After splitting the first two games of this Eastern Conference finals in Miami, the teams now play a big Game 3 Saturday night in Boston. The Celtics opened this series as -175 favorites to win it, with the Heat, who actually owned home-court advantage, getting +155 as the underdogs. Now, after stealing home-court advantage away, Boston is chalked at around -295 to win this series, with Miami now getting +235. Here’s how we homeworked this Game 3 with our free NBA playoffs betting pick.
NBA Playoffs Betting Odds
The NBA playoffs betting lines opened Boston at -6.5 for Game 3, with an over/under of right around 208.5. Early betting action then dipped that total a point to 207.5.
Heat-Celtics Game 3 Betting Preview
Miami won Game 1 of this Eastern Conference finals series Tuesday night 118-107, but Boston evened things up with a 127-102 Game 2 romp Thursday night. The Celtics actually trailed Game 2 by double-digits early but used a 60-21 run to lead 70-45 at the half. Boston then never let the Heat get any closer than 17 points from there on its way to the victory. The Celtics shot 51 percent from the floor Thursday, hit 20/40 from 3-point land, and won the turnover battle 15-10. Also, Game 2 played over a total of 206 with plenty of time to spare. With Thursday’s win, Boston is now 9-4 SU, 8-4-1 ATS this postseason. With Thursday’s loss, Miami is now 9-4 SU and 8-5 ATS this postseason. The Heat finished two games ahead of the Celtics in the regular-season standings, but Boston took the season series from Miami two games to one. So the Celtics are now 3-2, both SU and ATS against the Heat this season. On the injury front Miami G Kyle Lowry, who’s missed the first two games of this series with a bad hamstring, is listed as questionable for Saturday night. Meanwhile, Boston G Marcus Smart and F Al Horford both missed Game 1 of this series, but both played Thursday night.
- Get more details: Miami at Boston Game 3 Betting Stats
NBA Betting Trends
- Boston is 4-2 SU, 3-3 ATS at home this postseason.
- Miami is 2-3, both SU and ATS on the road this postseason.
Totals Report
- The Under is 7-6 in Celtics games this postseason, which are averaging 213 total points.
- The Under is 9-4 in Heat games this postseason, which are averaging 207 points.
- The Over is 3-2 in Heat-Celtics games this season, which are averaging 209 total points.
