Few things in sports are better than a Game 7 in the NBA Playoffs. No wonder all eyes will be on the showdown later tonight between the Indiana Pacers and the Toronto Raptors, as both teams look to book a ticket to the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Over at the NHL, the Nashville Predators pay the San Jose Sharks a visit for a pivotal Game 2 of their own series.
Read on below for a quick breakdown of these two critical playoff games and while you’re at it, you can check out our preview of Game 7 between Charlotte and Miami.
The Indiana Pacers forced a winner-take-all Game 7 with an emphatic 101-83 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday. All five starters scored in double figures for the Pacers who are now only one win away from becoming the sixth team with the No. 7 seed to upset a No. 2 seed since the NBA Playoffs expanded in 1984.
For the Raptors to avoid that embarrassing fate, they will need Kyle Lowry to step up in Game 7. Through the first six games of the postseason, Lowry has only shot 7-of-39 from beyond the arc. His 18 percent shooting from 3-point range is the second lowest in the past 30 seasons (minimum 30 attempts).
Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, have combined for an average of just 30.1 points in this series. That pales in comparison to the monster numbers Paul George is putting up for Indiana in this best-of-seven matchup. He’s averaging 27.5 points on 45.7 percent shooting for the Pacers.
The Raptors are 7-3 SU and 6-4 ATS in their last 10 home games against the Pacers.
Writer’s Prediction
Toronto beats Indiana, 97-91, to advance to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2001.
Nashville Predators vs. San Jose Sharks (8:00 PM ET)
A can’t-miss showdown is on tap later tonight at the SAP Center as the Predators and the Sharks play the second game of their Western Conference Semifinal series. Pekka Rinne (4-4, 2.53 GAA, .915 SV% this postseason) is pressured to come up with a great performance tonight, as he’ll be in between the pipes again following the Preds’ gut-wrenching 5-2 loss in the series opener on Friday.
The Sharks, meanwhile, will have the ever-reliable Martin Jones on the other end of the ice. The Canadian netminder stopped 29 shots in San Jose’s critical Game 1 win. He has allowed two or fewer goals in four of six playoff games this year. Jones has a 2.15 GAA and a .917 save percentage in this year’s playoffs.
What makes San Jose such a tough team to beat is its excellent play with the man-advantage. The Sharks went 2-for-3 on the power play in Game 1 against the Predators. They were third in the league with the man-advantage (22.5 percent) during the regular season, and they scored five power-play goals on 21 attempts in their first-round series win against the Los Angeles Kings.
The Sharks are 6-4 SU and 7-2-1 OU in their last 10 home games against the Preds.
Click here for an in-depth breakdown of this game.
Writer’s Prediction
San Jose edges past Nashville, 3-2, to grab a commanding 2-0 series lead.
