Heat vs Pacers NBA Handicapping
These two teams are like that kid that gets accepted into his or her first choice of college; once that acceptance letter is retrieved out of your mailbox, it’s party time and to hell with the consequences. [ad-4468020]
Free NBA Predictions
Date/Time: Wednesday, March 26 2014, 8 pm EST
Venue: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis IN
Miami, Indiana
Spread: Pacers -2
Over/Under: 188
[dfads params=’groups=63740&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
ATS Matchup Insight | CappersPicks Insider Preview
Both the Heat (48-21) and the Pacers (51-20) have clinched playoff berths in the woeful Eastern Conference, consequently both squads have been playing pretty crappy basketball.
The Boys from South Beach and the blue-collar Midwest outfit are both 5-5 in their last 10 ballgames; the Heat narrowly avoided another poor result when they squeaked by the reeling Portland Trail Blazers 93-91 Monday night.
*CLICK HERE* GRAB OUR BEST Expert NBA Picks for 2014 GAMBLING season!
There’s been a lot of recent media uproar about Miami’s underwhelming performances and to their credit, superstars LeBron James and Chris Bosh are not making any excuses for shoddy play.
Monday night’s rallying win against a Western Conference opponent might be enough to get the Heat playing as a unit again, and a win Wednesday night at Indiana would definitely advance that cause.
You know what you’re going to get with the Indiana Pacers: Relentless team defense and rebounding. No Pacer is in the double-digits in rebounding average (Lance Stephenson leads with 7.3 per) and yet Indiana ranks fifth in the NBA in rebounds per game.
The Pacers also lead the entire league in scoring average against, so if any team is built to thwart the juggernaut of the Heat, it’s the Pacers (when they are playing up to snuff). Indiana is coming off a frustrating 89-77 loss to the regional rival Chicago Bulls.
[ad-6571516]
If the Pacers are worth their salt, they will aim to show their 50+ win mettle against the most superstar-laden team in the Association.
These clubs are quite evidently leaving something in reserve left in the tank each night to build up for when the full-steam-ahead playoffs approach, and with the Philly 76ers going for a record-number of consecutive losses in hopes of securing the first overall pick in the Draft, no quirk in the NBA as it pertains to effort surprises me anymore.
Indiana’s image, however, is to give a spirited, blue-collar effort every time out. This is a compelling match-up because it more than likely will be a preview of a postseason matchup we will see in a couple months’ time.
The victor on Wednesday night will be making a nice statement to carry into the playoffs about who is the conference’s premier team.
Picking a game against two established top-tier clubs with playoff history like these teams have is always a bit precarious, but Indiana’s home-court advantage has always been remarkable, even back in the Reggie Miller days. Indiana basketball fans take pride in their team’s brand of basketball and especially when the hotshot Miami Heat breeze into town, crazed fans use towel-waving and a high decibel level to throw some water on those flames.
NBA Free Pick
Home-court advantage can be a factor with any team, but especially with the Pacers, who summon so much energy from the crowd, I think it matters that this game is being played in Indianapolis.
Regardless of how the Heat answer the bell come playoff time (and you can be almost certain that they will) I could see their up-and-down play continuing with a tough road game versus a team that usually makes you earn every point and will leave a couple of bumps and bruises in the process.
Pacers 103, Heat 100
