared extremely well against Indiana this season. DeRozan and Lowry combined for an average of 48 points in three meetings with the Pacers this campaign.
Another player who’s expected to play a huge role in the series opener is DeMarre Carroll. He has just returned from a serious knee injury and he’s expected to be Paul George’s primary defender in this series. Carroll has had some success against George in the past, holding the Indiana All-Star to just 39.6 percent shooting in three games played in the 2013-14 season. That was George’s last healthy year in the NBA.
The Raptors are 5-0 SU and ATS in their last five home games against the Pacers.
