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It’s a clash of Eastern Conference foes on the parquet floor in the Hoosier State. The Charlotte Hornets are on the road as they make the trip to face the Indiana Pacers Monday night. Charlotte comes in off a 129-120 road win over Atlanta Saturday night in their last contest. Indiana rolled past Cleveland 105-90 at home Saturday night in their previous contest. The Pacers own a 65-44 advantage in the all-time regular season series. This season, the teams split two previous meetings with Indiana rolling to a 120-95 home win in the last matchup on January 20.
Charlotte Hornets Seek Return to .500 Mark
Charlotte bounced back from two straight defeats as they upended Atlanta on the road in a Southeast Division matchup. The Hornets entered Sunday seventh in the Eastern Conference, 1.5 games ahead of ninth-place Detroit: they led the Southeast Division by one game over Miami. Charlotte led by 15 after the opening quarter and by five at the half: they outscored the Hawks 33-18 in the third to take a 20-point edge. The Hornets didn’t allow Atlanta to draw closer than eight in the final quarter. Charlotte shot 54.5 percent from the field, including 19 of 42 from beyond the arc, to offset Atlanta shooting 53.5 percent in the game. Kemba Walker led Charlotte with 37 points and seven assists in the victory.
There is a reason why @KembaWalker was named an All-Star STARTER! Check out the highlights from tonight's 129-120 win over Atlanta @budweiserusa#BudLegendaryMoments #ThisBudsForYou pic.twitter.com/uWNl0SsR8x
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) February 10, 2019
The Hornets are an average team offensively, ranking 16th in the league with 111.5 points per game. Charlotte is 20th in rebounding with 44.3 boards per game and 20th by dishing out 23.5 assists per contest. The Hornets come in ranked 15th in scoring defense by allowing 111.2 points per game. Kemba Walker leads the team with 25.1 points and 5.7 assists this season. Malik Monk puts up 10.4 points per game while Jeremy Lamb contributes 15.1 points a night while Nicolas Batum chips in 9.4 points plus 5.1 boards a game so far this season. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Marvin Williams (10.5 points, 5.5 boards), Cody Zeller, Miles Bridges, Willy Hernangomez and Tony Parker (9.6 points, 3.8 assists) all have to contribute for Charlotte to maintain their momentum. The Hornets are 19th in field goal percentage as the team shoots 45.3 percent from the floor. Charlotte is 8th in the league with 11.9 threes per game while ranking 9th in three-point shooting as they hit 35.8 percent from beyond the arc. Parker is doubtful for this one with a back strain.
Indiana Pacers Shoot for Sixth Straight Win
Indiana rung up their fifth consecutive victory as they took care of Central Division rival Cleveland Saturday night at home. The Pacers entered Sunday third in the Eastern Conference, 4.5 games behind the Bucks for the top spot in both the conference and the Central Division. Indiana led by 13 after the opening quarter and cruised the rest of the way as Cleveland never got closer than nine over the final three stanzas. The Pacers shot 53.6 percent from the field in the contest, including nine of 26 from three-point range, and controlled the glass by a 43-30 margin. Bojan Bogdanovic led the Pacers with 23 points in the win.
CoJo's current stat line:
8 points
7 rebounds
10 assists pic.twitter.com/DxAhohnXtw— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) February 10, 2019
The Pacers are 22nd in the league in scoring with 108.5 points a night. Indiana is 24th in the league in rebounding by collecting 43.4 boards per game. The Pacers are 8th in assists with 26.2 per game but have been solid defensively this season. Indiana is 1st in the league in scoring defense, allowing 103.1 points per game. Myles Turner averages 13.5 points plus seven rebounds and 2.75 blocks per game. Darren Collison (10.4 points, 5.8 assists), Thaddeus Young (12.6 points, 6.3 rebounds), Domantas Sabonis (14.1 points, 9.2 rebounds) and Bojan Bogdanovic (16.8 points) are contributing offensively. The Pacers also rely on Tyreke Evans (10.4 points), Wesley Matthews, Doug McDermott, Cory Joseph and Kyle O’Quinn in their rotation in order to have success. Indiana is 4th in the league by shooting 47.9 percent from the field. The Pacers are tied for 28th with 9.4 threes per game. Indiana stands 5th in the league as they’re knocking down 37.2 percent from beyond the arc. Oladipo suffered a ruptured quad tendon against the Raptors on January 23 and is done for the year. McDermott is out with a rib injury.
Notable Trends
- Pacers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 home games vs. a team with a road winning % of less than .400
- Pacers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 home games vs. a team with a losing road record
- Pacers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game
- Hornets are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600
- Hornets are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games vs. a team with a winning straight up record
- Hornets are 2-10 ATS in their last 12 road games vs. a team with a winning home record
The Bottom Line What to bet on this game.
Full-Game Side Bet
Charlotte has been up and down of late with their win over Atlanta coming after losses to the Clippers and Mavericks where they let leads slip away. The Hornets missed a chance at the deadline to add Marc Gasol, who could have helped push the team up the standings in the East. Indiana was quiet at the deadline but did add Matthews after he was bought out by the Knicks. That provided a proven perimeter option for the Pacers. Indiana is on a roll right now and their tough defense helps carry them to a sixth straight victory.
Prediction: Indiana Pacers -5
Full-Game Total Pick
Indiana is playing solid basketball of late and the addition of Matthews to the mix will only make things better for them going forward. He should be able to slot in and be a solid scoring option to help offset Oladipo’s lost production. The Pacers are the league’s top scoring defense and their offensive production is improving as well. Charlotte has been up and down and while they picked up a win over Atlanta, they had put up only 93 points against Dallas in their previous contest. Can the Hornets find their way to a win in this contest?
The under is 6-1 in the Hornets’ last 7 games after scoring more than 125 points in their previous game, 6-1 in their last seven against the Central Division, 5-1-1 in their last 7 road games vs. a team with a winning home record and 4-1-1 in their last 6 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600. Indiana has seen the under go 5-0 in their last 5 games playing on 1 day of rest, 7-0 in their last seven against Eastern Conference foes and 4-0 in their last four against Southeast Division teams. The teams have stayed under the total in 23 of the last 30 meetings in Indiana: look for that to be the case here as well.
Prediction: Under 217.5
Half-Time Side Pick
The Pacers have been on a roll of late as they have found ways to focus on their strengths rather than try to stick with their old system. Clearly, the loss of Oladipo has been tough but Indiana has found ways to make it work. Charlotte has to be more consistent on both ends of the floor. Getting Zeller back in the mix is important for the Hornets, especially after their chase of Gasol fell short. The Pacers are at home and that works in their favor: look for them to be up at the half in this one.
Prediction: Indiana Pacers -2.5
Half-Time Total Bet
Indiana is rolling defensively as they have held the opposition to 94 points or less in four of the five wins in their current run. The Pacers haven’t allowed more than 54 points in the opening half of a game in that span. Charlotte gave up 53 first-half points to the Clippers and 52 to the Mavericks before the shootout with the Hawks. The halftime score in that game saw the Hornets holding a 73-68 edge. With the Pacers on the floor, you have to think this one is going to be a defensive clash that keeps this one under the total.
Prediction: Under 110