NBA Betting: Celtics vs. Thunder

December 5, 2009

BetOnline

On Friday, December 4th the Boston Celtics head to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder. The Celtics come into this game at 15-4 overall and 8-10 against the spread (ATS) while the Thunder are 10-8 and 11-7 ATS. The latest NBA point spreads are posted here, and currently we are seeing Boston as a 4-point favorite across the board with the total listed at 191. If you plan on getting in on the action tonight, then take a look at the $500 match bonus offered to our readers by BetUS!

Here are some of the NBA betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* BOS has covered its last six games
* BOS has won eight of its last nine road games SU
* OKC has won four of its last six games SU
* OKC has won four of its last six home games SU

Boston comes into this game having built what is a pretty impressive lead in the NBA’s Atlantic Division for this early in the season. The Celtics lead the Toronto Raptors by 8.5 games, and with Philadelphia (5-14), New York (4-15) and New Jersey (0-18) in the same division, there is little doubt that Boston will capture the division crown.

Last night the Celts scored a big road win when they beat San Antonio at the AT&T Center. It was the team’s sixth straight win, and Rajon Rondo, the do-everything point guard, led the way with 12 points, 12 assists and six rebounds. Kevin Garnett had 20 points.

Oklahoma City looks like it is plugging itself nicely into the mix in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. The Thunder is in fourth place in the tightly-bunched Northwest Division, but is only one game back of Portland, which is actually the fifth-place team in the entire conference, so it is evident that this young squad is going to wage war for a playoff spot all season.

Now let’s take a look at some of the head-to-head NBA pro basketball betting trends surrounding this matchup:

* BOS has covered four of the last five meetings
* BOS has won the last five meetings SU
* Four of the last six meetings have gone UNDER the total
* BOS has had the shooting edge in eight of the last ten meetings
* BOS has made more three-pointers in six of the last eight meetings

Scott Brooks had the Thunder playing better basketball after taking over on an interim basis for the fired PJ Carlesimo last season. Of course, the guy who leads the way is Kevin Durant, who is averaging 27.7 ppg, which is fourth in the league. Russell Westbrook is growing rapidly into his role as the point guard, posting a 2-to-1 ratio of assists to turnovers.

Westbrook had himself a season-high 15 assists (and committed only two turnovers) in the Thunder’s 117-106 win over Philadelphia two nights ago, and his team has already scored some wins over heavy hitters, taking the measure of five teams who made the playoffs last year. Oklahoma City has road victories over San Antonio, Miami and Utah.

This may be one of those situations that offers a scheduling advantage of sorts for the Thunder. They’ve had a night off in between games, and Boston is coming from a game in San Antonio which is it was obviously emotionally prepared for. Brooks will have his own team emotionally ready for a game that will be very significant to them, and that will be enough to carry the day, as the Thunder pulls an upset. We’re taking the points with Oklahoma City, the four-point underdog in the BetUS NBA betting odds.

For one of his free NBA picks of the night, Charles Jay is taking Oklahoma City +4. See who our experts are taking with their NBA picks and do a better job of cashing your bets to start the weekend.

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