After taking the crucial Game 5 of this Eastern Conference finals series in Miami Wednesday night, the Celtics shoot to clinch a berth in the NBA Finals when they host the Heat for Game 6 Friday night in Boston.
The Celtics began this series as -175 favorites to win it, even though they didn’t own home-court advantage. Now, up three games to two, Boston is chalked at -1200 to win the East, with Miami getting +700 to win the next two games.
Here’s how we homeworked this Game 6 with our free NBA playoffs betting pick.
NBA Playoffs Betting Odds
The NBA playoffs betting lines opened Boston at -8.5 for this Game 6, with an over/under of right around 201. Both figures were holding steady in the early betting action.
Heat-Celtics Game 6 Betting Preview
Boston grabbed a 3-2 lead in this Eastern Conference finals series with a 93-80 Game 5 victory in Miami Wednesday night. The Celtics actually trailed the Heat 42-37 at the half Wednesday and only led by one point late in the third quarter. But Boston then used a 24-2 run to take control, on its way toward the win and the cover as a 3.5-point road favorite.
Also, Game 5 played way under a total of 203.5.
Following a slow start, Boston ended up shooting 47 percent from the field Wednesday while holding Miami to just 32 percent FG shooting.
The Celtics have now won 11 of the 20 quarters played in this series so far and tied four others. The Heat have won only five quarters in this series.
With Wednesday’s victory/cover, Boston is now 11-5 SU, 10-5-1 ATS this postseason.
With Wednesday’s loss, Miami is now 10-6 SU and 9-7 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 5-3, both SU and ATS against the Heat this season.
On the injury front, both Miami F Jimmy Butler and G Kyle Lowry are playing through ailments, and G Tyler Herro is listed as questionable for Game 6 with a sore groin. Meanwhile, Boston G Marcus Smart and C Robert Williams are also listed as questionable for Friday night, although our guess is they’ll play. Bettors might be wise to consult later injury reports before getting down on this game.
- Get more details: Miami at Boston Game 6 Betting Stats
NBA Betting Trends
- Boston is 5-3 SU, 4-4 ATS at home this postseason.
- Miami is 3-4, both SU and ATS on the road this postseason.
Totals Report
- The Under is 9-7 in Celtics games this postseason.
- The Under is 11-5 in Heat games this postseason.
- The overs are 3-2 in this series but Games 4 and 5 both played way under their totals.
