It’s down to the last game of the series for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Boston Celtics. The story is simple for both teams: win and advance or lose and go home. Will the Bucks knock out Boston? Or will the Celtics eke out a win to avoid a first-round upset? Read on for a preview of this winner-take-all Game 7 showdown.
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Betting Preview for Milwaukee Bucks vs Boston Celtics NBA Eastern Conference Round 1 Game 7 on April 28, 2018
Where: TD Garden, Boston
When: Saturday, April 28, 8:00 PM EST
Line: Milwaukee Bucks (point spread) vs Boston Celtics (point spread) – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: TNT, FSWI
Betting on the Milwaukee Bucks (+4.5)
The Bucks are on a mission. Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee in Game 6, as he poured in 36 points and had 14 rebounds with four assist and two blocks in 41 minutes of action. Antetokounmpo can’t afford to put up a thud in Game 7, so expect him to force the issue this Saturday. He is averaging 26.3 points on 59.6 percent shooting from the field with 9.7 rebounds and 6.5 assists. Outside of Giannis’ performance, it’s the Bucks’ defense that played the biggest part in the victory on Thursday. The Bucks limited Boston to its poorest shooting in this series, as the Celtics shot just 37.0 percent from the field. Al Horford only had 10 points with the Bucks’ interior defense shutting him down for the entire game. Thon Maker is doing a great job plugging the lane with his length on defense, which has helped limit greatly Boston’s scoring inside. While Milwaukee scored 50 points in the paint in Game 6, Boston only had 36.
Milwaukee is 2-2 ATS in its last four games.
Betting on the Boston Celtics (-4.5)
The Celtics certainly miss Kyrie Irving, but there’s nothing they could do to put Uncle Drew back on the floor this postseason. Instead, Boston needs its remaining reliable pieces to show up. As mentioned earlier, Horford was subpar in Game 6, though, he went 4-for-8 from the field. Horford needs to be more aggressive and try to pick up points from the foul line. He did not have a single attempt from the foul line on Thursday. Perhaps inserting Marcus Morris back to the starting lineup will be a favorable adjustment for the Celtics after Semi Ojeleye laid an egg in 22 minutes on the floor in a start in Game 6. Morris fired 14 points off the bench. While the Bucks’ defense is admittedly tough to crack in the paint, Boston still needs to try driving to the basket to challenge and draw fouls from Maker and company. The Celtics relied heavily on outside shots, drilling 10 from deep on an astonishing 36 tries, while only going 16-for-19 from the foul line, a stark contrast from their 24-for-32 line from the charity stripe in Game 5.
The Celtics are 4-0 ATS in their last four home games against Milwaukee.
Writer’s Prediction
Milwaukee wins, 103-101.
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