Philadelphia (34-23) at Milwaukee (36-23)
When: Thursday, February 17th 2022
Where: Fiserv Forum,
Milwaukee, WI
Time: 8:30 ET | TV: TNT
Opening Odds: Milwaukee -6.5/223
The race for the top seed in the Eastern Conference is wide open as we enter the All-Star Break this weekend. Two of those teams vying for the East title will battle in Milwaukee on Thursday night as the Bucks host the Philadelphia 76ers. Entering Wednesday’s action, the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls are tied for the No. 1 seed with Milwaukee 1.5 games back and Philly is behind Cleveland at 2.5 games back. Milwaukee is playing through a ton of injuries recently, but came away with a 128-119 win over the slumping Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night. They have failed to cover their last three games, losing outright to Phoenix and Portland before the win over Indiana as 14-point favorites. Milwaukee will be without Pat Connaughton after he underwent surgery on his right hand and Brook Lopez, who is still recovering from back surgery.
The 76ers are coming off one of their worst losses in franchise history on Tuesday night. The Boston Celtics came into Wells Fargo Center and handed Philly a 135-87 beatdown. It was Boston’s third straight road win over 30 or more points. Thursday’s game in Milwaukee will be the last Philadelphia plays without recently acquired James Harden. He plans to make his debut after the All-Star break on Feb. 25 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Harden averaged 22.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 10.2 assists in 44 games with the Brooklyn Nets. The Sixers lost 118-109 at home to the Bucks back in November and failed to cover the spread in five of the last six meetings with Milwaukee.
Joel Embiid led the Sixers with 19 points and nine rebounds on Tuesday, but was just 3-of-9 shooting, his lowest scoring total since Dec. 15. Tyrese Maxey was next with 11 points, and Paul Millsap and Georges Niang each chipped in nine off the bench. The reserves got a lot of playing time in the blowout loss, so the starters should be well-rested for Thursday. In the month of February, Embiid is averaging 30.3 points and 13 rebounds while recording a double-double in six of seven games. Shooting guard Matisse Thybulle was held to just one point and missed all six of his shots against the Celtics – all 3-point attempts.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was incredible on Tuesday night, pouring in a season-high 50 points on a sizzling 17-of-21 shooting and grabbed 14 rebounds after missing one game with a sore ankle. Khris Middleton was a distant second with 19 points and eight assists, and Jrue Holiday contributed 14 points and eight assists. Lindell Wigginton came off the bench to score a career-high 12 points. The injury list continues with George Hill out with a neck i has also been sidelined with a neck injury, Wesley Matthews was inactive against the Pacers due to a sore toe and Grayson Allen is questionable after leaving Tuesday’s game with a hip injury.
The Sixers rank into a hot Celtics team the other night and they haven’t played well at home all season. The road is a different story. The 76ers have covered six of their last eight away from home and have covered five in a row as road underdogs. I’ll take the points.
Check out who Bobby Babowski has on his Free NBA Picks page for today.
Pick: 76ers +6.5
